Don't waste your deer hides!

[police women of America]

Here's another article on things that can be done with hides:
http://www.biggamehunt.net/tips/use-hide
The hide doesn't have to go to waste. It's a very useful item that can be used in many different ways. In some cases, you can even make some money off them!

[police women of America]

PWA,

I really appreciate your enthusiasm and passion on this issue.  I personally don't view meat and hides in the same light, but I can certainly see where some might.  I have never saved a hide, and I usually ruin them anyway by splitting them up the back in order to remove the meat.

Best of luck in your quest for your first deer!

Thanks! I appreciate your input. I have one question, if there was a easy was to drop off hides (assuming that they're whole) would you do it?
This whole thing isn't getting me thinking, maybe if they had sanitary "drop boxes" for hunters where they could drop there hides. They could get some use out of them

[Karl Blanchard]

I completely understand your point I just disagree.  You stated that we don't have to hunt and we could just buy meat at the store.  Well same goes with the hide.  You can buy blankets, clothing, etc from a store as well.  I choose to feed my family a higher quality protein than store bought garbage.  I personally have zero use for a hide.  I'm not decorating my home with them.  I'm not clothing myself with them.  I don't fly fish so I'm not tying flies with them.    As bobcat stated, nothing in nature goes to waste, including skins 

I can appreciate your enthusiasm for using all of the animal though

If someone else was to use them to make blankets, clothing, etc. would you ship or drop it off for them?

nope.  I don't hunt in places where hauling a hide out is feasible.   My concern is every ounce of meat I can trim off a carcass, including edible organs such as heart and liver (even though liver is nasty.  My grandparents like it).

Well I meant more if you weren't far out in the woods. Like I said on a couple other posts, personally I don't think it's wasting the hide if you're 5+ miles away from your car.

  Oh gotcha, I misunderstood.   The answer is still no.  I don't gut animals and I debone everything.  Even if I was 100 ft from a road I'd still debone and use the gutless method.  This involves splitting the hide right down the center line of the back. 

Basically it comes down to it being a bunch of work for me, for zero return for my efforts, for something that I don't see as a waste issue 

I will say though, if I ever shot a deer from the rig or VERY close to the rig and ended up taking one out whole and there were drop bins around, yeah I'd skin one out.

[JLS]

PWA,

I really appreciate your enthusiasm and passion on this issue.  I personally don't view meat and hides in the same light, but I can certainly see where some might.  I have never saved a hide, and I usually ruin them anyway by splitting them up the back in order to remove the meat.

Best of luck in your quest for your first deer!

Thanks! I appreciate your input. I have one question, if there was a easy was to drop off hides (assuming that they're whole) would you do it?
This whole thing isn't getting me thinking, maybe if they had sanitary "drop boxes" for hunters where they could drop there hides. They could get some use out of them

IMHO, I doubt there is that much demand for deer and elk hides, given the number of cattle that are slaughtered in the US.  Even if there were drop boxes, I doubt I would take many to them because it's rare I kill an animal very close to the road.

[police women of America]

I completely understand your point I just disagree.  You stated that we don't have to hunt and we could just buy meat at the store.  Well same goes with the hide.  You can buy blankets, clothing, etc from a store as well.  I choose to feed my family a higher quality protein than store bought garbage.  I personally have zero use for a hide.  I'm not decorating my home with them.  I'm not clothing myself with them.  I don't fly fish so I'm not tying flies with them.    As bobcat stated, nothing in nature goes to waste, including skins 

I can appreciate your enthusiasm for using all of the animal though

If someone else was to use them to make blankets, clothing, etc. would you ship or drop it off for them?

nope.  I don't hunt in places where hauling a hide out is feasible.   My concern is every ounce of meat I can trim off a carcass, including edible organs such as heart and liver (even though liver is nasty.  My grandparents like it).

Well I meant more if you weren't far out in the woods. Like I said on a couple other posts, personally I don't think it's wasting the hide if you're 5+ miles away from your car.

  Oh gotcha, I misunderstood.   The answer is still no.  I don't gut animals and I debone everything.  Even if I was 100 ft from a road I'd still debone and use the gutless method.  This involves splitting the hide right down the center line of the back. 

Basically it comes down to it being a bunch of work for me, for zero return for my efforts, for something that I don't see as a waste issue 

I will say though, if I ever shot a deer from the rig or VERY close to the rig and ended up taking one out whole and there were drop bins around, yeah I'd skin one out.

