Second of the season

[Win73]

I had hunted for two months before I got my first deer this season last Thursday. But in less than a week (Monday) I got my second. Still nothing to brag about but it is a decent sized deer. It was a 75 yard shot out of the same shooting house that I got the first one. It was standing about 50 yards from where the first one was standing when I shot it.

As you can see in the pictures it had broken one antler off. When I shot it, it was right side to me so I couldn't see that one antler was missing.

 

[markj]

Yum jerkey. Gonna get out next week for muzzle loader. Had an operation and missed the season so far. Got Doc OK to shoot again so next week is hunt every day week.

 

[Jack O'Conner]

Good shootin' and fine buck, too!! In my opinion, there is way too much focus upon large antlers.

Jack

 

[AllenJ]

Nice job. In most areas of CA that would be a trophy!

 

[jimbob86]

Looks like an edible deer to me.... nice shot placement, too!

.... one thing puzzles me though: Why do y'all bring the guts back with you? I kinda thought the idea of "field dressing" was to leave the innards in the field. It helps get the meat cooled down much faster, too.

Is there a good reason for not leaving the guts, etc., behind?

 

[markj]

I killed a one sided buck 3 years ago, musta lost it in a fight. No harm to the meat tho.

 

[Kreyzhorse]

Congrats. Any deer taken is a great trophy. I mean if hunting were easy, everyone would do it.

 

[columbia_shotguneer]

Is there a good reason for not leaving the guts, etc., behind?

Alot of hunters including myself get the deer to the skinning rack fast enough and alot easier to gut, imo.

 

[Win73]

one thing puzzles me though: Why do y'all bring the guts back with you? I kinda thought the idea of "field dressing" was to leave the innards in the field. It helps get the meat cooled down much faster, too.

I had a job I had to get done that day. I didn't field dress it to save time. Total time from the shooting field to my house to the processor was about half an hour. I stopped by my house mainly to shed some clothes and show my wife and daughter the deer.

 

[langenc]

My son skins em before gutting to keep the hair to a minimum.

 

[the blur]

you must gut the deer immediatly. I know someone who ruined all their meat.... well they waited 5 days. but it makes no sense to keep the meat warm.

 

[Doug S]

Congrats on a nice deer. I agree with the above, I'm not hunting for antlers, I'm hunting for meat. I shot a smallish racked 8pt and a nice doe this season. Both taste very good.

 

[Win73]

you must gut the deer immediatly. I know someone who ruined all their meat.... well they waited 5 days. but it makes no sense to keep the meat warm.

I never wait as much as one day. Whether I field dress them or not, they immediately go to the processor. I made an exception to this rule one time. I had shot a deer just before dark. By the time I retreived the deer, field dressed it, and got it loaded in my truck, the processor I use was closed for the night. The field dressed deer stayed in the back of my truck overnight. However the temperature was below freezing. That deer was stiff as aboard by the next morning. But I was waiting at the processor when he opened up.

 

[jimbob86]

I don't take them to a "processor" ..... I am the processor, I guess.

We gut them in the field, bring them back to "camp" ..... hang them head up from a loader and wash the blood out of the body cavity with a gardern hose.... then hang them head down over night in the back of the machine shed ...... hoping they don't freeze solid before morning..... then skin and quarter them and start "cutting" ......