How to use the whole animal (waste not want not)

[hennible]

@bamadude you've skinned a deer using golf balls and a four wheeler do you know how to tan a hide?

 

[Beer can]

The hide keeps the meat clean while it hangs so I wouldn't want to skin it and leave a naked corpse hanging... Any ideas?

The reason you skin whe warm is because it is easier. It is better to hang a deer a few days, but I usualy skin, quarter, wrap in garbage bags and put in my exta fridge for a week or so to 'age'. I did age one in my garage once without hide on until it crusted on outside, a lot of extra work cutting the crust off, but the meat was yummy and tender as a button buck. It wont hurt the hide no matter how you do it, I usauly freeze mine folded up

 

[Beer can]

Durn, on my phone and hit post!
Fold them up in garbage bags and freeze them(I save friends and families who throw them away) until I get a bunch, I get $5 each, I dont know how much the guy that buys them gets at auction, probably double or more. I been wanting to try tanning also. Deer skin gloves, and leathers for welding. I have saw a recipee using Borax to clean the hide and losen hair, and then use the brain to preserve it and keep it soft, but Ive never tried it. Let us know how you make out.

 

[triplepurpose]

They are the cheapest to grow, and are tender and juicy, though some people say they lack in flavor. If you don't mind a tougher smaller breasted bird that takes longer and more food to reach butchering size then go with heritage breeds. I plan on trying Delawares, and Jersey Giants in the spring, and maybe Bresse if I feel like expanding my coop. I will also be trying a bunch of heritage roos cheap bargain chicks to try caponizing on before I try it on the others. Delawares grow fast and were the meat bird before frankenbirds. Jersey Giants are HUGE mini turkeys but take forever before butchering size but I want to try capons with this breed. Bresse are supposed to be the French say "best tasting chicken in the world" there is a breeder near me and I want to try them to see if they live up to the hype. It will cost more $ than store bought or raiseing CornishX, but we all have to have a hobby, and I would like to help preserve the White Jersey Giants and become a breeder of them, white more so than black cause you don't see them available, very few places have them.

Cornish X Rocks and heritage breeds are hardly the only choice for meat birds.

There are also a few meat breeds, like Freedom Rangers, Pioneers, Red Rangers, etc. These are single purpose meat birds with a faster growth rate than heritage or dual purpose--but with more flavorful meat and without the health problems of Cornish X. They're better able to forage and otherwise move around and engage in normal chicken behaviors rather than lying in their own feces gasping all day and dying when the temperature rises ten degrees. Because they are healthier, they can also digest their feed better, which, along with the foraging potential, may be worth considering when calculating feed conversion, even though CX may have "better" FC with over all weight gain and faster weight gain, you may not actually be producing more NUTRITION with CX per unit of feed (though I lack the math skills or the interest to actually try to figure this out numerically)... You may also be contributing to perfectly avoidable animal suffering at the expense of a few dollars in feed, which to my mind is enough to rule out CX all by itself...

I'm into dual purpose myself, but if you're looking for just meat, IMHO there are lots of good practical options besides CX to look into, especially if your doing the "pastured poultry" thing. (Or you can raise rabbits, which are cheaper to feed, don't need to be plucked, and grow almost as quickly as a CX without the health problems...)

 

[bamadude]

@bamadude you've skinned a deer using golf balls and a four wheeler do you know how to tan a hide?

i have seen people use the brains to preserve the hide. It requires alot of skinning to really get down to the hide

 

[Kusanar]

The reason you skin whe warm is because it is easier. It is better to hang a deer a few days, but I usualy skin, quarter, wrap in garbage bags and put in my exta fridge for a week or so to 'age'. I did age one in my garage once without hide on until it crusted on outside, a lot of extra work cutting the crust off, but the meat was yummy and tender as a button buck. It wont hurt the hide no matter how you do it, I usauly freeze mine folded up

Durn, on my phone and hit post!
Fold them up in garbage bags and freeze them(I save friends and families who throw them away) until I get a bunch, I get $5 each, I dont know how much the guy that buys them gets at auction, probably double or more. I been wanting to try tanning also. Deer skin gloves, and leathers for welding. I have saw a recipee using Borax to clean the hide and losen hair, and then use the brain to preserve it and keep it soft, but Ive never tried it. Let us know how you make out.

Thanks, yeah, it is a little hard to skin them out when cold, but that's the way we have always done it. I mainly want the hides for costuming so even if they aren't the strongest it will be ok. I'll keep looking up how to tan them if I don't have to worry about skinning them cold.

 

[Beer can]

Thanks, yeah, it is a little hard to skin them out when cold, but that's the way we have always done it. I'll keep looking up how to tan them if I don't have to worry about skinning them cold.

Nah, wont change the hide, just what you prefer. I had a guy tell me I should have left the hide on that one buck I dry aged. He said that way you don't get the dehydration on the outside 'black crust'. I just do it the same way my father always has also. I think if you leave the hide on it will taste more gamey, but Ive never done it so I guess I wouldnt know.
Have you ever tried to skin a cold squirrel? I do them as soon as I pop them, one slice in the back and put two fingers in each side and rip it off. If you wait till you get home you better have a couple pairs of vise grips!

 

[perchie.girl]

or you could hire this guy......

deb

 

[hennible]

That was amazing... 1 minute 48 seconds to butcher the thing

 

[Kusanar]

Nah, wont change the hide, just what you prefer. I had a guy tell me I should have left the hide on that one buck I dry aged. He said that way you don't get the dehydration on the outside 'black crust'. I just do it the same way my father always has also. I think if you leave the hide on it will taste more gamey, but Ive never done it so I guess I wouldnt know.
Have you ever tried to skin a cold squirrel? I do them as soon as I pop them, one slice in the back and put two fingers in each side and rip it off. If you wait till you get home you better have a couple pairs of vise grips!

Nah, never messed with a squirrel. Just deer. Last one we hung from the rafters in my barn and skinned him out after he hung 3 days. My poor boyfriend was shocked when I came home with a mop bucket with a trash bag in it full of meat.... he was expecting Styrofoam trays I guess.... lol