Texas cull hunts?

[bigbore442001]

I was doing some surfing and looked up some sites that offer cull hunts for certain species of exotic.

One hunt was for a cow eland at a pretty reasonable price. Another ranch offers doe blackbuck and axis hunts , again for a cheap price so to speak.

I am planning to go to Texas this July( yes, I know it is hotter than Hades, but I have the summer off and this is about the only time I can go) for some sightseeing and I would like to squeak in a hunt for something while I am in the Lone Star State.

Anyone have any experience with these hunts or something similar? Also, what about the care of meat when it is 95 + degrees?

Any responses would be welcomed. Thank you.

[markc]

I live and hunt in Texas and although I haven't been on any "cull" hunts, I am sure you will find some good ones.  Do alot of comparison before settling on anything.  Now, as for meat care, When you check into your hunt, I would certainly ask the land owner/guide, if they have cold storage facilities.  

Field dressing should be done quickly after the animal has been shot, and then transported to cold storage without much delay.  I have seen animals field dressed quickly after the shot, and then driven around in the bed of the pickup truck for another hour or two. In hot weather, that is not a good idea, if you plan to eat what you shot.  Good luck.

[Tom]

I live here in Texas too.  I've done hunts like that.  Mark is right, have a plan ahead of time to get the meat cooled down.   Blackbuck and axis are really great meat and fun to hunt.

I've shot hogs in 100 degrees at night and put ice in their chest cavity after gutting, then cleaned them in the morning shade and put the quarters on ice in a cooler.   If they didn't have game coolers, they'd likely have a shade tree, and you take coolers with ice and put the parts in their.  There might be a game cooler in a nearby town.

Hogs are good here in the summer too.  What part of Texas are you going to?

[bigbore442001]

Dear Tom:

I was planning to be in the San Antonio area to visit a good friend, but now with the moose permit I obtained, I'll be camping out in the White Mountains of NH scouting and getting in shape.

[markc]

Moose hunting sounds like a blast.  Some day, maybe I will be able to afford that.
markc

[bigbore442001]

Mark:

The blast is the fact that I obtained one through the lottery system. It isn't so much as the cost as the chances of getting a permit. NH only gives out less than a 1000 permits and only 10% or so go to non-residents. So the odds of getting a permit are like winning 10,000 on a scratch ticket. This is pretty much a once in a life-time deal.

[markc]

you did hit the hunting lottery.  Good for you. I hope you have a great trip of a life time and bag a big one too!   Take some pics and post the story when you get back.
markc

[ras308]

We hunt hogs all summer and eat all of them.  Just have a big ice chest handy.  Get 'em skinned and gutted, let them hang a little while in the shade, even if it is warm.  Putting the meat in the ice chest immediately seals the heat in close to the bone and will spoil the meat.  Just to get ready for bow season, I shot a hog in the 300# range the other evening, we did just as described above.  The ladies at work made a bunch of tamales out of him.  The trick is to leave the meat on ice for 3 or 4 days, keep draining the water off and adding more ice, this pulls the blood and for the most part, any wild taste out.  Good luck this weekend for all you bowhunters!!!

[rockbilly]

When we get a hog, it's gutted and skinned as quickly as possible.  Since I only live about 18 miles from my farm/ranch, I head for home after the skinning.  I stop at a car wash, use water only and wash it.  I then take it down to my shop where I have the box and freezer off an ice cream truck setting on cinder blocks.  I hang the hog and let it age at about 33 degrees for a week or so.  I then take it to a processor (its hard to find one that will do wild pigs here) and let him cut, smoke, wrap etc.

Makes for some good eating......deer get almopst the same treatment