Skinning & Boning Big Game is an educational bulletin published by the University of Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station that teaches hunters how to efficiently skin, debone, and process large game animals into usable cuts of meat. Although the examples use a cow elk carcass, the publication states that the techniques apply equally to elk, deer, moose, antelope, and other big-game animals. The guide focuses on maximizing meat recovery while minimizing contamination, waste, and freezer space requirements.
The first section explains proper skinning techniques. Step-by-step photographs demonstrate how to hang a field-dressed carcass, remove the hide, skin the legs, expose major muscle groups, and prevent hair contamination of exposed meat surfaces. The guide emphasizes pulling and “fisting” the hide away from the carcass rather than excessive cutting, reducing damage to meat and improving cleanliness during processing. The illustrated sequence on page 1 provides a practical visual walkthrough of the skinning process.
The majority of the bulletin focuses on producing boneless cuts. Detailed instructions and photographs show how to remove shoulders, blade roasts, loin muscles, tenderloins, sirloin tips, sirloin butts, top rounds, bottom rounds, eye rounds, and heel roasts. The guide explains where natural muscle seams are located and how to separate muscles without using a saw. By following natural seams, hunters can produce steaks, roasts, stew meat, sausage meat, and ground game while maximizing yield. The photo sequences on pages 2 and 3 illustrate each major cut.
The final section discusses meat yield, storage, and food safety. The authors recommend boneless processing because it simplifies trimming, reduces freezer space requirements, and avoids cutting through spinal tissues. The publication also discusses reducing potential exposure to chronic wasting disease (CWD) by avoiding certain tissues and removing major lymph nodes. A sample elk carcass yielded approximately 148 pounds of boneless meat from a 349-pound field-dressed animal, demonstrating the efficiency of the method.
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