K.O.'ed a spike horn

[336A]

Got up this morning a little late, made some coffee and hit the woods. I didn't get out in the woods until 7:00 but at least it was a little cooler here in GA this morning. As luck would have it at 7:30 I had a small spike horn on the ground. All it took was one Brenneke 12GA K.O. slug to coax him into my truck This is a huge relief for me as I've been hunting in new territory. It's been very rough for me due to very long work hours which prohibits me from being able to do any scouting during the pre-season. Then if that isn't enough, Saturday I found out that my deep freezer which is in my garage tripped the circut on the outlet it was plugged into. My wife and I estimated that we lost close to $200 in meat which of course included a lot of venison

I know I've said this before but I really really love how shotgun slugs hammer deer. At the shot he did a back flip and hit the dirt. I am shooting a Mossberg 500A with a 20" barrel with bead sights, which don't make for very precise aiming. The slug hit exactly where I was aiming, right between the shoulders in the brisket, the range was roughly 50 yards. To date I've never had a deer hit with either my 30-30 or my Marlin .44 mag react in the same manner. They always run a a little bit, it's always my luck that they run directly for the thick nasty stuff too.

[Blaine]

Good Deal

[Pitchy]

Lotta lead there, grats on the harvest.

[Nath]

I hate being tied to work, especially as dark creeps in All I can think about is the woods, soon be weekend though

I have alot of respect for what a smoothbore can do too

Nath.

[gamekeeper]

Congratulations, it didn't take you long to put venison back on the menu..

[336A]

Thanks fellas. I took the deer to a processor here in town that my co-workers were telling me about. They even dress out the animals if you want, hmmmm says I when I learned of this. Well since I shot this guy head on I decided I'd let this place dress out the deer and deal with the stink and mess. As I'm pretty certain that the slug punched on through to the stomach. This is going to be the first and last time I ever let someone else do this for me. Not because of the job they did but rather due to the overall fee I've got to pay. I don't mind the extra $10 dessing fee, rather it is the flat rate $65 fee. I'm used to paying $15 less than this in NY and the deer are smaller down here.

[jkbrea]

Congrats on the deer. Too bad about your freezer. I lost half an elk that way one summer. It smelled like a dead body in my garage.

I know what you mean about the fees. The first couple years I took my elk in to a processer. They weighed the quarters and determined the price per pound. Then they charged $20 to skin it. It cuts the cost drastically if you skin and debone the quarters first. Now I don't pay nearly as much but I wish I knew how to butcher and package it myself. I could probably learn it easy enough but don't have anywhere to do it since I drive 900 miles to get to Wyoming. Maybe I'll practice on local deer. The placeI take it to now in Jackson vacuum seals all the meat which is great.

[Griff]

$65 is a bargain... here. Congrats on the venison!

[336A]

jkbrea I too wish i knew how to butcher but like you don't have the any where to do it. This is a skill that I wish I could have learned from my grandfather. Every year he would butcher a steer on the farm all of the family would lend a hand in helping out. He sold his beef outfit before I was old enough to learn about butchering and stopped hunting as well.

Sounds like I should be thankful Griff, back in NY I was paying only $50. It cost $5 more for sausage and $10 more if you had him save the antlers for you.

[Rusty]

Congratulations! Slugs work! Love 'em.

I always said the shotgun was the gun that won the west. I know it sure tamed the south. I always liked Jim Taylor's shotgun story.


Now if you'll just wack some of those Jawja bears that keep crossing the border into our hunting lease I'd be eternally grateful.

[jeepnik]

Congrats on the deer.

Now as to the freezer, you might want to think about a freezer alarm. Some just have a visual indication which can be missed, but others have audible alarms. A quick google search can put you on the right track.

[Mac in Mo]

I have been butchering my own for years now. The last time I took a deer to be processed, two guys pulled in with two bucks hanging out of the trunk of a Cadillac. They had huge racks, so I stuck around to get a better look. When they fully opened the trunk, the stench that rolled out was disgusting. I got to thinking about how many others brought in rancid meat that would probably end up mixed in with the others. That plus the cost made me study a little and I haven't looked back.

I doubt a pro butcher would approve of my cuts, but they work for me. I also like the self reliant aspect of it, and it has become an enjoyable part of hunting for me. There is nothing better than fresh loins, never frozen and right into the cast iron pan. I just had some for breakfast with my eggs, as a matter of fact.

Kevin