Is Joe in the Know?
I ran into Mr. Smith one day on my rounds. Normally, I go about my business, there is a lot of work to be done in the environmental science area. That day however, I couldn’t help notice him because he was not the usual hunter I see.
Normally, guys I see out in the field
going through the same routine. Here's how it goes...Immediately
after killing your deer, use your knife to cut the fleshy tissue
between the elbow and tendon on one of the hind legs, then detach the
transportation tag portion of your deer hunting permit and attach it
to the leg. This will allow you to legally remove the deer from the
field and transport it to the nearest check station. "Cleaning"
refers to removing the internal organs from the deer's body cavity.
You should do this immediately upon killing a deer. Venting the body
cavity and removing the organs and blood allows the carcass to cool
quickly. This slows the decomposition process, which begins the
moment a deer's respiratory and circulatory functions cease. A deer's
body is amazingly well insulated and can retain heat for a long time.
The sooner you clean a deer, the better the meat will taste.
Usually they guys will at least take out the glands and thyroid, but Mr. Smith isn't doing any of this. So I went up to him and asked him a few questions. He had a pretty thick accent, so I don't know how much of what I said he understood. I told him that he really should rethink how he's taking his deer. But, he wasn't breaking any laws, so I let him go.
