Discussion on Field Dressing Wild Turkey

[BornBad]

I was watching this show and the host said somptin that just didn’t cross me right. With wild turkey, I always tend to dress and get the bird to a freezer as quickly as possible or just cook the damn thing that or the next day. Now, this out-door enthusiast was saying he will let his bird hang with guts, feathers and everything @ 40-50 degrees for 7 to 10 days. This boggles me, just doesn’t seem right. While I do not doubt this person had experimented with this a gazillion times, I am not without concern. Has anyone experimented with hanging turkey for days before cleaning and freezing it? Seems a bit risky, but is the pay-off worth it?

[Warmouth]

I've never heard of this with turkeys, but Europeans hang pheasants like that when they have their big shoots with driven birds.

[BornBad]

I have heard about that with pheasant and how some will practically let them hang until there is a faint smell of decay. My better judgment tells me that is all wrong, a potential night of violently vomiting into the porcelain god.

[hunting170]

I remember reading about the pheasants when I was a kid. I assume it was the Europeans that let them hang until they could poke a stick completely through them. No thank you, I`ll just have a burger.

[RB]

I think the guy was doing research on what to do with game that the PS shoots and doesn't find for days at a time. Might be useful techniques for the Snake.