Moose time! (Warning! Pictures of dead animals)

[Arya]

The hunting season for Moose is on here in Norway, and I got the chance to help out and learn more about slaughtering/quartering Moose at a friends private slaughter house.
They even gave me several kilos of meat, so there will be Moose on the menu again this year! What a nice gesture

It is an animal of a bigger scale than what I have experience with from before, so it was great to learn more about how to quarter it. We made everything from minced meat, tenderloin, sirloin, steaks, chops, meat for stew etc. etc...

It was also interesting to finally see and feel the difference of an animal that has had the time to get stressed before dying (an unfortunate misplaced shot, poor thing), and one that had died instantly.
The difference in the meat was much bigger than I was expecting! Also the level of difficulty to quarter a fat individual neatly, compared to a meager one. A day well spent!
The study of the anatomy itself just gives me an huge respect for evolution, and I am always awed when slaughtering animals. Every time!

Elg13 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg15 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg1 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg2 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg3 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg7 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg16 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg9 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg4 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

Elg6 by Lykketrollet, on Flickr

 

[bopdude]

Thanks for the pictures and write up, how heavy was Moose ? that looks like some tasty meat, I haven't had the pleasure ................. yet

 

[Dreadhead]

Thanks for sharing I was lucky enough to join a moose hunting team in Eastern Norway (kongsvinger area) a few years ago, and got to do pretty much the same. It was the first animal I ever skinned and helped butcher! I have a great respect for the hunters there, who have total respect for their craft and the animal, and the community spirit of the hunt. It's a big difference to the "hunting" that happens here in Scotland. Enjoy your well earned feast

 

[Arya]

These ones were not big, and if I remember correctly the biggest of the "small" ones was approximately 180 kg without head and neck, gut, lower part of the legs and skin. You haven´t tasted moose yet?
It is nice, meager meat, but like all meager meat it can quickly become dry if cooked wrongly. In my opinion deer and horse tastes better than moose, but it is still a real treat

 

[bopdude]

180kg is still a fair size once all the 'bits' are taken care of, thanks.

 

[Arya]

Thanks for sharing I was lucky enough to join a moose hunting team in Eastern Norway (kongsvinger area) a few years ago, and got to do pretty much the same. It was the first animal I ever skinned and helped butcher! I have a great respect for the hunters there, who have total respect for their craft and the animal, and the community spirit of the hunt. It's a big difference to the "hunting" that happens here in Scotland. Enjoy your well earned feast

I am happy you had a good experience here! People tend to take their hunting very seriously here, and as many slaughterers and hunters say "To become a good hunter or slaughterer, you need to love animals".
How is hunting different in Scotland? I´m curious

 

[Arya]

180kg is still a fair size once all the 'bits' are taken care of, thanks.

I agree, but I can see why they are considered small when I was told they also get 300 kg´s moose now and then :Wow:

 

[mrcharly]

Looks to be a very dark meat and extremely lean. I guess it might smoke-preserve well.

Hunting in Scotland is very much not a community affair and apart from small game shooting (rabbits mostly), it is guided shooting (as far as I know, I've never hunted in Scotland).

 

[Arya]

That is correct It is excellent meat for smoking.
There´s very little fat on these animals, and the one on the photos where I´m working on the hind legs is the fat one...

 

[scarfell]

Surprised there isnt allot of fat, given the climate they live in, moose and reindeer two animals i want to try one day! I'd definitely buy some extra fat from the animal to cook it in tho, all this lean meat these days upsets me lol

 

[Klenchblaize]

That band saw looks a pig to clean!

K

 

[Dave]

Nice one Arya.

 

[pete79]

Beauty. Nice pictures. I left the moose alone this year as I already had meat. I intend to shoot a caribou if the opportunity presents this winter. What is the moose population like in Norway? Are they fairly numerous? Do you hunt by "calling" bulls within range? How big are they? They look noticeably smaller than the Yukon Alaska variety we get here.

 

[Arya]

Surprised there isnt allot of fat, given the climate they live in, moose and reindeer two animals i want to try one day! I'd definitely buy some extra fat from the animal to cook it in tho, all this lean meat these days upsets me lol

They have a good coat that protects them But of course, there are some animals that die during a hard winter.
Animals belonging to the Deer family seem to be quite lean, most of them.
Reindeer is my favorite meat, and I really hope you get the chance to try it!

 

[Arya]

That band saw looks a pig to clean!

