Squirrel hunting questions

[HamsterStyle]

Here are some really rookie questions. Please forgive my ignorance.

1. After you shoot the squirrel, how long do you have until you need to gut/clean it? My neighbor has volunteered to co.e down and teach me the ropes of cleaning and cooking but if he is busy, how long do I have?

2. Any good go to videos on YouTube for cleaning squirrel?

3. Once you clean/ gut them, do you need to cook them right away? Or can you refrigerate or freeze the meat? Do you need to do anything to the meat in order to refrigerate or freeze?

4. Can you use or save the skin or tail as a memento? What do you have to do to them in order to save them correctly?

Thanks in advance.

 

[HamsterStyle]

5. Are CCI Quiet 22's enough to bring down a squirrel? Or should I step up to the subs or standards? The quiet will, or at least in my experience, bounce off of a raccoons face. I want to make sure I take down the tree rats.

 

[ctbreitwieser]

I've recently started skinning and gutting them in the woods while I hunt. It's 100× easier when the squirrel is fresh, it also gives you more time to stay out and hunt because the guts aren't in there making the meat nasty. I had one that last year that I shot as soon as the sun popped up. Stayed in the woods until about 1pm. Then drove home and had it skinned out by around 2-2:30. It was bad by the time I was done with it. It had a horrible stink and I had to throw it out.

 

[ctbreitwieser]

Just wear a backpack and keep a plastic bag in there to throw them in as you go. You can also put a small soft sided cooler in there with an ice pack to carry them in (if you skin em in the woods).

 

[bwframe]

This is how I do it. I take the time to throw on some nitrile gloves to save the stinky hands and washing. I got in the glove habit for about all game and fish cleaning.

[video=youtube;MrjuOsJIIHY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrjuOsJIIHY[/video]

 

[Woobie]

We always kept a cooler with a bag of ice in it back at the car. But skinning them cold is harder. You can get away with a little more from a spoilage standpoint when it is cool out. This time of year I wouldn't wait around too long.

We have frozen squirrel meat for months, and I don't notice a degradation in quality. The meat is very lean (read dry) and a bit tough, due to their activity level. Slow, wet cooking methods are your friend. We usually fry it, but I saw a recipe for a take on coq au vin using squirrel meat once that looked dynamite. I made a stew with squirrel meat and lentils once that was pretty decent. But squirrel gravy is Da BOMB!

Squirrel pelts, properly done are worth a buck, or even less. Not worth the trouble, unless you want to play with curing hides as a gateway into that hobby. The tails can be cut off, with the base tucked in some borax to prevent rotting. I remember reading (I think in the Gadabout) that a fishing lure company (I think Meps) was buying tails for $.25 in credit.

 

[seedubs1]

Head shots keep just a smidge longer than body shots before cleaning since you don't screw up the guts.

I clean them on the tailgate once I get back to my truck. Don't want to let them go bad...

 

[King31]

Here are some really rookie questions. Please forgive my ignorance.

1. After you shoot the squirrel, how long do you have until you need to gut/clean it? My neighbor has volunteered to co.e down and teach me the ropes of cleaning and cooking but if he is busy, how long do I have?

2. Any good go to videos on YouTube for cleaning squirrel?

3. Once you clean/ gut them, do you need to cook them right away? Or can you refrigerate or freeze the meat? Do you need to do anything to the meat in order to refrigerate or freeze?

4. Can you use or save the skin or tail as a memento? What do you have to do to them in order to save them correctly?

Thanks in advance.

1. Depending on where you hit the squirrel, I would say about 6 hrs before I would be hesitant on keeping one. I've skinned some that have been out in the sun for that long in a boat. Some squirrels smell worse than others depending on what they are eating i.e, soybeans.

2. Plenty of good videos on youtube and many different ways will do the trick. IMO 2 people can without a doubt clean them faster than 1. Hold the back legs up right, cut between the butt and tail, strip down an inch or two. Next make a cut along the ribcage only cutting the skin and not into the guts. After that just start pulling the tail end and the back legs and it should come undone. Peel the hide off the back and front legs and make a bone breaking cut on all four legs and the neck. Next just cut the genitals right between the legs and splice the skin down the stomach. Finally cut the ribs and pull the guts out all at once. Pretty simple once you get the hang of it. I like using a bench vise when I'm alone.

3. Once gutted and washed throuroughly a few times they can sit in the fridge for ~10 days. Periodically change the water if possible. Just like any other meat you can definitely freeze it.

4. I wouldn't advise saving the skin, but you can definitely save the tail for a certain period of time. I once knew a kid that saved every squirrel tail he could get a hold of. The tail itself was worth about 15cents to make a fly for fishing. He kept them in the freezer in a ziploc bag as they kept better that way.

5. I believe that those bullets would be plenty to take down a squirrel. Pellet guns bring them down so surely those could even though I have never used them personally. The best ammo that I have used is the 40 gr RN CCI mini mags. They shoot consistently and have ample knock down power.

Hopefully this can be of some help.

