How much meat is ethical?

[spaniel]

I agree in theory, but perhaps not in execution. There is no such thing as “all of it”... at some point, everyone of us will look at a piece of meat and decide that is too small to count as “all of it”. Maybe it’s a piece the size of your thumbnail, but at some point we all stop cutting and there is still meat on the carcass, even if it’s very little. With the exception of maybe Alaska, I don’t think leaving rib meat (specifically meat between the ribs) is considered waste. I’m genuinely interested in the criteria that others use to determine when they stop cutting. I agree with your edible meat comment - but I caveat that with “post-processing”, meaning it has to be big enough to render edible meat when processing. Hence, the ROT for a piece of meat larger than my fingers.

I wouldn't disagree with this. Unless we are carrion beetles there is no such thing as 100%. They point is I've seen people claim 4 quarters backstraps and tenderloins is sufficient on an elk....and that leave a TON of meat under the front quarters unaccounted for.

 

[ElkNut1]

Take what the law requires in your area & be satisfied! If a hunter wishes to take more then it's his decision & no one has the right to condemn him because he doesn't do it like he would!

ElkNut/Paul

 

[ckleeves]

I got 330 off a NM Bull, weighed on certified scales.

Sure there are bulls out there that big but “average” (at least for CO) is more like 200-250. Some big mature 8+ year old bulls might tip the scales a little more but getting 300 lbs off any elk is rare.


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[fnf01]

For those that have run into wardens wanting accounts of all the meat have you ever ran into issue with eating it? Serious question as I’ll be doing my first western hunt next year for elk and always imagining eating some of a fresh blackstrap on the side of a mountain. But your descriptions of those interactions have me now questioning that?

 

[wapitibob]

I stopped at a WY check station a cpl years ago. They asked to see my licence and tags, didn't want to see any meat.
The local warden was in the campground this year as I was heading out the first afternoon of my WY Elk hunt. He asked to see my license and I told him it was buried in my kill kit and I really didn't want to dig it outta my pack. He said, "good enough" and we talked about other stuff for another 30 minutes. The WY Wardens I have been in contact with, from field wardens to the Chief Warden himself, have been more than accommodating.

 

[archer wapiti]

Also, I’d crotch-punch a dude for packing out the rack before the meat is on ice. The rack and the cape should be the last trip.

Every situation is different. I carried out the skull on my bull a few years ago on my back before the majority of the meat in order to make it easier for the horse to carry out the four quarters. It made a more streamlined load less likely to catch on brush and cause trouble for a horse off trail. There was plenty of time for the meat - it wasn't going to spoil in twice the time it took to get it out (48 hours).
I also had nothing else to do that day while I waited for the horse to show up. Might as well go check on the kill and make sure it's all in the shade, and make it easier for the horse. If I'm carrying out the whole thing on my back, the skull stays til the last load.

 

[coffeefirst]

To those who say "all of it" - are you taking out the rib meat? Just wondering.

absolutely! I take rib meat, neck meat, every bit of meat I can take, I do! A lot of it goes to grind, but my kids love it! One or two extra trips hauling out meat, yes it is worth it. I have not bought red meat in 23 years, just hunted for it and my kids now do the same. If you are not willing to haul it out, don't shoot it. Yeah, some times it hurts and your are tired, but do the right thing!

 

[Yukon Cornelius]

In my state and my unit, I must keep the meat on the bone until it is removed from the field. So moose are large and I try not to pack more than 1/2 mile. Preferred pack is 100 feet to boat.
Antlers have to stay at kill site until all meat has been removed.

 

[TheCougar]

Well, now I know that if I ever ruin meat to either pack it out or take a photo of it. That thought never occurred to me.

 

[Newtosavage]

Conversations about ethics on hunting forums will never result in a conclusion.

 

[5MilesBack]

I got 330 off a NM Bull, weighed on certified scales.

Ya, but that's a NM bull. There are some big bodied bulls down there. I got 268lbs of meat two years ago off a CO bull, but I'll admit the first thing I thought when I got up to him was "he must be related to those NM elk".

I generally take the rib meat as well as the neck meat........heck there could be 20+lbs of neck meat by itself.

 

[FLAK]

Anybody take the Brisket?
Disclaimer; I have never killed an Elk.

