Skinning Muntjac

techman

Well-Known Member
Ok lads and lassies,
A munjac fell over a couple of weeks back and it hung in my chiller (thanks to Hog) for two weeks, hoping that this would make the skinning easier. However, to do a good job still took over an hour and resulted in two blunt knives and sore fingers.
I usually start with the haunches, then shoulders, then try to peel from the flank round to the other side.
I know a local game dealer just takes the haunches and chucks the rest, but I feel it is worth using all the meat available.

Is there anyone out there that can advise on how to do a good job and cut down the time.
 
I have found that it is alot easier to skin any deer whilst they are fresh ( if it is practical ), including munties and they skin alot easier if hung by the lower jaw and are skinned down to the haunches. Try it you might surprise yourself and other than making the initial cuts you have to use a knife very little, just keep pulling.
 
I have skinned a lot of Muntjac over the years, and the short answer is there is no easy way to skin the little buggers. It is the only deer that requires every piece to be cut off.

However, you will find it easier to skin them warm, definatly not when they have hung for some days and are cold. Also if you cut them down the back of the hind legs, and up to the anus following the hair line between the brown hair and white, take off the skin from the hind legs, then hang the beast up through the hind legs on a bar, you will find it alot easier to then skin and partly pull off the skin.

This is the way I have skinned them for full mounts for taxidermy purposes, and it is the easiest way, Believe me !!

Best of luck.
 
techman
you will never make that mistake again,:lol:
skin the darn thing when warm as once these little buggers cool their hide sticks like s**t ,as for best method it is all trial and error as what works for one may not suit the other but starting from the haunch and working down with a knife and using my fist to push from the flanks around to the saddle works okay for me
stone
 
I must agree with Sikamalc and Stone. Its much better (IMHO) to skin them from the back legs working towards the neck end, whilst still warm. I cut the skin on the inside of the four legs and peel back to let the air in. I don't rush myself as I think that letting the air in and around the carcass helps alot. I just put some music on have a tin of beer or two and relax into it. It could be worse, you could be skinning sqiurrels! :eek: :eek:
 
Definately do muntys when there warm as its much easier. The skin seems to weld itself to the little buggers if its too cold.
I always work from back legs down as i do with any other deer & find its a lot easier.
Im not sure if its just me but the muntjac i shoot in norfolk seem alot easier to skin than my local midland ones.
Must be all that bitter they drink here or something :D
 
Hi guys,
:idea: I can't vouch for this, but i saw it done by and Italian guy doing a roe last year. Pinch up some skin on the spine, about half way along the back. Run a knife around the animal, so you effectivly have a jacket and trousers. Peel the skin back a few inches, then one guy pulls at the waist of the trousers, while another tries to pull off the jacket, tug of war style. Apparently this is a technique used in Africa, and it prevents the carcass laying in the dirt. Like I said, I've never done it on anything bigger or tougher, but next time one of you can experiment on a munty let me know if it has any advantage.
Mark
 
Skinnin Muntjac

Thanks for the advice lads.
It looks like Warm skinning is the way to go.
Beowulf, I have skinned squirrel the way Buckup suggested. Cut round the body after gutting, drive a nail throught the trousers bit into your workbench and pull the front end. A tasty bit of meat with a nutty flavour. ;) ;)
 
Does an air compressor work?
That would work, when I was a youngster helping our local butcher in his slaughter house he used a purpose made hand pump for certain animals, a nick in the skin and pump air between the hide and carcass lightly beating it with a heavy wooden truncheon worked the air around and made it an easy job to remove the hide. Might be worth a try.
 
Wondering if a 50BMG could be used to shoot near a Muntjac, would it come pre skinned? The only deer so far that has resulted in me cutting my hands while finishing off the butchering as it was simply taking too long.
 
Ok lads and lassies,
A munjac fell over a couple of weeks back and it hung in my chiller (thanks to Hog) for two weeks, hoping that this would make the skinning easier. However, to do a good job still took over an hour and resulted in two blunt knives and sore fingers.
I usually start with the haunches, then shoulders, then try to peel from the flank round to the other side.
I know a local game dealer just takes the haunches and chucks the rest, but I feel it is worth using all the meat available.

Is there anyone out there that can advise on how to do a good job and cut down the time.

Spend a life time doing metalwork, and it will be easy.....

I find 3 days is enough for them in the chiller, I use well used boning knife go up the inside of the front leg then all the way on a path to the edge of where you open them up abt level with the first part of the fillit.

If you tease it away ( I shear the ribs all the way down) then you can pull that part all the way down past the inside of the front leg/neck area. ( if you want a sketch PM me) I then cut the front leg away on the inside and you can pull it from the hide with a little knife work which saves cutting the hide back on the out side of the f/leg.

Apart from the one bit on the rear legs that you must use a knife on otherwise it will tear a lump out every time they are not to bad.

Tim.243
 
I watched a fifth-generation WARRENER once 'fist the skin' from a chilled Munty once without any effort (he did say how many he has done in a day, but memory fails my as I can't recall the shock of that number) - his forearms were the width of my thigh, he was 5' in height and 5' wide, but his inherited tool was his THUMBNAIL, it had a ridge with a rounded point that with the power of his wrist just peeled the skin away, he just simply moved his fist from side to side backed up by his forearm and elbow on the carcase, one of those 'I don't believe I've just seen that moments' akin to a ship riveter
 
I personally hang them from the forelegs, opposite to my normal method on Roe and Fallow, as my thought is that the deer hair follicle and first layer fat offers less resistance when pulling down from the hanging subject, I'm going with the flow and pulling in the natural direction of the hair
 
I've skinned more muntjac than I care to remember and none of them were easy plus any of them, but especially an old buck, could take the edge off a decent knife
I learned early, and from bitter experience, not to skin them cold and skinning them from the back end is usually best
A smaller bladed knife, ideally one with a curve to the edge, also makes the job "easier"
One of the good things about them though was that they don't seem to shed pins as easily as a Roe and certainly not as easily as a Chinese Water Deer
 
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