 

[mkgr22]

You can always save the tails to get free gear from Mepps:

Squirrel Tail - Selling Squirrel Tails - Squirrel Hunting | Mepps

 

[jblomenberg16]

Good advice so far. The video bwframe posted is the easiest way to do it. Some guys have a nail on a fence post, but basically you are going to "undress" the squirrel like you are taking off a t-shirt over the head, and pants off the legs. I usually clean them out within a couple hours. Partly because the different woods I hunt all take about 1-2 hours depending on the action (I rarely sit and wait in a spot more than maybe 15 minutes, since there are plenty of "active" squirrels that I can find). So when I get back to the truck I clean them real quick, throw in a gallon plastic bag, and into a small cooler before going to the next spot.

That guy makes it look easy, but it does take a time or two to get it right. Sometimes you cut too deep into the tail an just rip the tail off. Then you have hairy mess on your hands. Other times you don't get the skin to rip the right way and you don't get it to all come off. I will say that with all types of cleaning, a sharp knife makes a big difference. And really you don't need a huge blade. In fact a smaller narrow blade like that guy used works better. Last year I had for some reason forgotten my small knife and used a big knife that I use for deer. That made it 10x as hard, although cutting the legs and head off were pretty quick!

Just remember...its already dead, so you won't hurt it! I usually keep the tails since my daughter thinks they are cool. There isn't much there to really go bad or smell, but the hair will eventually start to fall off.


As far as bullets, I'm using minimags with good success. Squirrels really don't take much to kill them. A good head shot or if you go for the shoulder typically drops them d.r.t. Sometimes they flop a bit when they die, but overall it doesn't take much. Now a gut shot will not kill them right away and you might lose a few.

Also, remember its a lot like golf...WATCH where the squirrel lands when it falls out of the tree. Find a landmark or obvious feature that you can reference. While most shots are going to be fairly close, it can be hard to find them in the undergrowth, especially this time of year. Its amazing how well they can hide when they aren't moving!

 

[rbane3]

I will say that with all types of cleaning, a sharp knife makes a big difference. And really you don't need a huge blade. In fact a smaller narrow blade like that guy used works better. Last year I had for some reason forgotten my small knife and used a big knife that I use for deer. That made it 10x as hard, although cutting the legs and head off were pretty quick!

Indeed! I keep a 6" filet knife for fish in my pack. The small, skinny blade (kept sharp!) is pretty easy to manipulate and cuts both hide and meat without much effort. If you don't have a hatchet or larger knife for the ankles, you can break the bone with your hands (at the joint.. squirrels are small but femurs are still kinda strong!) and work it back and forth a few times. Stick the filet knife inside the joint and a quick yank should get that pesky foot off of there.

 

[bwframe]

Canterbury does it all together differently, with a bigger knife:

[video=youtube;Ft1Nw-Hy8Ao]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft1Nw-Hy8Ao[/video]

 

[jblomenberg16]

As they say, there is more than 1 way to skin a squirrel!

 

[HamsterStyle]

 

[HamsterStyle]

Here are some really rookie questions. Please forgive my ignorance.

1. After you shoot the squirrel, how long do you have until you need to gut/clean it? My neighbor has volunteered to co.e down and teach me the ropes of cleaning and cooking but if he is busy, how long do I have?

2. Any good go to videos on YouTube for cleaning squirrel?

3. Once you clean/ gut them, do you need to cook them right away? Or can you refrigerate or freeze the meat? Do you need to do anything to the meat in order to refrigerate or freeze?

4. Can you use or save the skin or tail as a memento? What do you have to do to them in order to save them correctly?

Thanks in advance.
5. Are CCI Quiet 22's enough to bring down a squirrel? Or should I step up to the subs or standards? The quiet will, or at least in my experience, bounce off of a raccoons face. I want to make sure I take down the tree rats

1. Got one. Cleaned it right away. The kids thought it was awesome.
2. The video that bwframe posted up makes it look easy. I fought that dude. There was hair everywhere.

3.he's in the fridge.

4.after my wrestling match, there was nothing salvageable. I need a sharper knife. That's for sure.

5. CCI Quiet is plenty of round at 56 yards from inside the kitchen through an open window.

 

[Bfish]

Very nice! Looks like you are having a good time!

 

[jblomenberg16]

1. Got one. Cleaned it right away. The kids thought it was awesome.
2. The video that bwframe posted up makes it look easy. I fought that dude. There was hair everywhere.

3.he's in the fridge.

4.after my wrestling match, there was nothing salvageable. I need a sharper knife. That's for sure.

5. CCI Quiet is plenty of round at 56 yards from inside the kitchen through an open window.

Congrats on the kill! Don't worry about the trouble skinning, although that hair is hard to get off the meet. After you do a couple its pretty easy. What tripped you up with it? My first one that way I didn't cut deep enough into the tail and didn't get the skin on the rump to start peeling. I pulled a lot of hair out of the tail with my boot though. The second one I cut too deep and cut the tail off, so then had to get my thumbs in there and that usually means a lot of hair.

 

[HamsterStyle]

First I didn't cut deep enough or enough I think. Once I cut a little more I got it to peel up but it was still tough. To get the bottom part off I really had to get my fingers in there.

 

[ctbreitwieser]

The squirrel in the picture appears to be an old fox squirrel. Those are toughest of all of them. Get a couple of grays, they're usually a lot easier to peel.

 

[HamsterStyle]

Yeah. I just watched daves video in the other thread. He skinned a gray and it looked way easier. Now I have to get the wife's license. She wants to get one too. next, I'll "have" to buy her a 10/22.