How far are you allowed to process big game in Colorado, in camp?

I've always butchered my own game here in Texas and I'm planning on doing the same in Colorado next month.

Thanks
Perry

You will need to take all of the useable meat.

I don't think there's any problem how far you go.
Other than: "evidence of sex must be naturally attached".

Best to get a copy of the regs and study them, then send a msg to CPW asking direct. THEN print it out and carry it with you at all times. When in camp, you'll most likely be visited by the local wardens so ask them again and take notes. AND names!

Good luck and have a great trip.

George

You can bone out the meat just as long as you leave evidence of sex naturally attached.
Not sure how much further you want to process it?

quote:

Originally posted by Snellstrom:
You can bone out the meat just as long as you leave evidence of sex naturally attached.
Not sure how much further you want to process it?

Little white packages in my freezer!

I have to wonder if Perry is asking whether he can fully debone the animal. Perhaps he even wishes to process it completely into freezer-ready packages. So the question is, at what point can you remove the attached proof of sex (who wants a pecker attached to his steak?)?

quote:

So the question is, at what point can you remove the attached proof of sex (who wants a pecker attached to his steak?)?

A small piece of meat with the evidence should not be hard to do.

Great info guys, thanks.
I did read the regs but it never said at what level, de-boned/quartered/etc, you could take it. I interpreted it to be de-boned with a "pecker attached" . I'll give that cut to my mother in law.

Perry

Just a comment, nothing more.

It amazes how often people will go to the effort of doing an out of state or out of country hunt and in these days of internet accessibility, simply do not email the Game & Fish agency in that state or country and get the information directly from the entity that can give the proper information.

I have seen it all too often, even on guided hunts, where the guides were confused about the wording used in the Regulation Book the state put out.

The state agencies, when getting the handout regulation books printed all too often resort to "legaleze" that when read by a regular citizen comes across rather vague and somewhat open to interpretation and all too often the GW has a different interpretation.

Again, just an observation from past experiences.

This is an interesting discussion since the only incident I ever encountered was coming back from Texas last year in Wichita Falls. The game warden just happened to be at the place where I stopped for gas on my way home and asked to see my deer. I showed him my tags and the deer. He said he would have liked me to keep a better part of the deer for proof of sex, but since I still had enough tags for either, it was not an issue.

The big thing he was checking for, since I was from out of state, was to see if the meat was boned out, which it wasn't. It is not legal to debone the meat in Texas until it reaches it's final destination. That was a surprise to me, but all was good and the warden was friendly and informative. Lesson learned.

It is kind of unclear so you take it to a processor and get nice little packages to bring back.

Or you process it your self and have nice little packages to bring back.

Neither has evidence attached.

Thanks again for the further foot work!

Clear...um...as..mud??

Perry

I've read all the foregoing.

It seems to me the regulations are indefinite. I would take the view, based on reading the regulations, that when you process the meat you remove the proof of sex at that time. If you process in camp, you remove proof of sex then. What happens if I take my elk to the processing plant down in town versus doing it in camp? I imagine the processor cuts the sex off and gives me packaged meat. I then transport the meat to my home, which in my case is out-of-state. If my processing results in the same end result, how can that be a violation? You could retain the sex organ in a baggie until you got home with the rest of your processed meat, if you were worried.

I have always skinned and quartered my elk at the kill site and taken the quarters -- with proof of sex attached -- back home where I butcher the meat myself (hunt in Colorado, live in Texas). This works well for me. I like to let my meat remain unfrozen for several days on the theory that this improves the quality of the meat. I keep the meat cold but not frozen on the trip home.

I would like to see some definite final call on this rather than the guesses I and others are making. For me it is irrelevant as I do not process until at my home. But it is still something worth knowing, maybe to tell someone else at some later point.

quote:

2. EVIDENCE OF SEX IS:
A. BUCK/BULL: Head with antlers or horns attached to carcass; or testicle, scrotum or penis attached to carcass. B. DOE/COW: Head, udder (mammary) or vulva attached to carcass.

The above is one that needs to be read very carefully.

My interpretation: If you decide to cape and remove the head from the carcass, i.e. neck, it is no longer considered proof of sex. So you'd better also leave the sex organs attached. AND...the tag will also need to be attached to that part of the carcass and not to the caped head/antlers.

Keep in mind these regs are written in a way to confuse people so they can be cited for some income producing flaw in your trying to figure out what the hell is written.

Damned confusing much of the time, and many pages of it too so there's no way anyone can ever figure it all out.

Just bagging up the sex organs WILL GET YOU A TICKET! That's plain to see.

George

quote:

Originally posted by Outdoor Writer:

quote:

2. EVIDENCE OF SEX IS:
A. BUCK/BULL: Head with antlers or horns attached to carcass; or testicle, scrotum or penis attached to carcass. B. DOE/COW: Head, udder (mammary) or vulva attached to carcass.

The above is one that needs to be read very carefully.

My interpretation: If you decide to cape and remove the head from the carcass, i.e. neck, it is no longer considered proof of sex. So you'd better also leave the sex organs attached. AND...the tag will also need to be attached to that part of the carcass and not to the caped head/antlers.

I think your interpretation is accurate.

The question that seems to remain unanswered is this - When can you remove proof of sex and reduce the animal to packages of meat for storage? Like I said above, surely one is not required to leave a pecker or horns attached to his steak in the freezer.

