im your huckleberry Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Back in the mid 90s my friend shot late season whitetail buck that was heated up so bad in the rut that it makes me shiver because I helped him skin it and, wow very strong aroma. Tried hamburger from that buck and it was open the windows to cook it. Taste, wow my Lab wolfed it down, because it flat out made me gag when I tried the burger. Have any of you other hunters ever had this experience with late season in the rut whitetail and what do you do to make it fit for consumption. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawg Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 I've had a couple like that. I'll let the meat drain for a week minimum to ensure all the blood is out....two weeks if it has a stout smell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Not since we have been processing our own, we try to take care to get it right. I spend a lot of time trimming. Both the bucks I killed this year stunk in the field, you would not know in the chili I have made them into that it was not a doe. Had had some in the past that stunk somewhat to cook and tasted bad, not sure those were even the deer we took in to the processor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 3 minutes ago, Dawg said: I've had a couple like that. I'll let the meat drain for a week minimum to ensure all the blood is out....two weeks if it has a stout smell. Yep, this too. We are limited to a cooler, no walk in to hang ours and never cool enough to hang them outside for any length of time. I be sure to drain the cooler often and keep them on ice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 I've never had a bad tasting deer yet and I've shot plenty of buck during the last few days of the season in December. \yeah, they smell really strong on the outside, but as long as you get them skinned out quickly, and get that musky rutty hide off them without transferring any of it onto the meat, you'll be OK. Another thing that can make deer any any big game animal taste bad is bone-soar . It developes rather quickly if the meat is not cooled down fast enough, and what happens is, all that trapped heat within the animal makes it start to go bad from the bone outwards. Just my experience Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin R10 man Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Never had that prob. but we try to skin them within a couple hours, usually let em hang in the cooler for a bit. The buck I shot this Dec., I had to toss the tenderloins, as I caught liver and clipped the paunch. Needless to say it did not smell good. Rest of meat was good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 We always trim 100% of any fat or sinew out, including silver skin. Then grind it 75-25 with pure beef fat. You will never know it isn't hamburger. It's all n the trimming of the deer and the quality of the beef fat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turkeygirl Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 One thing to keep in mind that I try to be careful about is when skinning the deer, especially a buck, don't touch the tarsal glands and if you do, wash your hands before finishing the deer. Never had the meat on any deer though be strong, but we also tend to hang the deer and let it age, a week or so if possible. Although this year the front shoulder on a deer I had shot hung for a few days. Rest of deer was fine but I don't know if there was some blood trapped in this shoulder but it got a little strong and off smelling so I tossed the front shoulder, to play it safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 Yep, you got it Turkeygirl. That tarsal gland is bad news Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
im your huckleberry Posted January 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 He cut those off after he field dressed it. I do remember 2 bullet holes in no mans land on the back part of the ribs, apparently he was hard on the does, and chasing about 5 as the story was told. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted January 13, 2017 Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 (edited) " 2 bullet holes in no mans land on the back part of the ribs " ...sounds like a gut shot to me, and that can spoil the meat also if it is not cleaned out properly. The cavity of the deer must be wiped out as best as possible, and then I spray it with vinegar the kill that gut shot crap. Otherwise that nasty stuff will get absorbed into the meat. Edited January 13, 2017 by buckee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
im your huckleberry Posted January 13, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2017 (edited) No mans land, the void where you don't get lung or heart and you don't get gut and all it does is stumble the deer when you shoot them there. I've shot one there at 8:30 am left him for 2 hrs, caught up to him about 3:30 pm he was still going strong until he run into my next bullet. Edited January 13, 2017 by im your huckleberry 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogdoc Posted January 14, 2017 Report Share Posted January 14, 2017 Nope--I have had some tough meat from a very old buck but still tasted the same. However, I have never shot a buck after the first of December. Most of my kills have been November bucks. todd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly Posted January 14, 2017 Report Share Posted January 14, 2017 I've always tried to remove as much fat as possible and never add other meat to the venison. I started using crushed Rosemary (moderate - not a heavy amount) with every venison preparation about 30 deer ago and have never had a problem regardless of the age of the deer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted January 15, 2017 Report Share Posted January 15, 2017 My wife shot a doe back before we started processing our own. She hit it with the muzzleloader in November, a good hit behind the shoulder. The package of backstraps we got back were full of blood and had hair on them. Never had deer taste that bad as long as i have been hunting and this was a real nice in her prime doe. We have processed our own ever since! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted January 17, 2017 Report Share Posted January 17, 2017 i shot a black tail 2 years ago like that. i just gave it to the neighbors dogs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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