For the new Stalkers....

[Tim.243]

An older muntjac Buck head shot yesterday gave me the chance to skin out the front legs and point out nodes from both front legs as often one is discarded (or both!) due to the angle they stand at.
New stalkers might get the chance to gralloch what they have shot and take it home but then skin it and find these which I have found a bit larger in older Bucks over the years.

 

[VSS]

Good shout! A lot of people don't expect to find nodes anywhere other than what they were taught on DSC1.

These ones (prescapular) would normally be found attached to the carcass, rather than to the skin, but I guess that depends how much of the carcass you remove with the skin.

(@Tim.243's photo clearly illustrates how difficult it ìs to separate a muntjac from its hide!).

 

[NickJ]

And below an example of how the axillary lymph nodes shouldn't look!

A young roe that all other lymph nodes in were clear so most likely infection was from an old fence wound on it's brisket. Like Tim says; unless you butcher your own deer (and don't roast the shoulders whole!) you would never have found it.

I recall at the time @devon deer stalker had one similar but the mesenteric lymph nodes were also infected and it tested positive for Bovine TB

 

[ColinBr]

Good thread this Tim

 

[Tim.243]

Good thread this Tim

It might get people searching through to find out what it what and where to look for others!!

 

[ColinBr]

It might get people searching through to find out what it what and where to look for others!!

Great idea Tim. Could have it stickied for future reference if there is enough information gathered

 

[jb1]

The infamous Salad Cream, gross, not much turns my stomach but thats one thing that does, just looking at the image makes me wince.
I had a load of it on my face and hand after it burst during cutting a leg of pork.

 

[bottletopbill]

Could us newbies who have completed our DSC1 when being mentored be given a hands on approach by you folks.
All the books and shows do not explain every thing to us newbies

 

[Buchan]

Could us newbies who have completed our DSC1 when being mentored be given a hands on approach by you folks.
All the books and shows do not explain every thing to us newbies

The BDS does have a couple of mentored areas for stalking. I'd like to see them approve more

 

[devon deer stalker]

And below an example of how the axillary lymph nodes shouldn't look!

A young roe that all other lymph nodes in were clear so most likely infection was from an old fence wound on it's brisket. Like Tim says; unless you butcher your own deer (and don't roast the shoulders whole!) you would never have found it.

I recall at the time @devon deer stalker had one similar but the mesenteric lymph nodes were also infected and it tested positive for Bovine TB

View attachment 340441View attachment 340442

Yes you have a good memory, it was in a red hind, an enlarged node in the mesenteric chain, very subtle, the ministry vet took samples from all other nodes which appeared fine.
The last thing he did was to jab his knife through the skin into the node above and was greeted with an explosion of puss as above, it shocked both of us.

 

[filzee]

Thanks for this. Very helpful to someone very new to stalking and butchering their own deer.

 

[Tim.243]

Thanks for this. Very helpful to someone very new to stalking and butchering their own deer.

They are like all nodes an indicator, also the other 2 on the front of the back legs are usually covered in a layer of fat.
Not on the scale of the internal nodes but a few things that are passed over in the "courses" patricianly with doe muntjac where it is spoken about shooting pregnant does then a new stalker will have an extra 2 items a close to full term youngster also an udder full of milk to deal with.

 

[Buchan]

A key factor with these limb lymph nodes - (prescapular - front of shoulder; popliteal - behind the knee; axillary - between front leg and chest wall; inguinal - near the groin) is that they all drain the peripheral areas like the limbs and skin. so single enlarged nodes are usually a consequence of injury and infection.
The mesenteric chain is important for TB, as is the mediastinal and bronchial as TB in der, while mainly an eaten route, can be respiratory

 

[LarryLightFoot]

Thanks for this thread @Tim.243 and those contributing to it .

 

[Tim.243]

The BDS does have a couple of mentored areas for stalking. I'd like to see them approve more

The chance of showing a pregnant doe or full udder is quite remote with "deer seasons " as they are (for good reason) however a deer with out a season also their dispersal in England the chance of a new stalker shooting one is on the UP.

 

[T.eddie]

A good thread @Tim.243 and something I had an was unsure of when I first saw it

 

[Tim.243]

An Udder from a muntjac doe shot this evening, no milk also being followed by a buck.

Quite easy to remove by pinching the udder and starting at the back (red arrow) then a bit of tension on it then just tease it off with the knife.
It should leave you a start hole once it is removed

 

[GlennUK]

This is a really interesting thread, having just completed a DSC1 the thing that most 'scares' me is undertaking my 1st gralloch alone, with no hands on experience. Fortunately I have an experienced stalking friend who has offered to mentor me and i will be touching base with him when i go out. These images/comments are really hlepful. Thanks for posting

 

[Buchan]

This is a really interesting thread, having just completed a DSC1 the thing that most 'scares' me is undertaking my 1st gralloch alone, with no hands on experience. Fortunately I have an experienced stalking friend who has offered to mentor me and i will be touching base with him when i go out. These images/comments are really hlepful. Thanks for posting

See the Gralloch thread for more on this. Take your time, no prizes for speed and make a big incision - full length of the abdomen and most of it will fall out. Using cable ties to tie off the rectum and oesophagus reduces the risk of spillage. Anatomically, the guts all hang from a single point around the kidneys and this is often the hardest bit of a pull.

 

[Tim.243]

This is a really interesting thread, having just completed a DSC1 the thing that most 'scares' me is undertaking my 1st gralloch alone, with no hands on experience. Fortunately I have an experienced stalking friend who has offered to mentor me and i will be touching base with him when i go out. These images/comments are really hlepful. Thanks for posting

Welcome, I learnt on rabbits from the age of 11/12 with very little difference with the vital internals (heart lungs liver gut intestines bladder) just a lot smaller,
Spotted liver and parasite sack was the first things I was shown as a lad, granted they don't have the nodes but you can nick the gut just as easy also by handling 100's &100's of them you soon learn from a visual what is a bag of bones (sick animal)
That experience served me well. Just go slow and get stuck in as it is dead lol