Take an older cow or younger?????
Elk
You experienced elk slayers give me your thoughts on this..If I have a cow tag,and wanna get as much meat as possible out of the cow ,how's the meat on an older ,I assume larger cow,?? Will I be able to judge her age by looking at her ...Or should I focus on a solid healthy girl?? Let er fly. And thx for any and all help..No I've never elk hunted.but a plan is brewing... Pat
Shoot the first one that gives you an ethical shot opportunity. Serious.
If you are rifle hunting then I guess you might end up with the opportunity to choose. If you want as much meat as possible, I wouldn't worry about trying to find a "more tender" specimen. That is just my opinion though, and I don't have a lot of 1st hand experience eating different age groups of elk.
OK Corey..I'll be bowhunting..
Franzen X 2. Take what you can get or, you won't get anything. If you lived there and got to scout a bunch, you can be picky. If not, the odds are so high against you even getting a shot, that you gotta take what you can get. God Bless
Hopefully you will get a few others to chime in. Who knows, maybe you will just be flush with shot opportunities on cows, and have the luxury of time on your side to pick. I just know if I was going on my first elk hunt again, trying to pick out a certain type of cow would be the last thing on my mind.
Good advice! Killing an elk with bow can be very challenging. Good luck! C
I understand that I may be amongst 3 cows during my hunt,,or maybe 90... Bottom line is are older cows tougher meat wise..? Or there's not much difference in the meat..I totally understand what your saying as to taking the first that gives me a chance..I most likely will do just that..I' just wanna be as prepared as possible for any senerio...
I'll take a yearling cow over an older one every time. I've killed big old bulls, and I've killed big old cows. The big old cows have had the toughest meat BY FAR!
THis cow got a pass because of the young calf with her
THis cow got a pass because of the young calf with her
Four days later, this single cow ended up in the pot. Great eating.
Four days later, this single cow ended up in the pot. Great eating.
If you might get into 90 cows at a crack, chances are pretty good that there's a bit of a population problem, so no harm in taking a nice fat 2.5-year-old if you can pick one out. If there were no surplus in the area, then there would probably be no tags!
But you know what? A small elk is still one VERY big deer. Don't dither!
Outside of shooting a calf take the first legal one, no guarantees how tender one is or isn't! There's no slam dunks out there! Of course with that mindset you'll end up with a nice 6-point! (grin)
ElkNut1
Whichever one is an easier shot that doesn't have a calf!
If you are in Montana: The answer is "You Don't". Unless you are a senior citizen, a youth hunter, or a first time hunter you would just be doing the fish and games dirty work and feeding right into the big land owner set "herd objectives"... And no matter who you are you don't shoot any elk this time of year. (Nothing "fair chase" about that)
Darn right Paul... Really I'm asking specifics as to a certain state ,,simply what's best in the pot...Thx for the beta..All useful.. Pat
Really I'm not asking I ment to type....
Meat quality has more to do with the health of the animal, what it has been feeding on and how you handle it after the kill, from field dressing to cooking.
My experience has been you really never know till you eat it. I killed a young cow one year 1/2 mile from the road. Saw her go down and she was in the freezer in meat sacks cooling by 10 am. Butchered her following and couldn't wait to eat some. Turns out she was tough and had pretty strong taste. Same area few years before shot a great big- guessing older one 3 miles in at last light. Gutted her rolled her up on some logs left her overnight. The next am Packed her out and butchered following. She was the best elk I have ever put packing paper on.
When I used to "shop" for an extra cow I looked for a dry yearling. But really, field care and aging has more to do with the meat quality, as GaryB notes.
And if you happen to be hunting some of the units near my place where the bull-cow ratio is way out of whack (mostly due to outfitters and others shooting ONLY bulls for the past 20 years,) shoot two cows and let the young bulls walk.
Have shot a lot of cow elk. Your best bet is a mature cow without a calf - lots of cows lose their calf in the summer due to bears, lions, hit by cars, etc. A cow without a calf will usually be in a little better shape than another one with a calf in the same area. Meat quality will be slightly better and the dry cow will have more fat on her.
Have also noticed that cows killed in September are usually better eating than cows killed in December/January.
If you are bow hunting - shoot the first one you get a chance at - with or without a calf. By the end of August, the calf is big enough to survive. There is not that much difference in meat quality.
I'm not an experienced elk hunter, and the only elk I've ever killed was with a rifle, but I feel qualified to answer the question on old or young. The cow I killed was one of a group of elk we jumped right after daylight near Raton on Ted Turner's ranch. No time to pick, so I took the best opportunity I had. The cow just happened to weigh 480 lb. field dressed and was aged at 18 years old. We killed four elk on that trip, field dressed weights were 320, 380, 425, and mine at 480. ALL were delicious, but the smallest one might have been a little more tender. I would not try to pick and choose if I ever did that hunt again.
