Printable Version with Diagrams | "Down to the Bone" DVD

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If you are planning your first big game hunt this fall, or if you’ve had trouble dressing out your game on past hunts, the information on this page deserves your study.

When you bring down a big game animal with bullet or arrow, you have achieved the immediate goal of your hunt. What you do next is important if you want good wild game meat on the table.

Don’t put yourself in the position of the novice hunter who kills his first big game animal, rushes up to the fallen animal, and then realizes, “Well, I killed it, but what do I do now?”

Hunters should know exactly what to do after bagging their game. Meat can spoil, and pounds of venison may be wasted if not handled correctly—and immediately. Field dressing game is not difficult if done properly. (Hint: Click on "printer-friendly version" to print a copy of this page to carry along with you on your next hunt.)

Field dress all game as soon as possible after it has been killed. Prompt, clean removal of the internal organs will speed cooling, help prevent spoiling, and improve the taste.

Step One

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Before you start dressing your animal, don a pair of rubber gloves; latex, disposable gloves work well. Wearing gloves helps keep the meat clean, reduces cross-contamination, and makes cleaning up afterwards quick and easy.

The first step in field dressing is to cut the animal open. Don’t just start slashing away. Take it easy. It’s important to do it right: Make a small slit in the belly with the knife, being careful not to cut any internal organs. Work your fingers through this hole and press the paunch, or intestines, away. Cut through the hide along the center of the belly from brisket to vent (Illustration 1). Deepen the cut through the belly muscles, using your fingers to guide the knife to avoid cutting the intestines.

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Cut deeply around the anus (Illustration 2), and free organs in the pelvic cavity. Remove the anus with the intestines. Separate the hindquarters by splitting the pelvic bone with a sharp, heavy knife, hand ax, or saw. (If necessary to use a knife, a few taps with a rock on the back of the blade will help split the pelvis.)

Open the chest cavity from front to back through the breastbone (Illustration 3). Cut the muscles of the diaphragm where it's attached to rib cage, separating the chest from the stomach cavity. (It’s a good idea to place the carcass so the entrails will roll out downhill.)

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 Use one hand to press the lungs out of the way. With your knife in the other hand, reach into the chest cavity and sever the windpipe and gullet where they enter the chest from the neck (Illustration 4). Pull out the heart, liver, lungs, paunch, and intestines. It will be necessary to reach right into the carcass with your arms to drag them out, so don’t be squeamish. You may have to loosen some entrails from the back with your knife, but usually just about everything can be pulled away without too much trouble.

Use some sticks to prop the body cavity open (Illustration 5), and hang the animal by its head in an airy, shady place. Hanging the animal will assure good circulation of air to remove body heat. Use a dry cloth to remove any blood remaining in the body cavity.

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Let the animal hang for about an hour before transporting it to camp or car. If it is not possible to hang the game in the air, drape it over a log or pile of rocks belly side up—anything to get it off the ground. The important thing is to get the meat cooled so it won’t spoil. If you save the heart and liver, put them in a clean cloth or sack and keep them cool.

If the weather is warm, it may even be necessary to skin the animal as soon as possible, allowing the animal to cool even faster. Experienced hunters skin big game animals in the field.

A word of caution about the musk (scent) glands on the lower hind legs: Avoid touching them while handling the carcass. The scent will cling to your hands and may taint the meat when you touch it. (Another good reason to where disposable gloves should you come into contact with the musk glands.) Some hunters remove these glands by peeling or slicing off the entire skin surrounding them, but it’s not necessary.

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Dress big game animals immediately to ensure rapid cooling.

1. Cut through the hide along the centerline of the belly, from brisket to vent. Deepen the cut through the belly muscles, using your fingers to guide the knife. Avoid cutting intestines!
2. Cut deeply around anus. Remove it with intestines. Separate hindquarters by splitting the pelvic bone with a sharp, heavy knife or hand ax.
3. Open the chest cavity, front to back, through the breastbone. Split the muscle (diaphragm) separating chest from stomach cavity.
4. Sever gullet and windpipe as far forward as possible. Pull heart, liver, lungs, paunch and intestines out on the ground.
5. Prop body cavity open with sticks and cool quickly by hanging, head up, in a shady, airy place (preferable) or lay it on a slope or rocks with the rump lower than the shoulders. Let it hang this way for about an hour before moving it to camp or car.