Can someone recommend a deer butcher in eastern PA?

[StriderTB 10]

Last time I went hunting was back in 2001, and apparently NJ has a new law that makes it illegal to import a deer across state lines. I hunt on property I own in PA, so now I have to find a processor in PA. I'm hoping to find something that's not too far from NJ, so please let me know if you have a butcher or deer processor that you like to use.

 

Thanks!

[Jon 264]

I love Frigid Freeze Lockers in Riegelsville.

[woodentoe 14]

Is this accurate? You can't shoot a deer in PA and bring the carcass into NJ? I've never heard this.

Last time I went hunting was back in 2001, and apparently NJ has a new law that makes it illegal to import a deer across state lines. I hunt on property I own in PA, so now I have to find a processor in PA. I'm hoping to find something that's not too far from NJ, so please let me know if you have a butcher or deer processor that you like to use.

 

Thanks!

[Jon 264]

I've never heard of it either, but I can still recommend Frigid Freeze.

[StriderTB 10]

http://www.nj.gov/dep/fgw/news/2002/cwdban.htm

 

 

Division Offers Advice to Hunters Heading Out of State

November 7, 2005

The Division of Fish and Wildlife reminds hunters heading out of state to enjoy their sport, and to be aware that Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has been found in free ranging and captive deer or elk populations in 14 states and two Canadian provinces.

Chronic wasting disease has been diagnosed in captive elk or deer in nine states including Colorado, Montana, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Minnesota, New York and in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta. It has been confirmed in wild deer in Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Illinois, New Mexico and West Virginia.

Scientists believe that CWD is caused by an abnormally shaped, infectious protein called a prion. CWD causes damage to the brain and central nervous system of mule deer, rocky mountain elk, moose and white-tailed deer. Symptoms include loss of body condition and altered behavior; however, the disease can only be effectively diagnosed through examination of a portion of the brain.

In 2002, in order to reduce the risk of chronic wasting disease entering New Jersey, the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) imposed an emergency ban on the importation of deer and elk into the state. The DEP, NJ Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture are working to prevent the spread of CWD to New Jersey, and will respond quickly to contain CWD should it be found within the state.

The Division of Fish and Wildlife has had a surveillance program for Chronic Wasting Disease in place since 1998, and has also put together an emergency response team should the disease appear in the Garden State. Hunters can help keep CWD out of New Jersey by being conscious of their actions and following some simple rules.

• Do not shoot, handle or consume any deer that appears to be sick.
  
• Follow the rules of the state or province you are hunting in and bone out the meat being sure to remove the brain, spinal cord and lymph nodes, which may harbor the prions. Boning out the meat reduces major sources of prions, but doesn't completely eliminate them.
  
• Wash skull plates of residual brain tissue and soak in 30% Clorox solution for 15 minutes to destroy any potential prions.
  
• Dispose of deer carcasses with meat removed in the trash. Do not discard in areas where deer may come into contact with the remains.
  
• Wear rubber or latex gloves when field dressing carcasses.
  
• Notify the wildlife agency in the state or province you are hunting in if you see an animal that appears sick.
  

Extensive information on Chronic Wasting Disease is posted on the Division's Web site at www.njfishandwildlife.com/cwdinfo.htm. Please take the time to familiarize yourself with this information and do your part to help keep New Jersey free from Chronic Wasting Disease.

[StriderTB 10]

I wouldn't have known about this if I wasn't searching online for deer processors. I only ever hunt in PA, and I don't want to run afoul of any state agencies by bringing a deer to NJ for butchering. Would an NJ butcher refuse to process a deer with a PA ear tag?

[Jon 264]

Not sure to be honest... I've never harvested a deer in PA. I have brought NJ deer to PA though. (Doesn't help you though).

[woodentoe 14]

It seems in reading this that the EPA ban is on the importation of living deer and elk. F&W website points it to people who hold permits for captive animals since they don't want wild deer herd in NJ infected. The caution to hunters seems to be directed towards danger of consumption not a ban on bringing your game into NJ. As for the personal preference of the processor...I have no idea.

 

*shrug* ponderous.

 

 

How can hunters help?

Hunters are asked not to shoot sick or abnormally behaving deer, but note the animal’s location and report it to the Division’s Office of Fish and Wildlife Health and Forensics at 908-735-6398 or a local Division field office with numbers listed in the Digest as soon as possible. Hunters can cooperate in donating the heads of their deer when asked by a Division Biologist at selected deer check stations or through butcher shops. Those NJ residents returning from hunting in states with CWD in their deer and elk populations must follow the rules of those states and bone out the meat being sure to remove brain, spinal cord, and lymph nodes which may harbor the prions. Skull plates should be washed of residual brain tissue and soaked in 30% Clorox solution for 15 minutes to destroy the prions. Deer carcasses with meat removed must be disposed of in the trash rather than discarded in fields where deer may have contact with the remains.

 

 

How can captive deer owners help?

Don’t export or import deer in New Jersey until a national herd certification system is approved and the Division lifts the ban on such movement. If you have a deer, elk or other member of the deer family die of natural causes and especially one which is skinny at death, insure the head is

kept cool (not frozen) and immediately notify the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife at 908-735- 6398 so arrangements can be made to collect a portion of the brain for testing for CWD.

 

 

How can butchers and taxidermists help?

Use food waste dumpsters for disposal of waste materials from your facility. This is particularly important if you receive deer or elk from any of the states or provinces listed as having CWD in wild and/or captive deer. This will eliminate possible exposure of deer to contaminated waste, which in the case of taxidermy operations may include attractive salty tissues.

[StriderTB 10]

I just called a local deer processor, and they said there's no problem with having them butcher a deer, if I get one. False alarm!

[woodentoe 14]

if I get one.

 

No, my friend. WHEN you get one. It's the power of positive thinking. :-D