 

[Randle]

1. All that is required by the state you hunt in
2. Only hunt in as far as you are capable of hiking back in for multiple trips . Some places that might be 3 miles others might be 6 if flat and roaded.

 

[MuleyFever]

Then what constitutes “all of it”? I take the neck meat and the thicker portions of the brisket, but I have yet to carve out the rib meat and some of the smaller scraps around the ribs. Trying to quantify my rule of thumb, I’ll take anything that will yield meat after it gets hung and trimmed. There are some pieces that I don’t think will yield any meat for consumption. Anything thicker than my fingers will generally make it into the bags. Am I wasting meat or is that a good rule of thumb? Also, I’d crotch-punch a dude for packing out the rack before the meat is on ice. The rack and the cape should be the last trip.

This is generally my process, well, all but the crotch punching.

This really is a decision the hunter has to make. Take what the law says at minimum. My opinion is that nothing gets wasted in nature. What I dont take helps feed the cycle of life. One can say to take a little more. Someone else could say to take a little more than that. In truth, unless you are taking the whole animal out you are leaving something usable behind.

 

[wyosteve]

Wyoming used to have the problem of no definition on what was considered edible meat which had to be kept. So, roughly 20 yrs. ago, a group of outfitters challenged the Game and Fish Dept. on the regulation. It ended up going all the way to the Wyo. Supreme Court. Their ruling was that 'all edible meat' was the 4 quarters, the backstraps and tenderloins. No rib, neck, organ meat had to be kept. That cleared things up, although it doesn't answer the 'damaged' meat conundrum.

 

[TheCougar]

Every situation is different. I carried out the skull on my bull a few years ago on my back before the majority of the meat in order to make it easier for the horse to carry out the four quarters. It made a more streamlined load less likely to catch on brush and cause trouble for a horse off trail. There was plenty of time for the meat - it wasn't going to spoil in twice the time it took to get it out (48 hours).
I also had nothing else to do that day while I waited for the horse to show up. Might as well go check on the kill and make sure it's all in the shade, and make it easier for the horse. If I'm carrying out the whole thing on my back, the skull stays til the last load.

Horses are something I am unfamiliar with, so I guess the “crotch-punch” comes with an asterisk for exceptions such as that. I will volunteer to be your apprectince on your next horse hunt... you know, so you can teach me all the ins and outs of horse packing!! I’m very interested in not packing out any more elk... I mean, learning about horses.

 

[Ucsdryder]

All of it! Jesus. This trophy shit has gone too far. Hunt for meat or don’t hunt at all.


I’d love to see Colorado go to 4 quarters, backstraps, tenderloin, neck meat, rib meat.

 

[HUNTNUT]

Different species. Shot a Dall sheep 7 miles from base camp and a couple thousand feet up. Shot through the shoulders so some meat was left on the mountain. Took pictures of EVERTTHING in case a wildlife officer met us at camp. Would not have been able to climb that mountain again to the kill site if officer would have asked. Take all the meat you can and have proof of damage if you have to leave some.

 

[hodgeman]

To those who say "all of it" - are you taking out the rib meat? Just wondering.

Absolutely...and in my unit they have to be on bone to boot.

When I leave a kill site...the gut pile, (minus heart and liver), the lower legs from the knee joint down, the pelvis and spine, the hide and depending on the species...the head are the only things left behind.

All rib meat, neck meat, and brisket goes out on bone. A common practice for sheep hunters is to eat ribs in camp, a photo of them doing that is not a bad idea either although I haven't heard of anyone who got a rough time from the troopers when checked.

I've been checked twice by Troopers who wanted to see the meat pile and make sure it was all there, we traditionally eat a tenderloin or a piece of backstop in camp but that's not the kind of thing they're looking for. Come up missing the ribs or a quarter...and you'll have some explaining to do.

 

[stumpy waters]

Take what the law requires in your area & be satisfied! If a hunter wishes to take more then it's his decision & no one has the right to condemn him because he doesn't do it like he would!

ElkNut/Paul

Bingo. We (hunters) are our own worst enemy with our self righteousness over ‘ethics’ and feeling like if everyone else doesn’t do it exactly like we think they should, then they are wrong.

We argue and condemn over trophy hunting, game cameras, baiting, high fence hunting, toad hunting, GPS’s, radios, hounds, nasty neck meat, etc. If am individual is following the law leave him be and worry about yourself. We are all different.