Food management

[snafu918]

So how does everyone manage their raptor food both at home and in the field?

Right now I thaw out a quail split it up and use half for tidbiting and lure and put the other half in the fridge. But now that I'm hunting Athena I'm not using all my tidbits and sometimes I'm not using my lure meat. Should I toss this meat, refreeze it or refrigerate it?

Also how long do you all store refrigerated meat and are there any differences between cleaned and uncleaned?

[Falcon Boy]

Once its froze its pretty much good unless your freezing it for a freakishly long time, meaning a number of years. If freezer burn occcurs i would not use it, i've heard once that happens it ruins the meat but i am not sure if that is true?

I've also heard the longer things are frozen the less nutrious they are, not sure why.

I usually refreeze what i dont use and use it the next day or put it in the refridgerator if im going to use it in the morning.

[morganf]

Same with me... If I feed rats, then I defrost it, clean and prepare them and then keep them refrigerated and use what i need. When I feed chicks, I take them out of the freezer in the morning, defrost them in the fridge, and use them the next day. With chicks, whatever I don't use that day, I throw out.

I always defrost the food in the refrigerator, it allows it to defrost slower and in a safer manner than defrosting on the counter. I always monitor the meat that I feed my bird, if I notice anything weird or smelling funny I don't feed it to my bird... as the saying goes "When in doubt, throw it out!"

[Falcon Boy]

morganf said:

I always defrost the food in the refrigerator, it allows it to defrost slower and in a safer manner than defrosting on the counter. I always monitor the meat that I feed my bird, if I notice anything weird or smelling funny I don't feed it to my bird... as the saying goes "When in doubt, throw it out!"

Safer? How is feeding chilled meat safer than defrosting it in a warm water bath? If anything putting it in warm water adds water to the birds diet.

[snafu918]

Any water bath can have the affect of removing nutriants.

I vacuum bag the meat and toss it in a hot water bath to defrost it. I guess I didn't mention that in my original post.

[Falcon Boy]

If it is not cut open the amount of nutrition lost is absolutly minimal.

[HawkingRage]

i always use the lure. when we catch game the game is not eaten that day. i like to clean and freeze it first. the lure is the reward. tidbits. well ill use strips of squirel ribcage or rabbit. what does not get used i throw away. i do not refreeze. if i thaw out too much then i refrigerate the lure portions till the next hunt but never more than 3 days. if i wouldnt eat it i wouldnt make my bird eat it.

[morganf]

admin said:

morganf said:

I always defrost the food in the refrigerator, it allows it to defrost slower and in a safer manner than defrosting on the counter. I always monitor the meat that I feed my bird, if I notice anything weird or smelling funny I don't feed it to my bird... as the saying goes "When in doubt, throw it out!"

Safer? How is feeding chilled meat safer than defrosting it in a warm water bath? If anything putting it in warm water adds water to the birds diet.

I don't remember the specifics of it exactly, but I learned it in my food science class in high school and I had top grades both semesters.

[kitana8]

admin said:

Safer? How is feeding chilled meat safer than defrosting it in a warm water bath? If anything putting it in warm water adds water to the birds diet.

You are right for the water adding effects, but it also trully removes nutrients even if the skin is not broken.

However, the main reason for defrosting meat in the refrigerator rather than on the counter or in water is bacterial growth. Bacterias are not killed by frosting, and if the meat thaw at room temperature they will developp very, very quickly. Some bacterias such as salmonella or campylobacter are dangerous by themselves, causing a gastro-intestinal infection, but other ones such as Staph aureus are worse because they produce heavy amounts of very active toxins when growing fast. Hawks are not immune against those bacterias and toxines and can become sick with them, sometimes transiently, sometimes badly. So defrosting meat in the refrigerator, slowly, over 12-24 hours, is the best way to go. You can add water to the meat later without washing away nutrients by injecting the food with LRS or pedialyte.

[morganf]

Ah yeah, that was the reason ;D I knew it had something to do with bacterial growth but I couldn't remember exactly.

[ehh]

In falconry, unfortunately, you throw out alot of meat. At least I do. That is especially true if you are catching game. You need to take enough with you hunting to cover any situation that might come up. If you catch something you may not use much of it. I rarely save any meat that I come back with. Also if meat sits around for more than two days I throw it out.

[kitana8]

How do you deal with the thrown away meat? My city passes every 2 weeks to collect the thrash, the other week is for recyclable materials. I live in an area with bears and I don't want my trasbins to stink in the summer with rotting raw meat in them. I thought about freezing a pot with the leftovers and throwing it away every 2 weeks, but is there another way?

[morganf]

That's generally what I do.. I freeze the inedible parts and throw them out, but our trash collectors come once a week.