Deanna: Venison

[Guest guest]

Deanna:

Thought you might like this. Obviously I don't agree with it all (grain fed

deer?) but I DO agree with the bit about rutting males, and there is the issue

that a lot of game get shot after they are spooked.

http://members.tripod.com/~BayGourmet/deer.html

However, if you pick an animal to shoot that is not a good meat animal, for

reasons of age, sex or rutting condition, you don't have anybody to blame save

yourself if the results are not pleasant. If you shoot an old, tough, nasty buck

in rutting condition because you want trophies, your dinner will taste crappy

and you will have silly pointy things to hang on your wall and brag about. Enjoy

your bragging rights and choke on your tough, testosterone-laden dinner, and

don't say you weren't warned

Choosing Your Target

If you want to eat as opposed to rustically decorate your fireplace, eyeball out

a young doe with a nice chunky brisket-shaped chest bespeaking plenty of fat.

Look for graceful rounding in the hindquarters as well; you want fat hams, and

the rump is where well-fed deer tend to put on padding.

Choose your target not for massive size or horned protruberances, but for a body

conformation that indicates a plump, young, tasty meat animal. Read agricultural

texts or butchering handbooks for better information on how to judge this, and

study the pictures of cows, pigs and sheep carefully until you are confident

that you know by the eye at least some of the characteristics that distinguish a

fine meat animal from a poor one. Then go out hunting; your taste buds will be

better pleased with the results.

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Heidi Jean