Butchering Deer: The Complete Manual of Field Dressing, Skinning, Aging, and Butchering Deer at Home (Outdoorsman's Edge)
by John Weiss
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Book Summary Information
Author: John WeissEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-08-01
ISBN: 158011220X
Number of pages: 190
Publisher: Creative Outdoors
Book Reviews of Butchering Deer: The Complete Manual of Field Dressing, Skinning, Aging, and Butchering Deer at Home (Outdoorsman's Edge)
Book Review: Scant information, poor information, and lots of fluff
Summary: 3 Stars
It doesn't seem like the author has any passion for the topic, nor does he seem very knowledgeable. There was some good information in this book. For example, I like his explanation of field dressing as well as his discussion of myths about field dressing. I liked his discussion about some other myths, such as the importance of "bleeding" a dead deer.
However, I was looking for a book about butchering deer, which this isn't. Prospective buyers hear this: The section an actual butchering is only 26 pages! Really just a pamphlet. The rest of the book, while some of it is interesting and useful, is fluff used to fill up a "butchering" book that is not really a butchering book. Yes, I agree that most of the things Weiss covered could or should be covered in a book of this type, but I believe that BUTCHERING should also be adequately covered, considering the title. It's not. The book needs some meat.
I have been hunting and butchering my own deer for 18 years. Venison is the only red meat in our household, except rare occasions. I learned to butcher on my own through experience and don't consider myself a butchering expert; I bought this book looking for the advice and insight of a true expert to enhance my knowledge and skills. I read the whole book twice-once last deer season and once this year. But I learned essentially nothing of value about butchering, and didn't actually change my procedure in even one way as a result of this book.
There are some good ideas about using the meat, but mostly they are ho-hum. Nothing new or creative. The discussion of meat grinders seems designed to sell big electric ones rather than give readers good practical advice, as he only discusses little, chintzy hand grinders. But then again, big expensive power tools are macho, so who cares if they cost $600 and only save the average hunter 12 minutes per year.
I also think the author repeats some myths, such as the often-heard one that deer in agricultural regions are more tender and flavorful than those in wild areas. I happen to hunt in a farming area and a wild area where, until recently, the deer didn't even know there was a deer season and never saw a bait pile. I have shot many deer in both and have noticed no difference between the flavor or tenderness of deer in similar states of health from the two areas. Weiss implies that deer eat rough food in wild areas, but he seems to be confusing overwintering food with summer and fall food, which are what actually affect deer flavor during hunting season. It shouldn't be surprising that, even in the woods, deer are able to find adequate and nutritious feed.
More importantly, his discussion on selecting the best animals to harvest for food value is a joke. Because first of all, virtually nobody does this-even the author. The most important decision a hunter can make toward getting better venison is to not shoot adult bucks during or after the rut. Of course, Weiss doesn't mention this because he doesn't want to offend his readers with the truth that many of them don't like - so he actually denies that there is a substantial difference in flavor between bucks and does. All hunters who hunt for food rather than antlers know that there is (and so do most antler hunters). If the author doesn't know this his knowledge and experience are woefully insufficient to write on this topic. Obviously, he is either in denial about it, or he is just being disingenuous with the readers. In fact, the book has a macho focus on bucks that seems out of place in a butchering book. In many states, the antlerless deer kill is regularly greater than the buck kill - so why does he talk almost exclusively about bucks? Especially since, on average, the antlerless hunters are the ones more interested in butchering?
Beyond that, the book is poorly edited with some annoying grammatical and language errors. And the author is apparently unaware of the definition of the words "fawn" and "yearling," choosing to use euphemistic language so hunters don't feel bad about killing young animals.
Well-packaged, well-designed book, with some marketing power to sell it. But if you want to learn anything more than the basics of butchering deer, look elsewhere.
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Summary of Butchering Deer: The Complete Manual of Field Dressing, Skinning, Aging, and Butchering Deer at Home (Outdoorsman's Edge)
The tasks of field dressing, skinning, and butchering deer can be daunting. In Butchering Deer, John Weiss makes these necessary jobs easy and fun. Weiss covers it all: selecting the right deer for the best-tasting venison, simple techniques for field dressing.as well as various methods for taking a deer out of the woods with minimal stress. Specific chapters are devoted to butchering the front legs, the hind legs, and the loin and ribs. Chapters on freezing, defrosting, tenderizing, and preparing venison will have readers longing for the upcoming deer season. The easy-to-follow text is highlighted with step-by-step instructions, 140 photographs, illustrations, and recipes.
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