Whens the best time to skin a Deer after harvesting ?

Best time to skin a deer

  • Directly after it’s been gut and hung up (hours after harvest)

    Votes: 188 80.0%

  • The next day when you get a chance (1 day after harvest)

    Votes: 9 3.8%

  • Like to let it hang for a couple days no rush (1-3 days after harvest)

    Votes: 21 8.9%

  • Age the carcass with the skin on (3-5 days after harvest)

    Votes: 17 7.2%
  • Total voters
    235
J

jsavoy86

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Hello

Just like the title says trying to get an opinion of when the best time to skin a deer is ?
My grandfather would tell me the best time skin a deer is right after you shoot it and have it hung up skin will come off much easier.

Though I’ve heard many others say leaving the skin on and letting the meat age for a couple days doesn’t hurt either. But I can’t say whether it’s easier or harder to remove once it’s sat.

My question is what’s your preference I will put a pole in this post would love to see how many people weigh in on the topic

⬆️⬆️⬆️Pols above post ⬆️⬆️⬆️

Cheers

J
 
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If it is cool enough I will hang outside with the hide on for as long as a week or more. To me "cool enough" is daytime highs under 5 degrees and nighttime lows to just under freezing.

If it is warm out I will skin a deer right a way and reduce hanging time to whatever it takes for the carcass to come out of rigor mortis. Skinning right away however always results in a crust of dry meat at the surface that will have to be trimmed while butchering.

Bears and moose I always skin right after they are killed. I also split the pelvis on bears right away to cool the meat as quick as possible as they will sour very quickly.
 
All of the above. I've done it all those ways and more.

Your situation, weather and mileage may vary.
 
Just what your Grampa said.

In our camp a deer is skinned immediately.
Skin comes off with a couple big pulls.
Meat is nicely cooled.
 
The faster you can cool off meat, the better that meat will taste. Doesn't always guarantee good meat as there are many factors involved but it will definitely help.

Example: my buddy and I both harvested mule deer doe last year, same field, a week apart. We both watched and waited in that field for a month, making sure we knew what we were looking at, choosing doe without fawn.

He took his and loaded it up in his vehicle and took it home to skin and gut it (around 4 hours from death to hanging) and complained all spring and summer that the meat was gamey.

I gutted and skinned mine IMMEDIATELY in the field and packed snow in the cavity to rapidly cool it down, then took home to hang. The meat was so clean tasting my kids didn't know that it wasn't beef, and I brought some to some coworkers and they didn't believe it was deer, let alone mule deer.

Similar results with grouse. I used to keep them whole until bag out for a group photo, but the meat had a funny taste, so I started breasting them out immediately and put in a cooler with ice. Amazing difference in meat taste.
 
I cut the hind legs off below the last joint and skin out the hinds on the tailgate. Soon as I get my deer hanging in the garage I skin it out completely. Only exception is when my kill has to stay in the truck bed for an overnight. Cold here in Manitoba often during general deer season. One only lets a deer freeze before skinning once...
 
Lucky to have my milk house if it has gotten dark or the weather doesn't favor outdoor work. Skin comes off right away and often split the sides as well.
Our controlled hunt is in December so being able to keep it from freezing is nice.
 
It takes minutes to skin a deer. I can't see any reason not to do it when the carcass is warm and gutted. Maybe if to go and assist a fellow hunter but otherwise...
 
Immediately after you shoot it, hang up and skin. Not only is it easier due to being warm, the meat cools better and without the hide on it will taste better. I have hunted for many years (40 plus) and an absolute must is to skin right away. Letting the meat hang will age the meat. Venison is such a great meat. And when you cook it, take the time to do it right. Should anyone be interested, i have a dynamite recipe which is second to none!
 
The hide comes off easiest when the critter is warm. I farmer hunt now so don't end up too far from the tractor. The critter is hung off the loader and skinned, garden hose to rinse it off then it is gutted and rinsed again. Super clean carcass every time. Before farmer hunting every situation was different. I've had to gut then quarter moose to pack out or load on to quads - leaving the hide on helps keep the meat a little cleaner but it does add weight if you are packing in which case that gutless method that someone mentioned might be the way to go.
 
Grey_Wolf said:
The hide comes off easiest when the critter is warm. I farmer hunt now so don't end up too far from the tractor. The critter is hung off the loader and skinned, garden hose to rinse it off then it is gutted and rinsed again. Super clean carcass every time. Before farmer hunting every situation was different. I've had to gut then quarter moose to pack out or load on to quads - leaving the hide on helps keep the meat a little cleaner but it does add weight if you are packing in which case that gutless method that someone mentioned might be the way to go.
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I put the meat in game bags after I'm done with the gutless cleaning. If you skin half and lay the cape out on the ground, do the one side, you flip it back on the cape and skin the other side,laying out the cape on the ground, which keeps the meat clean. With practice you won't even get much hair on the meat let alone anything else. I am a big fan of the Havalon Piranta knife for most of the process.
 
Probably a slight twist in answers but the best time to skin is as soon as it's dead or shortly after, having said that we have always left the skin on until it's time to cut them up because the meat doesn't dry out, it stays cleaner, once cooled it stays cold longer and keeps pests like birds from getting into the meat.
 
I either get it off as soon as it’s hung back at home or I will skin it in the field depending on how bad it’s covered in ticks, I hate ticks... But mainly I skin as soon as possible to help get it cooled down quickly.
 
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