Times are changing – as are our beliefs

The average hunter’s knowledge has grown in recent years. A few years ago, we thought that venison could be cooked only after a long marinating with red wine, herbs, and juniper/pepper berries. 

In the XXI century, getting the animal was not the most important thing anymore for the hunter, but when it happened, it was very important that every single gram of its meat wasn’t wasted. Thanks to the growth of the hunter’s culture, today, we know what to do before and after the shot in order to get the maximum quality from the game species we harvested.

 Less stress, more quality

Some biology studies suggest that the animal’s stress affects the quality of its meat. Stress “eats” glycogen, avoiding lactic acid production, which is essential for meat maturation. 

Glycogen is the ready-to-use energy available for the animal. The liver produces it, and it’s stored in the muscles. It helps the animal pass all challenging situations like escaping from predators or packs of dogs, looking for food, or surviving during the cold season.

Animals experience exceptionally high stress during driven hunts when many hunters and dog handlers are in a small area. This means high stress for the animals hunted by packs of dogs. Driven hunts also mean poor shooting precision and a significant delay in recovering and gutting carcasses.

Quick recovery is vital

We learned that it’s imperative to start the chill chain as soon as possible because the proliferation of bad bacteria stops when the carcass is around 7 C°. This fact means that by simply knowing how long it will take to recover the animal (within two hours), we can evaluate whether to shoot. Waiting too long before starting the chill chain will decrease the value of the venison you get.

We also know that if we spend many hours recovering the animal due to a bad shot (maybe in the belly), bacteria will probably contaminate the meat, and we can’t process it with some delicious recipes.

The driven hunt is probably not the best way of hunting if we want the best quality of venison.

Riccardo Tamburini

Cons of driven hunt

We can’t sell a carcass in Italy if one of the conditions mentioned above occurs. Therefore, today, we know that some hunting styles are worse than others, considering the quality of the meat. For example, the driven hunt, which is very popular not only in Italy but also in all the rest of Europe, is probably not the best way of hunting if we want the best quality of venison. Why? 

Because the game species are highly stressed, the carcasses are gutted and recovered after the end of the driven hunt (in some countries, there is the excellent habit of gutting the carcass immediately), so after many hours from the shot. And also, due to the lousy precision you have (running animals in a dense and covered wood), the risk of placing the shot in the belly or the stomach is very high.

The proper way of cooking

The meat from the driven hunt can be cooked only in the “old style,” marinating it and cooking it for a long time. Remember that the meat is not dangerous for human consumption. Still, it’s better not to eat with medium rare cooking (never the boar because he’s a zoonosis carrier, like the domestic pig) due to the high percentage of bacteria in the muscles (they die if the meat is brought to a high temperature).

How does thermal help here?

High-definition Pulsar thermal devices, like Telos LRF XL50 or Merger LRF XL50, can be handy when following the tips above. How? First, this type of hunting doesn’t cause stress to the animal because the hunter is undercover and usually works at a great distance. Second, such devices provide confident object identification, which is crucial for ethical hunting—to determine proper maturation. Third, due to detailed imaging, the shot can be accurate, which leads to quickly recovering and gutting the carcass.

Summary: The Golden Rules

1. Avoid causing stress for the animal. The animal should be calm and quiet, watching it out of the scene completely unseen (typical of stalking or hunting from a stand);
2. Look only for the proper maturation; 
3. Shoot with precision when an animal is calm and quiet;
4. Use proper HD thermal imaging gear, like Telos LRF XL50 or Merger LRF XL50, for precise identification of animal qualities;
5. Hunt from the stand;
6. Don’t place the shot in the belly or the stomach;
7. Quickly recover and gut the carcass (less than 2 hours) and put it in cold storage as soon as possible.