This requirement also makes it a bit more challenging for back country hunters who wish to fully debone the animal for the packout. You'd have to be real careful to ensure the penis/testicles did not detach from one of the quarters.

I think George is right. Many laws appear to be written in such a way that 100% compliance is virtually impossible. No matter how strictly one tries to follow the various rules and regulations, it's likely one has overlooked something and could get a ticket by an astute warden or one with a different interpretation.

I've been checked in CO many times. If the head is detached from the body then evidence of sex needs to be attached to a quarter. If you debone, then you still must leave evidence of sex attached to a significant portion of meat-- such as a hindquarter.

I do not believe you can process the animal at camp-- which is usually viewed as still being in the "field". You could take the animal to town and have it professionally processed. Personally, I would not process an animal at camp-- to much burden to show all the meat came from one animal and how much loss from trimming.

It turns out to be not too difficult to keep the proof of sex attached to a rear quarter . . . if you remember this at the time you are cutting up the animal. If you remember, the sex isn't going to inadvertently get detached later.

It may not be obvious, but even if you keep the testicles on a quarter, you need to keep the rack (e.g., saw the antlers and a bit of the skull cap off the head of the bull -- keeping the antler branches attached to the piece of skull cap). This makes sense, because many units have antler point restrictions, and only by keeping the rack can you demonstrate that you complied with the point restriction.

quote:

Originally posted by loki:
It may not be obvious, but even if you keep the testicles on a quarter, you need to keep the rack (e.g., saw the antlers and a bit of the skull cap off the head of the bull -- keeping the antler branches attached to the piece of skull cap). This makes sense, because many units have antler point restrictions, and only by keeping the rack can you demonstrate that you complied with the point restriction.

Excellent point and suggestion.

quote:

Originally posted by perry:
Great info guys, thanks.
I did read the regs but it never said at what level, de-boned/quartered/etc, you could take it. I interpreted it to be de-boned with a "pecker attached" . I'll give that cut to my mother in law.

Perry

Bwahahahahaha!!!!

Great example of the law serving only itself.

Colorado's game laws are intentionally confusing and difficult to follow in the attempt to intentionally trap folks into minor infractions, with the desire to fine hunters (revenue generation). Colorado Div. of Wildlife was forced to merge with Colorado Parks a couple of years ago for the same reason all govt agencies are a train wreck - poor fiscal management. For the 3 previous years they ran at a $7 million per year average loss...oh and don't forget, the $30 million accounting error discovered ONLY after the merge!!! Clowns....all of em!

You think the evidence of sex rule / law is goofy, check out the "legal" ways in which you can/cannot donate meat to others!! The stupidest thing I have ever seen, and intentionally done so to be able to fine hunters!

Three of the more common violations in CO.

1. Its a "carcass" tag, not a horn tag! Never put your tag on the antlers, always put it on the carcass!
2. Removal of evidence of sex before the meat is processed. Keep in mind, even an either sex tag requires evidence of sex.....cause that makes a lot of sense!!!
3. Donating meat to others illegally! Read the rules, so you know exactly what's legal when giving meat to anyone.

Don't forget, this is the Communist Republic of Colorado!

quote:

2. Removal of evidence of sex before the meat is processed. Keep in mind, even an either sex tag requires evidence of sex.....cause that makes a lot of sense!!!

Well, but I think it does make a lot of sense, even if you have an either sex tag. This is because they want to verify that you satisfy the antler points restriction. If you get a cow, and can prove it, you are free of the antler points restriction. If you get a bull, you need to keep the rack so you can prove that you complied with the antler points restriction. If you show up with an either sex tag and a carcass with no proof of sex attached and no rack . . . do I just take your word for it that you didn't kill a bull which failed to satisfy the antler points restrictions?

quote:

Originally posted by loki:

quote:

2. Removal of evidence of sex before the meat is processed. Keep in mind, even an either sex tag requires evidence of sex.....cause that makes a lot of sense!!!

Well, but I think it does make a lot of sense, even if you have an either sex tag. This is because they want to verify that you satisfy the antler points restriction. If you get a cow, and can prove it, you are free of the antler points restriction. If you get a bull, you need to keep the rack so you can prove that you complied with the antler points restriction. If you show up with an either sex tag and a carcass with no proof of sex attached and no rack . . . do I just take your word for it that you didn't kill a bull which failed to satisfy the antler points restrictions?

Using your example - how would evidence of sex prove anything if the rack was NOT present? It wouldn't!

Secondly, only some of the units in CO have a bull elk point restriction. Many do not, and there's NO point restrictions on deer or moose, and no such restriction on Antelope, or Mtn. goats either, but they all have evidence of sex requirements despite the tag you have. In fact 90% of the mtn goat tags in this state are either sex tags, with no restrictions at all - but evidence of sex is still required by law. Same with black bear!

Its all about needing money, just like cities / counties need cops to write speeding tickets - its no different. The CO wildlife dept is totally incapable of fiscally managing their revenue, despite the fact that we have by far the largest elk herd in the country, and sell more non-resident elk hunting licenses by double - that of the next closest state. Not to mention all of the other big game species as well.

Accountability here in CO is ZERO, out of control wildlife law enforcement is the norm rather than the exception and their duty to protect the wildlife and serve the people has long since been forgotten. Now its only about "getting" people, and raising money - period!