Question for the guys who kill bears anually???

[jrebel]

For those of you who kill bears on a yearly basis....and sometimes two bears a year, What do you do with them.  As seen in an earlier post, I finally connected with my first bear ever.  It was a smaller bear but a bear non the less.  I am going to make breakfast sausage out of the meat so I can mix it with pork (pork makes everything taste better  ).  I took the hide to the taxidermist and am gettng a full body mount (cause it is small and has great color), but it is outrageously expensive. 

1.  What do you guys do with the meat, or what would you reccomend / your favorite??
2.  What do you do with your hides / furs.....a bear rug will cost 1,000-1,500 / bear and the full body mound cost 3 -4 thousand. 

There is no way I could afford to do this twice a year.  Maybe a rug once a year, but then what do you do with the rugs? 

Just trying to figure this stuff out, cause I now have bear fever.  I don't really want to kill another this year cause I am now officially broke (full body mount) and I still have a late buck hunt this year that I plan on mounting.  Probably 5K in taxidermy this year alone.  My wife may divorce me...  

Thanks in advance

Johnny

[7mmfan]

I've wondered the same thing, about the hides mostly. I can handle all the meat, but it seems like such a waste to through a nice bear skin out. Guess it happens to thousands of deer and elk hides every year though so whats the difference with a bear?

[romaknows]

Dont be scared of bear meat , it is very good.Cut it up just like you would a deer or elk.

[CAMPMEAT]

Just get your next bear hide tanned only. Boy oh boy, I don't know where your getting those prices at. That's really expensive and shouldn't be that much. Shop around.

[boneaddict]

I usually turn most of mine into sausage.   Some burger for certain recipes.    Most hides get tossed or left behind.  I am after a real particular bear to have mounted, so have been alot more selective in the last few years.

[kglacken]

Just get your next bear hide tanned only. Boy oh boy, I don't know where your getting those prices at. That's really expensive and shouldn't be that much. Shop around.

I got my first bear full body mounted for $2500

[jrebel]

My prices are ball park figures.  It obviuosly depends on the size of the bear and mount you choose etc. etc. The full body mount I am getting is less as I was given a decent deal.  However it will be pushing 3k but I was particular with what I wanted and am buying some extra's to make it a true work of art. 

[CAMPMEAT]

Just get your next bear hide tanned only. Boy oh boy, I don't know where your getting those prices at. That's really expensive and shouldn't be that much. Shop around.

I got my first bear full body mounted for $2500

Wow, no kidding !!! I must be out of touch with prices. I have noticed the westside is a lot more expensive than some of the eastside prices I guess.

[mountainman]

We do it all in jerky anymore. Simple and kids love it too! Meat is ok if taken care of properly. Hides? You've seen the shop! LOL! AND some in storage and home in the closet... Agree with Bone...has to be a pretty special one for me to do another one!

[carpsniperg2]

summer sausage for me. I will eat some of the cuts like tenderloins.

Talk to your taxidermists. Some will trade you credit for bear hides if you don't plan on mounting it. 

[Kowsrule30]

Burger or sausage the meat up.... Most hides if I know I can't sell them or not worth taking it out or adding another trip if I really don't car just get tossed.... I have 4 bear hides tanned.... If would have to be a monster Or the cinnimon boar that pushing almost 400# that I'm after....And I'd probably get some kind of wall mount....

[Austrian Hunter]

Pepperoni sticks  Smoked German Sausage and Bratwurst......  I have one rug hanging on the wall, One half mount I will pick up Sep 10th. 

I am out of sticks so let Sep 1st get here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[rasbo]

pepperoni,roasts..unless the bear means something special,I dont mount it

[lewy]

Ive euro'd every bear skull that ive killed and had a few mounts/rugs done as well. As far as the meat, I cube up the good stuff in the hind end for stew meat, which is awesome, and grind the rest in with my deer and elk. Congrats on the bear

[Huntbear]

Still waiting to have this problem with my first bear...

However,,,, pepperoni and breakfast sausage are fantastic made from bear... the roasts off the hams smoked are awesome.... 

[runamuk]

sausage and some roasts....

thats when I finally get my first bear, bear meat is like pork in some ways so whatever you would do with pork you could do with bear  the only bad bear I have heard of is bear eating a diet of fish according to all my alaskan friends.

[saylean]

I have a couple rugs, a half mount, a full body mount in the shop.... thats enough for now...the skulls I get cleaned by bugs....

If I get one this year, (or two) I will just get the hide tanned for a throw. The meat I take in and get summer sausage and breakfast suasage.

[lokidog]

!st bear (small one) rugged.  Second bear (huge one, 7'2" nose to tail) rugged.  Third one, first archery one (small) tanned only.  First two rugs are gone (small one bugs or something ate it when loaned out, second one stolen off wall), may someday rug the one with the bow.  Depending, I would probably at least tan the hide so I could do something with it in the future.

As far as meat, burger, roasts, and steaks (backstrap) is what I've done.  When I was a kid, we had a bunch of roast meat cut and cured like chipped beef, cut real thin.  My brother and I would eat that right out of the freezer!     Also had brats made.

[billythekidrock]

We always make roasts out of the backstraps and rear hams. Sometimes we make neck roasts as well. We cook the roasts in the slow cooker.

I make a lot of sausage and pepperoni. We do alot of fresh sasuage and smoked.
Usually German, Polish and Italian as well as Bratwurst and summer sausage.






I also can alot of bear meat. The rest is added to deer/elk burger.


Can't forget the tenderloins.


I have at least half of my skulls and two mounts. Most hides get left at the kill site or tossed later.

[huntnnw]

sausage all my bears and have sold every hide off every bear I have killed

[muzbuster]

I love bear sausage & pepperoni. I have 1 bear rug from the only bear I have shot. Should I get any more bears I will just have the hides tanned. Have an uncle that has shot several bears & he has  1 shoulder mount of a smaller bear then has all the other hides just tanned.