Thread: Thank you NZ Hunter!

Originally Posted by Stocky

That's a ripper Moose Sure is a big boy. Weighing out quarters last season the biggest moose went 205lbs on one of the rears and 200 on the other. The both in the 190s in the front. When you can have 5 to 10 pounds difference in weight and you can't really see it you know they are big critters. The neck on them is like a hole other quarter. I'd say the weight is what they get back from the butcher. We let the butcher know we had weighed quarters when we would drop them off as my outfitter has had issues with it coming back very short. @R93 how did you find moose? It's shocked me how good it was especially from rutting bulls.

Last outfit I worked for we only weighed some of them for the same reasons you mentioned.
Unfortunately didn't weigh that big boy as it went home with the client. This last season was made harder as we had to take neck meat and ribs. Just offal, shot damaged meat and spine left for the preds and crows.

I agree. Surprising how good eating they are, especially considering they're rutting bulls.
I enjoy all the game meat I have tried but if had to live on only one, it would be moose. Especially the liver. Yum.
I have had some chewy stuff but flavour has been really good.
Makes you wonder what a younger animal would go like.

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Southern Canadian moose weigh pretty well also. I shot a meat bull in New Foundland that weighed about 165 lbs for each the hindquarter and a bit lighter for each forequarter.

Boned and packaged up it was a little over 500 lbs. along with a couple of whitetail I shot earlier in the season we bought very little red meat that year! I reckon I lost weight on it as it was so lean.

Originally Posted by R93

Last outfit I worked for we only weighed some of them for the same reasons you mentioned.
Unfortunately didn't weigh that big boy as it went home with the client. This last season was made harder as we had to take neck meat and ribs. Just offal, shot damaged meat and spine left for the preds and crows.

I agree. Surprising how good eating they are, especially considering they're rutting bulls.
I enjoy all the game meat I have tried but if had to live on only one, it would be moose. Especially the liver. Yum.
I have had some chewy stuff but flavour has been really good.
Makes you wonder what a younger animal would go like.

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We actually weigh them to balance out the horses before longer trips. We just subtly mentioned we had weighed them.
I'd agree if I could only have one moose rates pretty highly. Before I tried it I figured that fallow sika is good red not quite as good, sambar is tasty but chewy. That by the time you get to moose size itd be pretty chewy and gamey but not so. Very mild and tasty.
We also had to take the ribs etc. For alot we just took the meat from between to make burger as the high velocity 30 calibres where making alot of blood meat in the ribs under the shoulder. But did a few racks over the fire that weren't to bad.
@Dicko those whitetail don't eat bad either.

Originally Posted by R93

Last outfit I worked for we only weighed some of them for the same reasons you mentioned.
Unfortunately didn't weigh that big boy as it went home with the client. This last season was made harder as we had to take neck meat and ribs. Just offal, shot damaged meat and spine left for the preds and crows.

I agree. Surprising how good eating they are, especially considering they're rutting bulls.
I enjoy all the game meat I have tried but if had to live on only one, it would be moose. Especially the liver. Yum.
I have had some chewy stuff but flavour has been really good.
Makes you wonder what a younger animal would go like.

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Puts you in good habits. This was the first animal I took after leaving the territory. Not much left in the end. Would like to try that with a red where some of us hunt here though.

Originally Posted by Stocky

Attachment 136596
Puts you in good habits. This was the first animal I took after leaving the territory. Not much left in the end. Would like to try that with a red where some of us hunt here though.

Yeah getting the panyards balanced was important. We always had new crappy pack horses every season and guess who got them. Was always a Rodeo when they past a nest of bees and I cant tell you how many miles I have done chasing horses and repacking blowups. Doesn't help that I'm not exactly a horse person either.
I wish I was in a mood to take a photo of one bad one. Literally had gear from 2 horses spread for a km in a high alpine pass and I was alone. Had my face on that day and if I didnt forget my rifle on my tetherd horse I would have happily shot the 2 I had to catch.



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Great show the other night, enjoyed the three hunting sections, I guide in Limpopo & try to tell people what it is about but I'm surprised so many NZ hunters are against or not for trophy hunting in Africa or over seas in general ?

I also spent a season in Alaska & lots of animals but lots of country between them lol !

I would put a small wager on two shooters on that Moose but that would be illegal in the US so might be in Canada to ?

Yep enjoyed the program, all places would be worth a visit.

Originally Posted by chainsaw

Aye, sure looked like a Texas heart shot to me. And that 2nd shot was so fast it had to be some one else backing up the shooter?
And one or both must have hit the CNS to drop it like it did.

Thought it was a semi with the second shot.

R93,thanks for yr photo and write up.Would they use, a 300 win mag or something bigger to drop those big boys.Those back legs so big.

