It has been my experience that the sooner you can get the hide off an animal the better the meat will be. Lets the heat excape the animal faster. I see a lot of animals that have been dead for sometimes a few days with the hide still on. To me this just promotes that gamey taste. What do you think?

I like to get the hide off as quickly as possible. I believe it helps alot with getting the gamey taste out of the meat.

I absolutely agree. It's amazing how much heat is retained under the hide, and that meat starts to spoil very quickly. A lot of people in this part of the world complain about the taste of antelope meat, but if you get the hide off quickly and get the meat cooled, I've found it to be excellent. It's often 80 degrees or warmer for some of the antelope season here, so it's no wonder that people are having problems with spoilage. I always skin my kills ASAP, and depending on the outside temperature, I'll either bone out the carcass and get it in a cooler right away, or I'll let it hang in a game bag and let it cool overnight before I bone it out. Either way, I've never had any meat spoil on me.

Hide off ASAP.

Ditto. A moose or deer hide keeps the animal warm at -40, so you can tell what kind of insulation factor it has and around here it's likely to freeze on the animal if you wait.
Griz

I shot a whitetail late morning, on a nice sunny October day, we gutted it in the field, and it spent the day on the back of the truck. Drove to the cabin at the end of the day, I threw it in my truck (Landcruiser, much like a Jeep Cherokee), but left the tailgates and windows open. Overnight a storm blew in and put a nice layer of snow on the whole interior of my truck. Drove home the next day, started the skinning around souper time at night... the deer was still warm!

Frans

Post deleted...sorry guys, clicked quote instead of edit, and then post now... anyway, I need some coffee...

Frans

This topic was covered not too long ago. I prefer to get the hide off asap.

I'm in a quandry over this one. I've done it both ways. If you leave the hide on, then dont' age it very damned long thats for sure.

the chef

If we can get our deer cooled to between 30 and 40 degrees F I don't mind leaving the skin on for a day or two. Otherwise if it's warm or the shoulders were wrecked by the shot we like to get the skin off asap. As a rule we don't age our corn-fed farm-country whitetails and routinely draw raves from folks who used to hate venison. Good hunting!

I leave the hide on just long enough to keep the meat clean during transport (if the animal was removed from the field whole rather than packed out in pieces). I like to get it off and let the meat cool. On big animals like elk, it's also wise to prop open body cavities (ribs, pelvis) and cut the shoulders away from the rib cage to promote fast cooling.

I leave the hide on till I ready to butcher it. I've never had "gamey" meat. I've let the deer hang for as long as 3 weeks bwefore skinning it, that was some of the best meat I've had! Maybe on a large animal as a moose or elk, haven't had the chance yet to score on one.

My vote goes with Hide on

Hide on until it gets cut up... That is if its cool out or can be put in a cooler. Doesn't mater, deer, elk, antelope... Hide on.

I've killed a pile of elk, and have yet to skin one in the field nor see the need to. We've left them in the field for a few days as well. The key is to open them up good, and skin around the shoulders slightly. Then you MUST get them up off the ground, be it hanging (which we rarely do) or on a log, stump, or rock... someway to get them up off the ground to get air under them. Now before somebody goes off on my way of 'cooling' an elk or animal out. I've probably done it a few more times than 99% of the poeple on here... I've yet to have any animal spoil Even elk shot during archery season...

don't kill many elk that come out whole.i leave as much hide on to protect the meat,our country you have to fend off the griz so hang it high or make a meat run to town and hang it.when i have killed elk i could get out whole i left the hide on to protect the meat,if you can, kick the body cavity full of snow,lacking that get it up off the ground,layed open and left overnight and out of direct sunlight you have a day or so to get it to a cooler,most of my elk killin has been above 7500 ft so its cooler there too.now get out there and poke a hole in a tanside

My favorite hunting spots all have running water nearby.

Cooling a deer FAST is easier if you give'em a cold water bath.

On several occasions it has been necissary to make holes in the ice to do so.

Failing that packing the body cavity with snow works wonders.

I prefer not to skin in the field, and that's just as well because local hunting regulations prohibit doing so.

AllanD

I leave the hide on till I get home to help keep the meat clean. I then hoist it up in my garage with the heat turned down. Quarter the meat rinse put in 5 gallon buckets in the Garage Fridge and let it cool over night on the coldest setting.

If I shoot one during Muzzleloading season it usuall is hot here in the Middle of September. I put Ice in the chest get it home ASAP and skin like I said above.

I have not had any problems yet and the meat has always tasted good.

I also do all my own processing.

Interesting question. Up until this year, we always skinned out a moose. We would skin 1 side, cut the quarters & take all of the edible meat from that side. Then turn it over & do the same on the other.
This last season, we tried it differently. We just cut the front & hind quarter off, cut the meat off the ribs & take the rest of the meat from that side. Then, we turn the animal over & do the same thing on the other side. By doing this, there is no risk of puncturing the internal organs nor are they even handled. This method of course leaves the hide on the quarters. After the quarters are removed, we then remove skin on them. We found this procedure to be much faster, easier & safer than skinning the animal whole before cutting up. So, that's how we do it.
Bear in Fairbanks