Got a feeling deer hunters and body shops are going
- Thread starter thatsbaseball
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Depends on what you want but the guy I used hasn’t gone up in price in years. I get the back straps and tenderloins whole and grind up the rest.
Last time I figured it up a half pound deer/bacon burger cost about the same as a 1 1/2 inch choice ribeye **
I think I paid $85 for the last one I killed and that was several years ago. Unless you can do it yourself, it’s cheaper to go to the grocery store and buy beef.
Venison processing prices are insane. I can buy Country Pleasing smoked sausage in the grocery store for less than what it cost me to have the venison I provide the processor turned into sausage. We started processing our own ground venison last season due to the rising costs.
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Buy a DC grinder instead of AC. DC grinders don't heat up. It's not hard to process your own meat, but it takes time. That's just part of the hunting process for me. It helps me appreciate what the animal provides and I can trim it up better than the deer processing places do. It also like to sharpen my knives, so there's that.
Sharpening knives is so relaxing while watching TV.
Not always. It depends on did you hit the deer, or the deer hit you. some companies are dicks about it.
More deer in the city than in the country. Deers lives matter.
I’m seeing more in & around my neighborhood in Madison this year than I have in over 20 years living here. Used to just occasionally see them in & around the wood near the train track. But a lot more coming into the neighborhood these days.
My guy charges $100is to skin the deer, cut the tenderloins/back straps into steaks (or leave whole) and grind the rest. Its the most expensive food you can eat, bar none. When you start getting sausages, jerky, tamales, etc, you can run the bill up towards $300/400 or more.
When you factor in the cost of food plots, ammo, gun, etc…. It’s 1000% cheaper to buy meat rather than hunt. But going and shooting a deer sure beats the hell out of sitting on my couch all day.
I think I paid $150 per deer on average last season. That includes the skinning fee. I did a mix of Backstraps whole, bacon burger, smoked sausage and snack sticks (that’s where the real money is). I believe we put 7 deer in the freezer between me and my daughter last year and gave a few additional deer to friends. The freezer is nearly empty, so I’m glad deer season is about to roll back around.
I can skin and process my own. We always did it ourselves growing up, but I literally hate disposing of a carcass. Trying to figure out a good place to dump in on my place sucks, and I’m not gonna dump it on the side of the road. I just treat the skinning fee as a disposal fee and move on with life.
I can skin and process my own. We always did it ourselves growing up, but I literally hate disposing of a carcass. Trying to figure out a good place to dump in on my place sucks, and I’m not gonna dump it on the side of the road. I just treat the skinning fee as a disposal fee and move on with life.
I debone mine and bring it to my processor. He charges me $40, no matter how much it weighs, to turn it all into burger. He is as high as all of the other places if you decide to go with sausage, tamales, etc. I don’t let anyone deal with my back straps and inside loins.
I get my first deer ground. The second one I will usually cut out steaks, roasts, etc. and use the rest for stew meat or make jerky. People throw away a lot of good cuts like shank and neck. You can get a lot more out of a deer if you know how to deal with it. It’s still more expensive than beef if you don’t consider camp time to be a replacement for therapy and road rage incidents.
I get my first deer ground. The second one I will usually cut out steaks, roasts, etc. and use the rest for stew meat or make jerky. People throw away a lot of good cuts like shank and neck. You can get a lot more out of a deer if you know how to deal with it. It’s still more expensive than beef if you don’t consider camp time to be a replacement for therapy and road rage incidents.
We were half a mile from the house after driving 10.5 hours coming home from Austin last night and my wife clipped a fawn.
I don't recommend having sharp knives close when watching MSU sports.
No doubt. If you are out hunting deer (or really anything) under the guise of 'feeding the family', you are not in it for the right reasons.
2 years ago I invested in a grinder and sausage stuffer "Meat Your Maker brand"...around Christmas they had an incredible sale. I think I gave around $300-$350 for a .75 hp grinder(this thing is a beast! can grind 50 lbs in minutes) and a 15 lb stuffer. I was sick and tired of getting a $300 bill for smoked sausage that I felt like I could make just as good at a fraction of the cost(I used Van's)
I have enjoyed doing it myself sooooo much. Yes, it's time consuming. Yes, it can feel like work if you're in a hurry. I typically do it during Christmas week on a rainy day that I can't hunt. As we kill deer during the early season we debone and trim off all the fat/silver skin and freeze in gallon freezer bags until we are ready for a processing day. Go buy some pork butts and pork fat for the smoked sausage and fire up the big smoker. You can make them as fatty and juicy as you want and add whatever seasoning you like. I have found I a seasoning I like with Rebel Butcher in Pearl, MS. I add some whole mustard seeds to give it a bit of German flair.
For burgers, I mix about 60/40 with pork butt and pre season them before I freeze in 2 lb bags. It is phenomenal for burgers, chili, spaghetti, or whatever else you use beef for.......yes, sometimes I prefer a beef burger but it's so easy just to set out a pack of frozen meat before I leave the house in the morning.
My suggestion...get your own equipment/maybe partner with a hunting buddy and do your own. These processors around the Jackson area are ridiculous.
I have enjoyed doing it myself sooooo much. Yes, it's time consuming. Yes, it can feel like work if you're in a hurry. I typically do it during Christmas week on a rainy day that I can't hunt. As we kill deer during the early season we debone and trim off all the fat/silver skin and freeze in gallon freezer bags until we are ready for a processing day. Go buy some pork butts and pork fat for the smoked sausage and fire up the big smoker. You can make them as fatty and juicy as you want and add whatever seasoning you like. I have found I a seasoning I like with Rebel Butcher in Pearl, MS. I add some whole mustard seeds to give it a bit of German flair.
For burgers, I mix about 60/40 with pork butt and pre season them before I freeze in 2 lb bags. It is phenomenal for burgers, chili, spaghetti, or whatever else you use beef for.......yes, sometimes I prefer a beef burger but it's so easy just to set out a pack of frozen meat before I leave the house in the morning.
My suggestion...get your own equipment/maybe partner with a hunting buddy and do your own. These processors around the Jackson area are ridiculous.
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