K

It is

 

[Arya]

Beauty. Nice pictures. I left the moose alone this year as I already had meat. I intend to shoot a caribou if the opportunity presents this winter. What is the moose population like in Norway? Are they fairly numerous? Do you hunt by "calling" bulls within range? How big are they? They look noticeably smaller than the Yukon Alaska variety we get here.

I think they are noticeable smaller than the ones you find in Alaska, indeed. At least that is what we imagine when we talk about Alaska "It is like Norway, only everything is bigger, even the moose".
The numbers in Norway is always a big issue, and some claim that the numbers are reducing a lot in some areas due to our growing wolf population.
A major discussion these days...
I'm sure some hunt by calling, mostly we hunt with moose dogs, on or of leash, and drive the moose toward the shooters. And some sit on posts and wait all day long

 

[pete79]

Oh yeah, some people get pretty fired up about wolf numbers here too. I don't; it is what it is.....a fairly intact ecosystem where moose live with stable populations of predators. I hunt early rut time, and use calls to try and get a moose to come to me. Depending on their frame of mind, some will come running in mking a lot of noise, and some will come close without a sound. It's fun. Hunting with dogs is illegal here, but what breed do you use?

 

[Robson Valley]

Thanks for the pictures. Always exciting to see big game on the hook. Bigger isn't necessarily better.
I agree = moose hunters are a very serious, business-like bunch of people.

With so little fat in the meat, you learn a slightly different style of cooking.
Bison is the same and I barter that for moose/deer/elk/bear.

I live in Management Region #7 in BC. The annual moose harvest is set at about 7,000 animals, both sexes and all ages
as adjusted by a lottery license system that we call "Limited Entry Hunting." Biological population management, not political.

Moose hair is hollow. Their winter coats are excellent insulation.
They are able to slow down their basic metabolic rate in the winter such that they don't need much food, even if it were offered.

 

[Arya]

Depending on their frame of mind, some will come running in mking a lot of noise, and some will come close without a sound. It's fun. Hunting with dogs is illegal here, but what breed do you use?

That is the most normal way when hunting deer/bucks (?) here, and some are smarter than others I've heard many stories of animals just sneaking up on the hunter from behind to check if he is being played.
The dog breeds that are most popular for hunting moose here are Norsk Elghund or the Swedish Jämthund. When off leash they work by tracking the moose and keep the moose still by barking, until the hunter arrives. On leash they help track the moose and helps the hunters on foot to drive the moose to the shooters. Methods varies of course, and there are probably someone with more knowledge than me that would have a lot more info about that

 

[santaman2000]

I think the Norwegian moose are a different subspecies (apparently there are 6 subspecies in North America) from Wiki I got this info about the Norwegian ones (Arya please correct me if this is the wrong one)

Eurasian Elk

A. a. alces

Finland, Sweden, Norway, Latvia, Estonia, and Russia. No longer present in central and western Europe except for Poland, Lithuania and Belarus, with a certain population in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and northern Ukraine, but can be observed in Bohemia since the 1970s and a tiny reintroduced population in Scotland, Great Britain, recently sighted in eastern Germany. (Range formerly included France, Switzerland, and Benelux nations.) Population increasing and regaining territory. Males weigh about 320 to 475 kg (705 to 1,047 lb) and females weigh 275 to 375 kg (606 to 827 lb) in this mid-sized subspecies. Shoulder height ranges from 1.7 to 2.1 m (5.6 to 6.9 ft).[SUP][60][/SUP]

Versus these 3 from North America:

Eastern Moose

A. a. americana

Eastern Canada, including eastern Ontario, all of Quebec, and the Atlantic Provinces. Northeastern United States including Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and northern New York near the Adirondack Mountains. Population increasing. This is a fairly small-bodied subspecies, females weighing an average of 270 kg (595 lb), males weighing an average of 365 kg (805 lb) and bulls stand up to approximately 2 m (6.6 ft) at the shoulder.

Western Moose

A. a. andersoni

British Columbia to western Ontario, eastern Yukon, Northwest Territories, southwestern Nunavut, Michigan (Upper Peninsula), northern Wisconsin, northern Minnesota, and northeastern North Dakota. A mid-sized race that weighs 340 to 420 kg (750 to 926 lb) in adult females and 450 to 500 kg (992 to 1,102 lb) in adult males, on average.[SUP][63] [/SUP]

Alaska Moose

A. a. gigas

Alaska and western Yukon. The largest subspecies in North America, mass cited below.[SUP][64][/SUP]