How long do I have to skin a deer?

[carpsniperg2]

the whole point of skinning the deer or any animal is to get the meat to cool down faster but if its cool like
50ish i would say a hour or 2

[Axle]

Do not put it on ice. Do not put ice on it. Keep all moisture off of the meat. Water on the meat causes bacteria growth. Bacteria causes stinky meat. Vinegar will kill the bacteria. If you have to, use vinegar and water to clean the meat.

Skin it later in the day if you have to. Keep it as cool as possible as soon as possible. Then get it processed and in the freezer asap.

[CastleRocker]

I was raised to treat deer just like we treat elk.  Get it hanging and get the hide off.  Deer aren't nearly as critical as elk, as the heat can escape through a deer's hide easier. 

However!  We used to hunt over in the north central part of the state with some folks that live there.  They live way, way, far away from any running water, or elecricity.  They also let their deer hang with the hide on until they cut it up.  They say it keeps the flies off, and keeps the meat from getting that dark rind on it that the dry climate causes over there.  Their meat tastes just fine, in fact it's easier to cut up too.  I honestly don't think it matters much with a deer.  After spending several years hunting over there, I can see some of the reasons why they do this, but I still like to get the hide off asap.     

[PolarBear]

The idea of not getting the meat wet is false.  The first thing most butchers do is hose the carcass down with water.  When we use to hunt early archery elk (back when it was still the first week of september) it would be 80 degrees out during the day.  We would skin the elk and submerge them in a creek for as long as a day and a half and never had a problem.  Bottom line, temperature is the number one factor as most have already said.

[Axle]

The idea of not getting the meat wet is false.  The first thing most butchers do is hose the carcass down with water.

I worked in a slaughter house years ago. They never ever got water on the meat. They kept it dry as possible. The cold rooms were low humidity and cold.

Bacteria does start to multiply fast even with high humidity. That is why hospitals dehumidify. This keeps bacterial infections down.

I have had many friends who got their game wet. I advised them to cut it up asap. They insisted on hanging it for several days (here on the wet side). Within 4 days on each one, the meat was nasty smelling and their family members would not go near it. In a dry climate it wouldn't be so bad. If somebody is from a dry climate (and I've been there too) then they would not know how fast meat can start to stink here on the wet side after it gets wet. I've seen deer washed down in places like Montana and then hung for days. It was fine but it dried out real fast too leaving little room for bacteria growth.

Just my humble experiences.