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Dump your big game carcasses properly |
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November 15, 2017 |
By Phil Cooper
IDFG Wildlife Conservation Educator
When you're done butchering a big-game animal,
there's usually bones, hide and other inedible
parts that should be double-bagged, securely
tied, and put out with your household waste for
garbage collection.
Hunters are required to remove and care for all
of the edible meat from hindquarters as far down
as the hock, the shoulders as far down as the
knee, and meat along the backbone. There is also
a lot of meat in the neck and covering the ribs
that make good ground or stew meat.
When you take your harvested animal to a
professional meat processor, you can deliver the
clean carcass and your work is done. Perhaps the
best part of paying a professional meat
processor is the shop disposes of the bones for
you.
When hunters do the processing themselves, there
is a pile of bones, hide, and a head that need
to be disposed of. If you're quartering the
animal in the field and in a remote area, these
will be cleaned up by scavengers in short order.
If you bring an animal out whole and need to
dispose of the inedible remains, a transfer
station will accept animal carcasses for no
charge from residents who live within that
county who pay the solid waste disposal fee.
When disposing of game animals, hunters should
consider the consequences of their actions. It
only takes one improperly dumped and highly
visible carcass to generate strong negative
reactions from the public.
Unwanted big game carcasses that end up on the
side of the road or other visible areas become
eyesores and public health issues. They can even
be hazardous because they attract dogs and
scavengers, which become dangers to drivers who
swerve to avoid hitting them.
People who see improperly dumped carcasses not
only have negative impressions of hunters, it
can result in well-intended, but mistaken,
reports to Fish and Game as possible poaching
incidents. Often, there is no way to tell if the
dumped carcass was legally taken or poached, but
it takes a Conservation Officer's time to check
each one reported.
Dumping fleshed out game carcasses along
roadsides is also littering and inconsiderate of
people who live or recreate nearby. |
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