Thread: My basic How to Gut, Pikau Carry and Skin a deer video tutorial

Here are a couple of quickly made on the spot 'How to' videos my mate recorded of me on his phone so that he would know what to do with the deer he shot by himself. Filmed on his phone so that he would always have the info with him.
These where recorded purely for my mates reference but i thought i would share them for any new hunters or even just to show another way for someone.
These are showing the way i was taught and developed over time. I'm no expert and there are almost definitely better ways, however it gives one
example of how gutting, pikau carrying whole deer and skinning can be done.


https://youtu.be/kDJrCLl9DjY

https://youtu.be/rnVLiO1Koss

btw you use your knife to knife things

Awesome, thanks for sharing!

I always find it bloody interesting how everyone guts, preps and processes their animals differently. Certainly many ways to skin a cat!

The last time i tried to carry out a small deer like that, i tried putting my pack into its body cavity but that didn't work. Im a rookie at deer hunting so didn't actually think of just letting the deer wear the pack haha.
Those deer in the video have really pretty hides.

A bloke who says (or implies) "this is what works for me" can always teach you something, thanks for sharing .. . .

@Roarless20 Hope you got your macaroon at the end!

Originally Posted by JessicaChen

The last time i tried to carry out a small deer like that, i tried putting my pack into its body cavity but that didn't work. Im a rookie at deer hunting so didn't actually think of just letting the deer wear the pack haha.
Those deer in the video have really pretty hides.

Putting your pikau/daybag inside the deer cavity is a good idea on the larger deer, especially in the bush or scrub (catching up) and also because your bag will fall to one side which can/does cause alot of frustration at times. I carry a plastic rubbish bag for either putting my pikau into to go inside the deer or if boning out to put meat into inside my pikau. Either way the gear and bag all stay cleaner.

Those deer were molting (?) so i don't think you could tan them without them loosing a lot of hair?

I grew up gutting sheep and goats for dog tucker, then graduated to doing the house mutton, and did a few months at the meatworks (cutting the ring gear out and opening the belly of 1085 sheep per day), so my method has changed over time, and actually changes a bit depending on the situation and what gear I have with me.
Dog tuckers we would cut the flap behind the ribs right up to the spine to make it easier to gut and cut around the diaphragm.
I often free up and tie off the oesophagus before gutting to avoid spillages.
Working on a hanging animal is generally cleaner, but it's easier to make a mistake when gutting and get a spillage e.g. gut falls out when opening belly and catches on knife, or the weight of gut breaks it off at diaphragm.
I have an Allen guthook type "knife" and it is brilliant for opening up the belly without any risk of puncturing the gut, and is another option for doing the skinning cuts (works well on deer, not so much on sheep, and is safer than a knife).

Originally Posted by Cigar

(cutting the ring gear out and opening the belly of 1085 sheep per day)


I often free up and tie off the oesophagus before gutting to avoid spillages.

There are few true masters at something but i reckon with those sorts of numbers per day you must be one of them Master of Assholes


I'm going to have to try that 'free up and tie off the oesophagus before gutting to avoid spillages.' trick
That is an annoying cud spill i get when pulling through the the windpipe etc still attached to the lungs.

With the knife while slitting the gut i now usually squeeze the blade tip in between my 'in gut' hands middle fingers, protecting the tip from touching the guts. This allows for an easier nice gliding slit of the belly and is near impossible to nick anything you dont want.

Originally Posted by Roarless20

There are few true masters at something but i reckon with those sorts of numbers per day you must be one of them Master of Assholes


I'm going to have to try that 'free up and tie off the oesophagus before gutting to avoid spillages.' trick
That is an annoying cud spill i get when pulling through the the windpipe etc still attached to the lungs.

With the knife while slitting the gut i now usually squeeze the blade tip in between my 'in gut' hands middle fingers, protecting the tip from touching the guts. This allows for an easier nice gliding slit of the belly and is near impossible to nick anything you dont want.

Using a cable tie is an alternative to tying the tubes, especially if one end or the other has a bit of damage. Cheap, easy and handy for all sorts of things.

Originally Posted by Cigar

I often free up and tie off the oesophagus before gutting to avoid spillages.

I do that too with some jute twine, but with the butthole as well. I am very very slow and fussy at gutting because i hate any bit of poo, wees, or cud/gut contents touching the precious tenderloins.

Originally Posted by Ross Nolan

Using a cable tie is an alternative to tying the tubes, especially if one end or the other has a bit of damage. Cheap, easy and handy for all sorts of things.

That is a great tip that someone posted on the forum a while back (may have been you?) that I now use doing muttons at home. I still haven't learnt to take a cable tie when I go hunting...

To tie off the oesophagus without a cable tie, free up the windpipe and oesophagus together, then cut the windpipe, leaving a section an inch or two long attached at the end of the oesophagus then tie a simple knot in the oesophagus (the bit of windpipe stops the knot slipping off the end).

At the works, to open the belly we made a small cut and put your hand and knife inside and run the knife down with the blade pointing out. I wouldn't recommend this method for general use as you need a knife sharpened right up to the handle, and you have to move quick to have the knife clear before the guts falls out the opening. And the carcass needs to be hanging, not lying on the ground.