The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Food & crafts => Food processing => Topic started by: Penninehillbilly on December 07, 2017, 10:30:42 am
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Hi
Yesterday morning OH picked up a freshly killed deer off the road. Threw it in van.
Didn't think to mention it last night, so it's been in van 24hrs, not bled out etc.
Is it safe to hang and process now? I haven't seen it yet, but he says it's only small, so I'm presuming roe, maybe a youngster. Just off to clear a space in shed to hang it, it would do for dogs if not for us?
Any advice appreciated, long time since I've done anything like this.
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Obviously a roe deer, minus it's head, that was in the road, so presumably a quick death,
Smaller than my goats.
Now hung in shed.
Not sure how to start gutting, hope it will come back to me as I start.
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I'm sure it'll come back to you.
If it's looking a bit messy inside from the collision or you've no time, you could cut out loins and haunches without having to cut open abdomen at all. -just go at it from the spine side if you know what I mean?
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Skinned and mostly gutted, can't remember what to do with anus etc, looks different than sheep or goat, doesn't seem to have a tail, but a funny tuft further down, anus seems higher than tail area? All looks a bit strange, was going to take a photo but that meant coming in, boots off and upstairs for camera, just wanted to get on with things at the time.
Generally good, obviously trauma round the neck area,
Liver looks OK.
If nothing else, legs look well worth eating. :thumbsup: :hungry:
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Only eat it if you're sure a vet hasn't been in attendance, sometimes in these circumstances they dose the injured animal, but you would hope they would put on a tag when they do this.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etorphine
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Thank you for the warning, but I'm sure it wouldn't have been left there if it had been dealt with, seems a vehicle must have literally taken its head off, it was still warm when OH found it on the road[size=78%] ,. [/size]
[/size]Anyway, not even a broken body bone, bit dark down one side where it had been laid in tne van, dogs can have that. Still hanging, for a few days I suppose.[size=78%]
[/size] Can't decide whether to use liver, would liver fluke be anything to worry about?[size=78%]
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Liver fluke should be obvious if you cut into it and there are white patches.
I prepared one for a neighbour once and the whole side that had been hit by the vehicle was too damaged to use, so I understand the dogs did well on that occasion too.
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I'd eat the liver ;D
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Can't decide whether to use liver, would liver fluke be anything to worry about?[/size]
No chance of catching liver fluke from eating an infected liver. You should be able to notice quite quickly if there's a big infestation. Just make a long cut where the gall bladder was attached and press down on either side of the liver, you'll either get some black ooze (decomposing fluke and fluke waste) or whole fluke coming out. The adults are about the size and shape of cornflakes.
If there's such a small amount of fluke that you don't notice them then it's much akin to having a worm in your apple, just a bit of extra protein.
Hope it all cooks up nicely. Are you doing anything with the skin?
Dans
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Thanks, I'll check the liver ,
Amazed body wasn't damaged, perfect carcass, I'll put a photo up when i get them onto desktop
Skin is just salted for now, folded and rolled. Seem to remember scraping meat and fat off is a horrible job, I salted and dried a goatskin which has been in greenhouse for 2 years, be a shame to waste it though ?
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I scrapped the fat and some meat off 3 sheep skins the other month, wasn't too bad at all. I used the back side of a kitchen knife and it came quite easy. It was the same day as the kill though. Really interested to see how you get on. I drove past a fairly fresh deer once (wasn't there on my way to work, was in the evening and it was in the late autumn so not warm weather). Didn't take it home, I was living in a small terrace house at the time though!
The lady I sent my sheepskins to said the longest she has stored a properly salted skin was 6 years and she still got a good rug out of it!
Dans
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Just an update, dogs had liver, cooked.
hung it for a week
we have had some bits of legs, lovely stew, and top part of a back leg over weekend. Fantastic!
Day after we had stew, OH decided to make stock/soup with bones, with some veg in, then thru blender, that was absolutely disgusting, he ate it, i think he refused to admit it was horrible because he'd made it :-). when I had a spoonful and breathed out through my nose I could smell it. Yuk. wont be boiling any more bones up. but Christmas dinner sorted.
Maybe I'm expecting a tail to be like a goat tail, but this didn't seem right somehow, just a bundle of hair, [size=78%]with a hole above, would this be a scent gland would anyone know? [/size]
[/size][size=78%]anyway, cut out and thrown away.[/size]
it was washed down well just after the photos. and laid on covered bench to empty bladder and clean.
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It sounds delicious :hungry: . I still have one joint from a red deer which our neighbour shot at least 15 years ago. We ate all our half except this one joint. I intend still to eat it, but will need to chop off a bit of freezer burn.
We have eaten road kill pheasants and other birds, plus a beautiful Jenny hare killed by the car immediately in front of our son's car. Poor girl was very pregnant.
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:idea: ;) Sounds like you guys & gals need bigger stronger bumpers on the cars up your way .... then you could live for free ............ off your road kills :roflanim:
Happy Crimbo , Don't hit any reindeer out inthe fog 7 snow ...Santa needs them
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If your hubby didn't let the broth go nice & cold then scoop off all the venison fat that's perhaps the reason why it tasted so horrible to you , is ............ I found even a bit of melted fat in the stock left a claggy feeling to the roof of my mouth & coated my tongue so I couldn't taste anything else .
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:idea: ;) Sounds like you guys & gals need bigger stronger bumpers on the cars up your way .... then you could live for free ............ off your road kills :roflanim:
Happy Crimbo , Don't hit any reindeer out inthe fog 7 snow ...Santa needs them
Was that road kills or road skills ;)
LOL, someone else had done the deed, he phoned about something else then saw it, if our van had hit it the repairs would have cost more than the meat ,:-(.
I don't think it was fat, didnt feel craggy, just smelled absolutely horrible. He's boiled the rest up for the dogs, they normally get a bit of chicken an jelly for brekky and supper (knows a processing works For free chicken), they'll be getting venison for a few days :-).