Field dressing

[outdoor hunter]

Am I the only one who constantly looks over my back when field dressing out game by myself?? I'm pretty sure it's a mental thing but I always seem to think that a predator is gonna come in while I'm gutting my deer or elk out.
Thoughts..

 

[ohhiitznik]

It could happen. Might as well take a look so you don't get surprised

 

[focker34]

Unless I'm hunting in New Zealand I'll always take a glance over my shoulder while field dressing. Probably still even then.

 

[Beastmode]

I usually take a piss about 20 yards away to make my presence known. After that it doesn't really bother me unless its dark. Then I tend to look around a little bit.

 

[dryflyguy]

I've had a grizzly come in while I was whittling on a bull, so you are definitely not the only one who is looking over your shoulder.

 

[littlebuf]

in the dark I tend to look around a bit more, but really I think its way more mental in most cases. daylight field dressing it usually doesn't cross my mind unless im in a real bushy area doing the work.

 

[Darren Best]

It is an issue in Montana, a few years ago a solo hunter was killed by a grizzly while gutting an elk he had shot.

 

[cmeier117]

Where I hunted last year, had I got an elk down we would have had one of us on watch duty. The last 3 nights of our hunt I fell asleep to the sound of howling wolves. If we got an elk down at night it would have been the fastest field dress job you had ever seen. I would have been crapping my pants if wolves would have been howling and I am covered in blood!

 

[2ski]

It is an issue in Montana, a few years ago a solo hunter was killed by a grizzly while gutting an elk he had shot.

If memory serves, this wasn't even a solo thing. His buddy had gone for the truck to get it closer.

Or that picture that made its way around the internet a few years ago where the dude set up his camera to take a picture of himself and his bull and when he reveiwed the pictures, there was the glowing eyes of a mountain lion on the edge of the trees in the background.

 

[2ski]

Yeah...so I just googled it to find the picture, and apparently that was a fake picture....

 

[littlebuf]

it was fake but that doesn't mean its not still a possibility. like my dad always told me "be alert because the world needs more alerts"

 

[Backpack Hunter]

I'm pretty much aware of my surroundings, but can't say I ever consciously scan my surroundings either.

 

[hflier]

Predators will come, I have had possum's wanna roll with me gutting out deer. They come in and don't want to take no for an answer. So I am sure bear and wolves are the same. I have heard a Grizzly can smell a gut pile at 3 miles.

 

[Ray]

When I was a kid in NV decades ago we had no issues. Then things changed by the 1980's when the cougar population recovered.

Up here a grizzly can show up when ever. Keep an eye on your down wind side at all times.

 

[AK Troutbum]

I do it all the time even when I have a partner. I've had brown bears move in on us on a couple different occasions while hunting Kodiak. As far as I'm concerned, it's never a bad idea to look around every few minutes, who knows, you're moose, elk, deer, or whatever hunt, may just turn into a combo hunt.

 

[Idaho Bowhunter]

I never have worried about it usually when I get a animal down I tend to make more noise taking pictures talking with friends etc. Now if I leave meat over nite I'm very carefully going back into the spot never know something else could have claimed your meat over nite