Any idea what this deer malady or disease is?

Hi, I shot this stag (spiker)? yesterday and when removing the back straps noticed holes in the meat. Wide, shallow ones and some narrow, deep ones, deeper than my finger.

Also interesting was the antler growth: single, fairly long and thin, pointing in different directions.

Any idea as to the ailment? Animal age (young or just diseased)?

My only thought is that it could be some kind of fly blow, as I was hunting in the hills above a sheep farm. The animal was in otherwise good shape, back legs looked fine, no holes. After giving the dog her fill, I left the rest, hoping I might get on to another, and I didn’t want to carry bad meat for 3 hours back to the truck.

Thanks

Attachment 274087Attachment 274088

I dont think its fly strike that stinks and weeps and maggots - could be he has had a few pokes from a stag in the roar

Looks like it's still attached to the hide

Hmmm, makes sense. If that’s the case then I left a good animal on the hill, bugger!

Attached to the hide in some places, in others just long, narrow holes.

Are you sure you havent just been a bit careless with the knife?

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Originally Posted by matto1234

Are you sure you havent just been a bit careless with the knife?

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Certainly looks that way

Diagnosis: Bad skinning job. Case closed!

Just taking the piss. Half of my animals look like that or worse.

Looks fine to me and is a bit of a waste. I wouldnt fret about it though, theres plenty more out there.

Question
If you thought that it was a sick/diseased deer how come you feed it to your dog

It is just knife knicks though
Not the end of the world
Just a shame that you aren’t eating it
But hay atlest it was a more humane death than 1080

The next time you get one looking like that drop it off at my house and I will get rid of it for you :thumbsup:

Quite a few under my belt. Have seen a few with TB (easy to recognise) and apart from that the odd one with pussy abscesses and wounds. Not much else. Keep the TB lesions away from your hands, discard the animal, and practice good hygiene.
Cut out any wounds with a good margin and discard. Boot the whole thing over a bank if they are too pussy.
If the deer is manky looking check offal for spots, lumps and discolouration - any of that and boot over the bank - not cos it will kill you but cos it will likely be tough and taste like it looks.
Trim poo and dirt off your meat. Always sear all of the outside or cook it well. And you should live. We worry too much.

p.s. Get familiar with what the offal in a healthy animal looks like. It will help you recognise very quickly when something is not right.

The back legs looked fine, gave the dog chunks from around the pelvis and hips per usual.

Only started seeing holes when I was doing the straps, didn’t feed her anymore than that.

Definitely wasn’t from a lousy skin job, there were several long, narrow holes, just not shown in the pic.

I have to agree that it was probably from the roar and so unfortunately I probably wasted a good animal, my bad and lesson learned.

Thanks all for your input.

Cheers

not from bad skinning not sure where they are getting that idea from

Old buckshot holes ?

If you have doubt about any game meat,biff it.Better to be a healthy hunter than a sick one.

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Originally Posted by Trout

If you have doubt about any game meat,biff it.Better to be a healthy hunter than a sick one.

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dead correct
They need culling anyway, better you shooting one with full intention of eating it and deciding not to than doc killing them with no regard for being humane and leaving them to rot