Leaving a whole red deer to decompose

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simonl

simonl

Well-Known Member
I came across a lovely red stag that had died a few days ago I'm guessing. I've never seen a red on my land before & didn't expect the first occurrence to be like this. The poor bugger was unfortunately tangled up in some rope & had clearly spent a long time trying to free itself.

You can smell it from 20 yards away in still air but there's no significant visible sign of decay yet. Plenty of foxes/badgers/buzzards in the area, but none has found it yet. I'm open to suggestions as to what to do with it. I really don't fancy spending much time up close & personal with it. I've got winches/trailer/4x4 etc but it's not accessible where it is and if I manage to recover it then I don't know what the hell to do with it. 30 yards from a river on a steep bank.

It's a 12 pointer so as a secondary topic I'd like to recover the antlers at some point.

I'm more interested in practical solutions than some expensive nightmare just to satisfy some bureaucrat.
I'm familiar with how quickly a fox takes to get spread around but this is a different beast. Literally! What are teh timescales if I do nothing?

Advice welcomed. Thanks in advance.
 
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I used to have sole permission on a large farm that bordered a very busy highway. Every year while running a trappine I would road killed deer. I looked at them as a gift.

First, if you want the antlers - go get them now, the carcass will not become any more pleasant to deal with as each day passes..

Second, think about where the perfect shooting lane would sit, and a very quiet and covert access path to the shooting point. Then drag the carcass down to the spot that has a good backstop and is near cover. This will allow you to sneak into a shooting hide and observe the carcass without spooking the critters. Proximity to cover will prompt foxes and such to visit the carcass during daylight.

The colder it is, the more desirable the carcass will become.

And, assuming they are also native to the UK, towards the end of the carcasses decomp you can find large numbers of dermestid beetles. These are an alternative for skull cleaning if you don't want to go the boiling route.
 
I once dragged a whole road kill fallow into a wood. Less than four weeks later there was next to nothing left of it.
 
If you want the antlers get them now. I once watched a fallow carcass for a while thinking I'd get the antlers once it was a little less stinky and lo and behold someone else had the same idea and took them before I did. Also even if no one else does see them and take them it'll be just your luck to find a load of critters have gnawed on them!
 
Mungo said:
Get the antlers as soon as you can. Lots of things gnaw on them, especially in winter.
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...and if they don't, no amount of peroxide will get rid of the smell from the rest. Get it off, cut and boiled as soon as possible. Especially if you want to keep it indoors......
 
Leave it where it is - amazing how much wildlife will use it - everything from small blue tits picking off fat etc - its died naturally, its a wild animal so just leave. Yes it will smell for a week or so, but it will soon disappear.
 
Thanks all.
I set to it with a pole saw & came away 3 pounds of sweat lighter, with a 12 pointer
 
The Suffolk council appear to be doing just this right now! A large Red Stag was hit and killed a few weeks ago on the A14. It looks about the size of a horse and is laying on the central reservation against the barrier. The head disappeared fairly quickly so I assume it had a good set of antlers. It will be interesting to see how it goes with time. If I'd known it would be left I'd have taken some photos to see how long it takes to decompose at this time of year without scavengers to affect the process.
MS
 
Monkey Spanker said:
The Suffolk council appear to be doing just this right now! A large Red Stag was hit and killed a few weeks ago on the A14. It looks about the size of a horse and is laying on the central reservation against the barrier. The head disappeared fairly quickly so I assume it had a good set of antlers. It will be interesting to see how it goes with time. If I'd known it would be left I'd have taken some photos to see how long it takes to decompose at this time of year without scavengers to affect the process.
MS
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It's probably spinning slowly in some London Kebab shop by now
 
Monkey Spanker said:
The Suffolk council appear to be doing just this right now! A large Red Stag was hit and killed a few weeks ago on the A14. It looks about the size of a horse and is laying on the central reservation against the barrier. The head disappeared fairly quickly so I assume it had a good set of antlers. It will be interesting to see how it goes with time. If I'd known it would be left I'd have taken some photos to see how long it takes to decompose at this time of year without scavengers to affect the process.
MS
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The one that was killed just before Xmas ? I'll keep an eye out for that when on way to my ground down there he was a big un !
 
Looks like one off the reds that had been on my permission only a day or two previous,I pass it last week I thought it had the head still on didn't se any antlers tho hope it wasn't the stag as it was a cracker . Would have thought what ever hit was in a fair mess as well
 
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Monkey Spanker said:
The Suffolk council appear to be doing just this right now! A large Red Stag was hit and killed a few weeks ago on the A14. It looks about the size of a horse and is laying on the central reservation against the barrier. The head disappeared fairly quickly so I assume it had a good set of antlers. It will be interesting to see how it goes with time. If I'd known it would be left I'd have taken some photos to see how long it takes to decompose at this time of year without scavengers to affect the process.
MS
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Quite an interesting subject to some and yes it would be interesting Monkey to see how long it take`s to break down.
Especially being located in such a restricted position. Keep us all posted on its progress.
A couple of season ago I watched a weekly progress of two large stags decomposing. They`d both become entangled together along with some equestrian electric tape fencing during the rut.
It took 4 months for both of them to be turned into just a field of scattered bones and two magnificent complete heads.
I stumbled on another dead stag November last year on some secluded ground I have access too and im watching this too with some interest. I took the picture December the 12 approximately a month after death.
Which I cannot confirm..

 
berg said:
Looks like one off the reds that had been on mu permission only a day or two previous,I pass it last week I thought it had the head still on didn't se any antlers tho hope it wasn't the stag as it was a cracker . Would have thought what ever hit was in a fair mess as well
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Looked like a 12 Pointer ....
 
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