Loading deer by yourself

[Guest dnaky]

Hello....new to this forum. I was hunting by myself last weekend and harvested a nice buck. My problem was getting the the big boy in my pickup truck by myself or should I say lack of getting him in! I tried what seemed like an hour to get him on the tailgate with no luck. Finally had to go all the way back to town and enlist the help of a friend. My question is...does anybody have any tips or devices that they use when trying to load a deer by themselves? Thanks!

[okiedog]

I have run into this myself. I drive a 3/4 ton 4x4 and it sits pretty high up. I finally figured out to leave a big pc of rope in the bed. I can tie it around the antlers or the legs and pull them up high enough to get ahold of them with my hands then can drag them on up onto the tailgate. Sometimes its still no easy chore by yourself. You might also look into one of those carriers that slide into the reciever, it will be alot closer to the ground.

Welcome to Realtree Also!

[wtnhunt]

Welcome to the forums.

When I can I use the tractor bucket, works great. Years past I have loaded a many in the back of the truck, and that tailgate can be a long ways up, especially on a heavy duty 4 wd truck. Anything you can use to tie or hold on to the deer with or get a better grip will help. My sister gave me one of those glen deer handles several years ago. Guess if you had to you could get one end of the deer up, tie it off, then swing the other end in.

[Rem308]

I had a similiar problem a few years ago with a big-bodied buck and my 4x4, which sits high. I ended up using a ratchet-style tiedown. I pulled the buck up as high as I could get it by myself, then used the ratchet strap to winch it up there. Now I have my four wheeler with a winch, but in a pinch you can do this. It's still not easy and bad for your back!

[AaronS]

I load the deer onto the front rack of my 4 wheeler then drive up the ramp into the bed of the truck. The problem I have is it seems harder to get the deer onto the 4 wheeler than it is to get it into the bed of a truck.

[Texan_Til_I_Die]

Been there, done it. I tie a rope around the head, get into the bed of the truck and pull as much deer into the bed as I can, then tie off the rope. I jump out, grab the back end of the deer and sort of lift and roll it the rest of the way in.

[Guest bowhunter56]

And I though i was the only one with this problem, took me close to half an hour to load the last one..

[ladydiehard]

I often hunt alone and would never stand a chance with a pickup.

I pull a small trailer that has a tilt bed. Its still not easy cause I'm not a muscle woman but at least its doable if I absolutely must do it myself.

[Guest Andrea]

I usually have help but I'm pretty stubborn about stuff so I put a sheet of plywood in the bed of the truck and use it like a ramp to pull the deer up onto the bed. Tie a rope around the head, pull as far as you can, tie it off then do the same with the other end. The board helps a lot.

[LifeNRA]

You might also look into one of those carriers that slide into the reciever, it will be alot closer to the ground.

Welcome to Realtree Also!

Thats what I use. I have a full size Blazer. Really makes it nice to transport home. But the main reason is ticks! I don't want them crawling out all over the inside of the truck! Welcome!!!

[Guest Ironhorse]

I've got one of those Hitch Hauls that was mentioned earlier. It is about a 5 foot by 2 foot platform with rails that goes into your receiver. It sits about 2 feet off the ground and makes it a lot easier to horse a deer up. Also keeps ticks, blood, etc out of the back of your rig. When your are done, you hose it off and put it away. It helps if you have a tarp to keep deer clean if you have a long drive. The only thing you have to worry about is making sure you don't have too much head or leg hanging off the side. Overall, maybe the best $100 I ever spent.

[Tominator]

I put the deer's head below the tailgate, then lean over, grab the antlers, then basically dead lift it up. Try to get the spine of the deer facing down, that way the legs don't get caught on the tailgate. Once you get the front legs in the bed, just walk backwards.

Does weigh less, but can be more cumbersome because you don't have antlers to grab. In that case, I use my climbing strap.

[Tecumseh]

I do the same thing Tominator does.

