Hanging Pheasants

[CP]

How many of you hang your birds for any length of time?  I've always wanted to try this but I'm afraid that I can't keep the temperature regulated closely enough and I'll end up 



http://honest-food.net/2012/10/20/on-hanging-pheasants-2/

[JLS]

I often throw my birds in the beer fridge and leave them there for up to a week.  I don't have anywhere that is 50-55 degrees to try that out.

I've never had one go bad, and they don't seem to be as tough.

[buckfvr]

Back in the late 70s earlyy 80s, we were bird hunting purists........raised dogs, hunted, ate birds.........I cant begin to tell you how many rooters we ate after 3 and 4 days of rollin around behind the dog box.........never a problem, but it was usually pretty cool where we hunted.  I suppose I should mention, those days there were so many birds it was unreal.............Ellensburg to the Wenas, non stop action every trip.  Everyone let you hunt, Selah was bird central, and where its all homes now, it was all fields full of rooters.

God I miss those days and dogs..............

[Stilly bay]

If its cold enough I will let them sit over night more out laziness than anything else. I might consider hanging wild birds which are older and tougher than our Western Wa pen raised birds that aren't even a year old.
When I looked into this years ago I was told another reason not to try this with release birds is because the possibility of salmonella and other bacterium contamination is so much greater than with wild birds.

I read that in Europe they often hang birds and the best way to tell if they are  ready is when neck decomposes so much it cannot support the weight of the hanging body. 

[MP123]

Yeah, these Wetside Pheasants are the bird equivalent of veal.  Very young and not allowed to move around much so they don't toughen up.  You could always try hanging one for a bit and see.  Don't think I'd want to eat it after the head rots off though 

[KopperBuck]

Hang till the head falls off! Used to be the practice anyways. I've never hung pheasant, but hang ducks if I plan on roasting them. If jerky or pepperoni I butcher the day of, or the next. If they're terribly gut shot I'll clean them the day of.

[Curly]

Interesting article.  I don't know if I would try it.......

I just skimmed the article quickly, but it seems that he is not gutting the birds before hanging.  Is that correct?     I might have to read the article a little closer.  I'm not sure if I could get my spare fridge set to 50 degrees.......so it may be difficult to hang at 50 - 55 like he recommends.

So, to wrap up, here’s what I found:

Keep your birds as cool and as separate as possible in the field. Use a game strap, not the game bag in your vest. Separate your birds in the truck or put them in a cooler — do not get them wet!

Hanging your birds by the neck or feet does not matter, as several studies has shown.

Hang the birds between 50 to 55°F for at least three days, up to a week with an old rooster. Old roosters will have horny beaks, blunt spurs and feet that look like they have been walked on for quite some time. They will also have a stiff, heavy keelbone. Hen pheasants only need 3 days.

Do not hang any game birds that have been gut-shot or are generally torn up. Butcher these immediately and use them for a pot pie.

Dry-pluck any bird that has hung for more than 3 days.

Wash and dry your birds after you pluck and draw them. Only then should you freeze them.

[Stilly bay]

He hangs them guts and all, feet down to prevent the juices from running into the breast meat.

What happens if the intestines are perforated?

[Curly]

He hangs them guts and all, feet down to prevent the juices from running into the breast meat.

What happens if the intestines are perforated?

That's what I'm wondering.  How would you know how bad the insides are shot up unless you were to open it up.

Wouldn't it be nasty after several days of hanging if the guts were leaking???   


Couldn't a guy pull the guts out and still hang the bird for a few days?

As far as regulating the fridge at 50 - 55 degrees, I could get one of these:  regulator

[Stilly bay]

I think that if you clean them they will start breaking down much faster and then you really run the risk of salmonella or food poisoning.the whole Idea is that its like a closed system, and only the right kind of bacteria can form, unless the guts are shot up in which case you want to clean them pronto and not let them age.

[MP123]

It can be kind of hard to tell where the bird got hit until you open it up.  I get some where I just broke a wing with no other damage and my dog brings me a live bird.  That might be a good candidate for aging it a while.  Others are all shot up inside but you can't really tell until you start getting the skin off.

[87Ford]

When I'm on a multiple day pheasant hunt, away from home, I always pull the guts, rinse out the cavity, then put the bird on ice leaving the rest of the carcass intact.  When I get home I finish the process of cutting the wings and head off, skinning, etc..  Never had a problem..

[wildweeds]

It was cold out one year and in early december I came home from eastern wash with almost a  3 day limit of roosters(it was cold and snow there too) ,It was cold so I didn't get around to cleaning them for 5 days or so,temp outside was 40's days 30's nights,Cleaned em all and thought my old lady would freak out if she knew.She asked me,hey these birds are the best you've gotten ever,what did you do different.Well she opened the door and I told her and she responded with a " Well you ain't cleaning anymore birds before a week then. I do however clean the gutshot/hammered ones the day I get them though.

[GrampasGuns]

I just hung up a big big drake mallard from opening day. Built a small rack system in my fridge. I ruffled through the breast feathers and looked for any indication of penetration through the breast or sides. Excited to see how it turns out

[fethrduster]

I hang mine in the basement for a few days at least as standard practice, then maybe even put them in the fridge for a few more days.  Never had an issue.  Just the opposite.  I've found if I don't do this, I get a tough bird once in a while.