Leaving a goose overnight?

bluesclues

bluesclues

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Had a great hunt this evening...

However, just as I was getting ready to leave (about 10 min after sunset) this flock of 10 or so geese came into my decoys. So, I decide to get one more (wasn't at my limit yet). So I take the shot and one drops behind me in the trees. I see it go into the trees, here it hit the branches and then hit the ground. But, for the life of me I could not find it on the ground. By now it is starting to get dark and I can't really see, the headlamp that I have is good but doesn't light up a large area.

Anyways, I am planning to go out early tomorrow morning again and was wondering, if, the yotes don't get it, and I find it, is it salvageable?
 
bluesclues said:
Had a great hunt this evening...

However, just as I was getting ready to leave (about 10 min after sunset) this flock of 10 or so geese came into my decoys. So, I decide to get one more (wasn't at my limit yet). So I take the shot and one drops behind me in the trees. I see it go into the trees, here it hit the branches and then hit the ground. But, for the life of me I could not find it on the ground. By now it is starting to get dark and I can't really see, the headlamp that I have is good but doesn't light up a large area.

Anyways, I am planning to go out early tomorrow morning again and was wondering, if, the yotes don't get it, and I find it, is it salvageable?
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I've seen guys lose ducks overnight and eat them the next day.
 
thebuckhunter said:
You owe it to the animal to find it ASAP. If you plan on giving up you should not have shot at it. Track it until you find it.

-Jason
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Planning on coming back the next morning to look during daylight is not giving up. Bow hunters do it all the time. Besides how do you "track" something that fell from the sky? Unless it ran after hitting the ground, there will be nothing to track.
 
My grandpa from England said they used to hang geese and ducks in a cool place until the head separated from the body. Then he said it was ready to eat. If that is the case I would think that yours will be fine. I have been in similar situations, and as someone else said here, if it isn't shot to pieces, it should be fine.
BTW, you're going back to find it at first light. Good for you- not much else you could have done.
 
bluesclues said:
if, the yotes don't get it, and I find it, is it salvageable?
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More than likely it has already become part of the food chain. That being said, going back in the morning is the logical thing to do.

thebuckhunter said:
You owe it to the animal to find it ASAP. If you plan on giving up you should not have shot at it. Track it until you find it.
-Jason
Click to expand...
How do you track a goose?:p ;)

Reagrds
Robert
 
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bluesclues said:
Had a great hunt this evening...

However, just as I was getting ready to leave (about 10 min after sunset) this flock of 10 or so geese came into my decoys. So, I decide to get one more (wasn't at my limit yet). So I take the shot and one drops behind me in the trees. I see it go into the trees, here it hit the branches and then hit the ground. But, for the life of me I could not find it on the ground. By now it is starting to get dark and I can't really see, the headlamp that I have is good but doesn't light up a large area.

Anyways, I am planning to go out early tomorrow morning again and was wondering, if, the yotes don't get it, and I find it, is it salvageable?
Click to expand...

please let us know how you make out.
 
Went back this morning and, brought my dog to help in the search.


rlg said:
More than likely it has already become part of the food chain. That being said, going back in the morning is the logical thing to do.
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Well it didn't take too long to discover what was left of the bird. My dog found it about 20 meters from where I was looking last night. The food chain worked quickly for sure.

I obviously wanted to find this goose as soon as possible, very very rarely that is not the case. This is the first time ever, that I have left an animal/bird that I have shot (not including Crows). And I didn't like it.

However, to make silly comments about giving up on the search and the like are, well, pretty silly and naive to say the least. :mad:

Thanks to all for the information, I didn't know that you could "age" these birds.
 
sjemac said:
I hang my late season birds for 10-14 days with the guts in if they aren't shot up too bad. Improves flavor and texture.
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I will have to try this, as my wife is not particularily fond of goose meat. Mmmm more for me.

Does it matter that here in southern ontario right now, it is still between 10 and 17 degrees overnight? Or does it need to be colder outside before this works well? Thanks for the info.
 
sjemac said:
I hang my late season birds for 10-14 days with the guts in if they aren't shot up too bad. Improves flavor and texture.
Click to expand...

That's the English way... not my cuppa joe but call me a panzie. I like to defeather, then clean the bird and remove the neck and gizzards while it's still warm. Then give it a wash and put it in a large freezer ziplock bag with water-based marinade that has a hefty salt content, usually ends up being something soya sauce and brown sugar based as that's quickest. I don't sweat the lack of refrigeration then while in the bush if it's warm. Plus, it tastes good. I don't think holding the freshly cleaned bird at warmer temps, such as around 15C in the cab of your truck driving home, is a bad thing for awhile and it likely improves the meat. I like to eat them quite fresh, however.

As for the guy saying track the goose etc etc... seems you likely don't hunt birds much. Every once in awhile you lose one, happens to us all. I've probably lost 2-3 birds this year during a 1 week hunt in scrubby dense bush. Unfortunate, but such is life, and they don't go to waste, something else ate every one of them I guarantee it. Fishing's like that too, every once in awhile you snag one in the belly unintentionally, and it shakes off, and hey... well it happens. Hunting is a messy, but natural business. The uber-"moral" among us are just moving towards the grocery store mentality of animals-should-be-killed-only-in-perfectly-controlled-conditions, like a sledgehammer to the head in a squeeze. :eek:
 
bluesclues said:
I will have to try this, as my wife is not particularily fond of goose meat. Mmmm more for me.

Does it matter that here in southern ontario right now, it is still between 10 and 17 degrees overnight? Or does it need to be colder outside before this works well? Thanks for the info.
Click to expand...

Makes a big difference. I don't do it if the temp gets much above 10 degrees during the day. If it's cold at night (around 0) the birds will cool down enough that the down will keep them cool during the day if they are kept in the shade. By mid Oct I hang them all in the garage as its temp stays pretty constant. I do lose one every now and then that got a pellet in the guts that leaked but once they are stripped up and dehydrated they make good dog treats.

Ardent said:
That's the English way... not my cuppa joe but call me a panzie. I like to defeather, then clean the bird and remove the neck and gizzards while it's still warm. Then give it a wash and put it in a large freezer ziplock bag with water-based marinade that has a hefty salt content, usually ends up being something soya sauce and brown sugar based as that's quickest. I don't sweat the lack of refrigeration then while in the bush if it's warm. Plus, it tastes good. I don't think holding the freshly cleaned bird at warmer temps, such as around 15C in the cab of your truck driving home, is a bad thing for awhile and it likely improves the meat. I like to eat them quite fresh, however.
Click to expand...

Not quite. We're not trying to get the bird "high" (meaning near rotten and smelly) like the Europeans but aged liked beef. Guts stay in because the open cavity can be a vector for bacteria more so than the guts themselves as long as they aren't perforated. Again I save this for later season birds that are not full of pinfeathers and have been shot up front in the head/neck. An arse shot bird isn't a candidate for this. All of the geese we shot yesterday were hung overnight and then breasted and dethighed today. The breasts will be canned and corned. The legs are the real treat braised or made into confit.
 
Bluescues...You did what you could to find it, alot would not have bothered to try the next morning, this goes under "sh%t happens", you sound like a good, caring hunter!
 
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