Caribou Gear

Loadin' 'em whole: a question

My 50+ year old spine seems to have a harder time loading a gutted buck into the back of a pickup truck than it used to. What's your favorite tools and tactics for this chore? This season, getting the buck to the truck was easy -- the hard part was hefting him over the tailgate. Help.
Anything with a front end loader and bucket LoL
 
I can just envision some one dragging their deer behind their truck for miles in search of the nearest fence post.
Would think if you wrapped the anchor rope around two different sagebrush clumps as low as you could, they’d hold.
 
Yep, I've seen some pretty nasty looking carcasses on those.
Yep. If the roads are muddy deer goes up alongside the cartop carrier. Messy job getting it up there though. Or if I remember, wrapping it in a tarp before throwing it on the hitch carrier works. Deer must be cut up now before removed from the district (CWD) so mine usually go down the road in coolers.
 
I’ve heard that some game processors will not take anything other than whole clean animals. Any truth to that? If so, and someone was not comfortable processing their own kill, then they may need to keep it whole.
 
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You're at the truck, going to skin it anyway and if you have a bad back it's much easier and cleaner working standing up than breaking one down on the ground. Buy a hitch hoist.
 
I’ve heard that some game processors will not take anything other than whole clean animals. Any truth to that? If so, and someone was not comfortable processing their own kill, then they may need to keep it whole.
I’m sure it’s different depending on where you are but I know of two local processors here that won’t accept them any way but whole. My understanding for them, I only know one personally, is based on folks not always taking care of it up front then being upset with losing meat
 
I built a stand that slid into the hitch of my truck with a winch that I had at work and just kept it in the bed of the truck I made it able to swivel at the base so all I had to do is winch it up and swing it in then let down! It made loading super easy but definatly took some fab skills to figure out but it wasn’t to difficult for the average joe to do.
 
I’m sure it’s different depending on where you are but I know of two local processors here that won’t accept them any way but whole. My understanding for them, I only know one personally, is based on folks not always taking care of it up front then being upset with losing meat
Easy fix for this is......don’t take them to a processor.
 
I’ve heard that some game processors will not take anything other than whole clean animals. Any truth to that? If so, and someone was not comfortable processing their own kill, then they may to keep it whole.
Sounds like a great way to get the skinning fee. mtmuley
Here in il you have to call in your deer before you quarter it and in a lot of situations it’s not that far of a drag to the truck.
During peak season the local processor only accepts whole deer.
I’ve always assumed this is perhaps a storage/logistical issue since he runs it like an assembly line more so than trying to collect any fees or avoid tainted meat but I’ve been wrong before.
It’s just kinda the way things are done here 🤷🏼‍♂️
In the off season they allow you to bring in boneless meat that they’ll turn into sausage and what not for you.
I’m not sure if they will process frozen quarters or not.
I will guarantee you deer will not be nice and clean after 30 miles
I agree that the knife and backpack are the most fun and overall effective way to get a deer out, but if it dies on a trail or in a cornfield less than 1/2mi from the car dragging it out whole and using the deer duster on oil and chip/interstate isn’t a terrible option.
 
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