Tainting deer meat

Mike81

Senior Member
The first deer I kill this year I am going to have it all ground up to make bait out of. What is the best way to go about doing this. Not much info on youtube on tainting deer meat. My thought was I would put it in a 5 gallon bucket with a cloth between the bucket and the lid and leave it in the sun for a few days. I know it depends on the temperature outside but how long should it take and should I stir it everyday until its grey on top? Any advice would be helpful. Thanks
 

kmckinnie

BOT KILLER MODERATOR
Staff member
I would think they would prefer it fresh. Grind up and put in ziplock bags.
Let’s see what everyone says.
Good luck killing that deer v
 

Doug B.

Senior Member
I agree with sleepr71. That would be a lot of good deer meat wasted. I would use parts of the deer that I wasn't going to eat like pieces that got trimmed off, organs, fat, etc. Even then you would have enough bait to last two or three years I would think.

There would have to be a lot of testing to get a really good recipe for bait. I would separate the meat into three or four different containers. One container (bucket) I would go ahead and preserve while it's fresh then add the other ingredients that I wanted in it. The other containers I would taint to different levels but in the shade, not in direct sun. You will have to keep good records on your process if you ever want to duplicate an end result that really works good. Then once it is all made to your liking, start putting out test sites without traps but using cameras to see how the target animal reacts to each version of bait. This may take a couple of years to get enough info to see what works and what doesn't.

Once you discover what works the best you can make more from the records you kept. To me that would be better than grinding a whole deer, putting it all in the same bucket, tainting, mixing in other ingredients, only to find out it really don't work too good and have to dump the whole mess.

That may not have been any help to you. I don't know of anybody on here that makes any bait on that scale. I dabble with a little bait making but not on a serious level. Only like 4 to 8 ounces at a time and not serious enough to do the testing that it would take to see how it really works. Good luck with it though! Keep us posted on your process!
 

WOODIE13

2023 TURKEY CHALLENGE 1st place Team
I wouldn’t waste a deer that I killed for that. I’d eat that one myself ?. I’d pick up one that had been Road killed.! I’m sure that in this 100+ degree temps it wouldn’t take long to get rank..?
Definitely agree 100%, especially when the rut comes in, should find plenty
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
I would eat the deer meat and use beef or roadkill for bait. No way I'm feeding prime venison to the varmints.

That could also maybe get you in trouble for wanton waste?
 

JustUs4All

Slow Mod
Staff member
I would eat the deer too but it wouldn't be wasted just because the use wasn't one we agreed with.
 

sportsman94

Senior Member
I’ll be doing this one this year. Brains are another one you could add. I’ve got some deer meat from a freezer that went out that I ground up earlier along with some bobcat and beaver. Tainted some and preserved some fresh. First hint of colder weather o plan to punch 6 holes and see what they prefer via camera. Two weeks tainted definitely has a better consistency to me. More workable anyways

2EC092B3-9CAF-4602-B6DE-2557F680A1FA.jpeg
 

cj580guitar

Senior Member
Remember to only fill the bucket about 1/2 to 3/4 cause as it taints it will rise and fill the bucket. I wouldnt stir it. You only want the top few inches to turn gray and the underneath to be pink. After it gets to that point I would them add SB to stop it and then stir it after all of that is done.
 

RamblinWreck88

Useles Billy ain’t got nothing on ME !
You might also could get some beef or pork trimmings from your local butcher or small store meat dept. clerk for free or next to nothing... I got about a gallon bag of beef fat for free one year to use for ground deer meat. Good luck, in any case.
 
Top