[elkoholic]

I am lucky that 40+ years of weight lifting has allowed me to still be able to lift a 200 lb deer into the bed of my truck ('07 F150 4x4). Although this year I used a game carrier to get the deer to the truck and simply set the handle of the carrier on the tailgate and pulled the buck up off the carrier into the bed. I actually tried the plywood trick (1/2") once after a long drag to the truck had me too tired to lift the buck. I pulled the piece of plywood I had in the bed out to use as a ramp and had the unpleasant mishap of having the plywood snap in half as I tried to pull the deer into the bed. As the buck crashed to the ground I lost my footing on the slick truck bed and took a nasty fall also. After a 15 to 20 minute rest and I managed to lift the buck into the truck. The next day this buck weighed in at 242 lbs, which obviously exceeded the weight limit of 1/2" thick plywood. My theory would be to carry a come-along and simply ratchet the buck up into the truck. Simply hook it to a tie-down or stake pocket and have at it. These are fairly inexpensive and very portable.

[JimPic]

I used to keep a 1x12 board in the bed of my truck.I'd put the deer on the board and with the rope still attached to the head(or antlers),I'd run the tag end of the rope thru a hole I drilled on the one end and tie it off.Lift the one end of the board onto the tailgate then lift up the other end and slide the deer into the bed.Takes about 3 minutes to get the deer loaded up

[Guest stranger2u_19]

all u need to do is take a board and lay it on ur tailgate like a ramp for a quad or bike and roll the deer onto it a bit then pick up the end that on the ground then slide it in

[Guest dnaky]

Thanks for all the tips, guys and gals!

[Bowtech_archer07]

Normally, after the deer is field dressed, I will grab ahold of the rack, keep ahold of it as I climb into the bed of the truck, then just pull him up into the bed. It is difficult and if it's a big deer this tactic will not work and I will have to call someone to help.

[spikekiller]

No wonder I kill little deer...you guys are going to pull something thats not supposed to be pulled lugging these big deer around

Btw... like some have already said a cargo hitch rack is a lot lower to the ground and that helps if you are by yourself.

[woodshed]

If I have to I'll drag the deer to a spot that I can back my truck into a low area. Like a shallow ditch or something. That lowers the tailgate alot. Then it's any easy hoist from there.

I start with the back legs. Grab them and get onto the tailgate. Then I deadlift half the body up. Then I can walk backwards and drag enough up to let go and it wont slide off.

Then home free... jump down and push the head and neck the rest of the way in.

The key is to get the tailgate down low. I've loaded my garden tractor into my truck that way. just drive it right up the tailgate with the back of the truck in a ditch.

[NS whitetail]

2 pieces of rope

tie them both around the antlers or neck --- throw both over a tree branch and tie the end of one to the bumper -- drive ahead until the deer is in the air -- now, tie the other rope to something so the deer will still hang when you cut the bumper rope -- drive under the deer and cut him down into the back of the pickup

[johnf]

Been there, done it. I tie a rope around the head, get into the bed of the truck and pull as much deer into the bed as I can, then tie off the rope. I jump out, grab the back end of the deer and sort of lift and roll it the rest of the way in.

That's what I do, and I'm a little guy.

[Guest deadeye270]

I will use a block and tackle and a deer hanger (looks like a big coat hanger) Throw everything over a limb, pull the deer up, field dress, drive the truck under the deer, lower him down. Piece of cake

[horst]

I have a ladder rack on my truck.I can just throw a rope over the bar on the back and use it to leverage the deer up to the tailgate.Sometimes I have to improvise something on a bigger deer but it usually works good.

[Leo]

With an SUV the Hitch Haul is the way to go.

When I used to have a pickup. I would always take the tailgate off. They come off easy.

Tie a rope around the front feet and neck of the deer. It bundles the front hoofs next to both side of the deers face. Once you get the hoofs and nose of the deer into the edge of the bed they slide in much easier since you don't have to grunt past that deers shoulder. If you try this without taking the tailgate off, it will try and slam shut on you while you're loading the deer every time.

Then simply put the tailgate back on and off you go.