Originally Posted by tetawa

Thought it was a semi with the second shot.

Just channel flicking 10 mins ago and caught the episode at exactly the right time.
I reckon he did get 2 shots away. You could hear the bolt cycling inbetween shots. A moose is a huge target at 100 yards. But he was still quick and accurate.

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Originally Posted by Trout

R93,thanks for yr photo and write up.Would they use, a 300 win mag or something bigger to drop those big boys.Those back legs so big.

Yeah most carry big 300s of some sort but ironically the quickest kills I have personally seen were with a 308 and 7 rem mag.
I almost lost one if not for a fluke in tracking, shots placed about 3 inches apart with a 300 short mag bang thru the shoulder. He managed to get close to 800 yrds from where shot on gps.
I have no idea how it got that far. I am no vet or bullet wound expert but imo the projectiles did a perfect job and it should have fallen over a lot sooner considering the damage I noted when butchering it.





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While moose are big, blokes that I spoke with that have taken a lot don’t talk them up as being hard to kill from well placed shots.
@Stocky, I lived out on the plains so you picked up your whitetail tags about 4-6 weeks after harvest. Deer were always grain finished eating grain fallen on the ground, corn and soybean. Carcasses could have over an inch of fat down the backsteaks and rump.

Originally Posted by R93

Yeah most carry big 300s of some sort but ironically the quickest kills I have personally seen were with a 308 and 7 rem mag.
I almost lost one if not for a fluke in tracking, shots placed about 3 inches apart with a 300 short mag bang thru the shoulder. He managed to get close to 800 yrds from where shot on gps.
I have no idea how it got that far. I am no vet or bullet wound expert but imo the projectiles did a perfect job and it should have fallen over a lot sooner considering the damage I noted when butchering it.





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300 Weatherby was the calibre of choice this season with us. The fastest kill was a 270 with partions and a 7mm rem mag with they same. I didn't see it but another kiwi guy guided one and it took about 6 shots all around the shoulder region and made it along way. 4 were from the hunter with a 300 Win Mag with 180 Interbonds. And another 2 where from a 338 Win Mag from the Guide trying to anchor it before it crossed a river.... It crossed the river and died in a pond on the far side. I had the misfortune of being done early and my client had headed home already. So I go to help gut a moose in waist deep water. Luckily they float enough to get them close to shore but can't get it out of the water hole without getting horses around the river. Not the most enjoyable job but character building for sure. Luckily he wasn't massive only 180 pounds for his rears and 160 for his fronts. When he said he only wanted a euro we didn't press him to take the shoulder cape at all like we usually would. Late moose season is cold and the pond didn't help things so we wanted to rush it.

Originally Posted by Stocky

300 Weatherby was the calibre of choice this season with us. The fastest kill was a 270 with partions and a 7mm rem mag with they same. I didn't see it but another kiwi guy guided one and it took about 6 shots all around the shoulder region and made it along way. 4 were from the hunter with a 300 Win Mag with 180 Interbonds. And another 2 where from a 338 Win Mag from the Guide trying to anchor it before it crossed a river.... It crossed the river and died in a pond on the far side. I had the misfortune of being done early and my client had headed home already. So I go to help gut a moose in waist deep water. Luckily they float enough to get them close to shore but can't get it out of the water hole without getting horses around the river. Not the most enjoyable job but character building for sure. Luckily he wasn't massive only 180 pounds for his rears and 160 for his fronts. When he said he only wanted a euro we didn't press him to take the shoulder cape at all like we usually would. Late moose season is cold and the pond didn't help things so we wanted to rush it.

I have seen 9 bulls shot. Only 2 dropped on spot. Every other either bolted a ways while well hit or just stood there and soaked up bullets. I cant find it but there is a vid on youtube of one of them my boss was guiding soaking up 3 shots under 100 yrds from 300 ultra
It remained standing there for a while. Even a cow walked over mewing at him and nudging his ass for a good time before he finally tipped over. It's a sad but a cool vid as it has cows calling and a real cow call contradicts a lot of calling I have heard and seen.
The mewe at the start of a sika call/roar would be closest to a cow moose only with a different carry and cadence.

I havent had to cut one up floating in water yet but have heard plenty of stories about it stocky

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Thank God they float, this guy took 3 clean thru the boiler room 250gr nosler partitions, we towed him behind an Argo for almost a km!!
I asked an ole French Canadian why he shoots a 338 WM he answered "where I Hunt I don't want them to go far tabernac" also they say don't shoot a Moose in the front shoulder, my 3 have been double lung shots all have toppled in 3-4 steps but i'm by no means an expert I just think quick expanding bullets leave a mess and sometimes they get away where's partitions plow thru doing lethal damage!