Thanks for the response. Maybe someday in the future I can convince WDFW to let me put "hide bins" outside there WDFW offices. And then put the hides to use.

[police women of America]

PWA,

I really appreciate your enthusiasm and passion on this issue.  I personally don't view meat and hides in the same light, but I can certainly see where some might.  I have never saved a hide, and I usually ruin them anyway by splitting them up the back in order to remove the meat.

Best of luck in your quest for your first deer!

Thanks! I appreciate your input. I have one question, if there was a easy was to drop off hides (assuming that they're whole) would you do it?
This whole thing is getting me thinking, maybe if they had sanitary "drop boxes" for hunters where they could drop there hides. They could get some use out of them

IMHO, I doubt there is that much demand for deer and elk hides, given the number of cattle that are slaughtered in the US.  Even if there were drop boxes, I doubt I would take many to them because it's rare I kill an animal very close to the road.

Companies like Moscow Hide and Fur, local shops, etc. are willing to buy hides. And they can always be made into clothing. But thanks for the response, I was curious.

[danderson]

If there was a demand for hides and a place to drop off I could see folks taking advantage of recycling, but most taxidermists don't need any more capes, I have a friend that traps he takes elk hides for his traps sets, but most of the time there left in the woods with the caucus after de-boning, if someone can use hides for trapping or what ever let us know.

[Bullkllr]

There used to be "hide bins" around. Can't remember what the outfit that put them out was. Charity of some kind. I'm sure someone must remember those orange barrels with a sign that said something like "Hunters- Donate your Hides".

I never put any in the barrels, but I did trade a few in for gloves at the Western Glove Co. in T-Town. They'd give you a pair of cheap gloves in exchange for a hide.

I have about 6 salted deer/elk hides I need to do something with. Seems like a good idea to use them; can never find the time.

[Jpmiller]

What's the benefit of splitting a hide down the back instead of skinning it from the belly if you're going about with the gutless method? Ive never done it so I'm sure I'm missing something but it seems you could skin an animal from the belly?

Or is it an attempt to keep the internal organs contained as long as possible?

[Karl Blanchard]

What's the benefit of splitting a hide down the back instead of skinning it from the belly if you're going about with the gutless method? Ive never done it so I'm sure I'm missing something but it seems you could skin an animal from the belly?

Or is it an attempt to keep the internal organs contained as long as possible?

  has more to do with not wrestling legs around and extra effort.  I can split one down the back, skin it down, and remove meat without ever having to wrestle a quarter.

[JLS]

What's the benefit of splitting a hide down the back instead of skinning it from the belly if you're going about with the gutless method? Ive never done it so I'm sure I'm missing something but it seems you could skin an animal from the belly?

Or is it an attempt to keep the internal organs contained as long as possible?

IMO it's much easier to do by yourself. 

No scientific testing is available to back this up, and a number of animals were harmed in the opinion forming process.

[bobdog86]

I too certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, but the hide stays behind for our group as we usually are in bad places.....also regarding the "hide bins"' I would honestly hate to see what would end up in these, at least in the SE part of the of the state, where I/we hunt. 

[Duckslayer89]

What's the benefit of splitting a hide down the back instead of skinning it from the belly if you're going about with the gutless method? Ive never done it so I'm sure I'm missing something but it seems you could skin an animal from the belly?

Or is it an attempt to keep the internal organs contained as long as possible?

  has more to do with not wrestling legs around and extra effort.  I can split one down the back, skin it down, and remove meat without ever having to wrestle a quarter.

You still have to split it at some point to get the hide down past quarters

[Odell]

Sorry but nothing anyone says will convince me that hides are as precious as the flesh my family consumes.  Also, not all of us shoot deer close to vehicles or places that are ideal for skinning.  I don't know a single backpack hunter who packs out a whole hide.  Deer or elk.

My buddy did this year. His meat, his deer hide and a coyote that I shot!

Oh to be young...

[Karl Blanchard]

What's the benefit of splitting a hide down the back instead of skinning it from the belly if you're going about with the gutless method? Ive never done it so I'm sure I'm missing something but it seems you could skin an animal from the belly?

Or is it an attempt to keep the internal organs contained as long as possible?

  has more to do with not wrestling legs around and extra effort.  I can split one down the back, skin it down, and remove meat without ever having to wrestle a quarter.

You still have to split it at some point to get the hide down past quarters

I never remove the leg bone.  Down the spine, down the back of the leg and lay it all over.  Remove meat and done.