Jobs for the big boys

Any advice on how to handle large deer carcasses in the field?

Dom Holtam replies: Carefully! A mature fallow, sika or red deer can be a lot of work for the single-handed stalker to recover. It is well worth having one of Keith Watson’s ‘Stalker’s Mate’ pulley systems in the truck to help with gralloching, while an easy to pull carcass sled is also useful.

If you are doing big numbers, invest in a winch for your vehicle and, above all, remember best practice for lifting. Doing your back in, out in the wilds, is no fun.