Concerning field dressing a deer. Should you or not remove the reproductive organs.

I've seen videos of people saying to remove them, but I also saw a video of a conservation officer saying to never remove them. Opinions please? Thanks

Put them in your pocket until you get home.

If I'm leaving the animal whole, I remove them just to get em out of the way. Do it carefully so as not to taint any meat. If I'm quartering the animal I split the scrotum leaving a testicle or part of the utters attached to each hind quarter to prove gender.

I think there is a law or reg against completely removing the sex organs - either that or same plus with the intent to break law with respect to killing the particular sex of deer out of season....or something like that.

I have never even thought about it? If its a law then I'm wrong.

If its a buck, I got a freshly sawn off rack to go with it.
And a logged kill on my scorecard of course either way.

In some places, the law says you have to leave the sex organs intact to prove the animals sex during transport and check in.

I remove em immediately... They just in the way... Never a problem in 30 years of doing it...

Speaking of field dressing, anyone have a good technique for removing the bladder? I can never seem to do that part right.

when i field dress a deer i never remove the butt area or bladder and head on a buck. if it's a doe both holes of hers stays . all you need to be legal .


if you cut the deer up yourself . leave the bladder for the last thing when you only have the two hind quarters hanging . split the thin bone in between the legs and spread it apart . that'll give you a lot more room to remove the butt , pee bag and what i call his dick string on a buck .

if you're taking it to a processor don't worry about it , thats his job . lol

I remove them but leave the bladder and anus. I bone out the hindquarters with the deer hanging so they never get in the way.

I'm in the minority here.

I first remove any "exterior" organs, then cut between the legs till i hit bone. I then split the pelvis. I then slit the under belly to the windpipe. I cut the anus and bladder loose alone with the wind pipe/ esophagus. Then everything comes out in one convenient package. Takes about 5 min.

I skin em, take the back straps, get the tenderloins, quarter and cooler. Dispose of the carcass with guts still inside. I don't do deer ribs. So I am definitely not in the field dressing group.

If I kill a buck a blind man can tell, if I kill a doe it has on antlers.

That's exactly how T Winters taught me to do it

I don't process the deer myself (cuz I'd just butcher it!), but I field dress and take it to the processor. But I've never been able to get to the bladder. How do you split the pelvis? With just the knife? Or could I remove everything except the bladder and let him do it when he processes it?

PERZACTLY! I don't know why folks are fooling around with field dressing, removing bungholes, nuts or any of that garbage. Just skin and quarter the damn thing and Never touch a gut. I've NEVER field dressed a deer and never will. Even if I'm and hour from a skinning rack or processor. It's so unnecessary. I've drove home from auburn to mobile with a deer in the back of the truck in cool weather. Never had an issue.

I have seen a couple old timers who could split one with a knife, but I've never tried. I have an old double bit axe that rides in the back of my truck. It only takes a light tap and those back legs will be pointing east and west. If I'm far away from my truck, I carry a small folding saw that only takes a second.

After that its fairly easy to cut everything out without punching a bladder.

If its cool enough, I like to gut mine and let them hang for a few days or until its convenient to take to the processor. Even if I plan on cutting one myself, I still let them hang with the hide on for a couple days.

I carry one of these in the back of my truck. I use them to split the pelvis and break the breast plate. Cut everything loose and it all falls out.

i gut mine because the processor charges $20 extra and as i said before no need to drag the extra weight out of the woods .