Outfitter friend who takes 30+ cow hunters each November has quit letting them take the big lead cow if possible (rifle hunts). He believes they are the ones that bring the herd back each year and he wants them back.
It stands to reason that an older/bigger mountain animal will be tougher just by nature, but as previously stated that is not the only factor as to how they will eat. Being a first time elk bow hunter and if you are looking strictly for meat, take the first shot you get...you never know if another opportunity will come. I've eaten several tags over the years when I really shouldn't have all for the sake of not wanting it to be over so quickly or waiting for a bull. Tags really don't eat so well!!
It's bowhunting. Shoot the first broadside, or otherwise makeable shot. I've killed a lot of cow elk, and never had a bad one.
I have only taken 2 cow elk on big one medium, they were both amazing - way better then bulls. Sooooo given the chance I am taking the biggest I can find. My first was a lead cow (out of 500 elk) and huge and fantastic eating. Even if by some chance a younger cow is better it will not be by much, both will be great so go for the one with twice the meat!
I've taken a couple of smooth toothed old cows. They were not tough, in fact the last one almost seemed too tender.
All the above are right on. It can be very tough to kill a cow elk with a bow, especially when that's your goal. Go bull hunting and they will come up and give you a kiss. Shoot the first one you get a chance at.
I agree that meat quality has more to do with how the animal dies and how we handle it after the kill. A stressful death leads to not so tender and sometimes strong tasting meat. Scooby
I usually shoot the first cow that gives me an opportunity when I have additional cow/calve tag. I won't shoot a calf. In my experience the older cows have been tougher tasting than the young ones.
The half dozen cows I have shot were no better, in fact I would say were tougher than the 30 bulls. And the old bulls were not tougher than the young bulls. Just hunt elk and be happy with a whole lot of good to great meat when you get one! Good luck!
I agree with Scooby. The two worst elk I had were both young animals, that were hit poorly, and basically ran until they were out of blood. My feeling is, when an animal is running for a good distance, lactic acid builds up in the muscle, and can give it a strong taste. Any cow is good eating, if hit well, and put down (and cooled down) quickly.
Best Wishes, Jeff
Thanks everyone...I appreciate all of the information..Of coarse a bull will be my first choice,,I do have a few weeks to hunt ,I just wanted to be prepared if I do have to go cow...
Here is a perfect specimen for the freezer :)
Cows will def weigh a lot less early Sept than in November. If you want to look for a mature cow, look for the long ski slope nose.
But those 2yr old cows are taaaaassstyyyyy!
Shoot the first cow or calf you see! Sounds like most here won't shoot a calf but they are by far the most tasty! A calf elk is bigger than any white tail by far that I've seen. Also on the plus side if you kill it a few miles back it's a lot easier to pack out :) I tell my kids to take the calf every time!
A calf during rifle season is a "different" animal vs August September, I don't know how anyone could shoot one in the early archery seasons and feel good about it. Last day be damned.
Also, shooting a cow with a calf can be a Disney moment. Especially when you come back the next day and the calf is next to the carcass still mewing.
Some of you guys are alot harder than me, single cows only for me.
Yep hard I am ...Beat it lil fella.... Bring on the back strap...
Single cow selection can be nearly impossible in the timber. It's routine for calves to be together and not near their mother. You can kill a cow without anything near it and find out later she wasn't dry.
As quite a few have suggested...If it comes down to a cow...I'll be sticking the first girl that comes along.....As said,,, eating any tag sucks... Something I do have experience in...lol
I prefer a yearling or 2 yr old as I prefer a dry cow if possible.
I would be boning and packing it out solo so I enjoy the younger cow's.
Good luck, Robb
Photo shows calf size variation.
Photo shows calf size variation.
Calf size can be pretty variable even amongst the same herd. The calves in Paul's photo above look pretty small to me. Certainly, late season calves are most likely larger than a whitetail. Hopefully you can make out the photo.
Here's an early September calf I shot in 2011
Good pic w description Franzen. Thx. Elk are big.. I've been WT bow hunting since 79..I've been thru Yellowstone,seen many elk but not really close..
Sorry guys but it's a scientific fact that the older an animal is the less tender they are - if you don't believe me just type it in Google and look at the millions of dollars spent on Shear tests by the beef industry.
Your first problem to your question is you want "as much meat" as possible. Do you want tender delicious meat for steaks or are you looking for burger and roasts. If you want more steaks definitely shoot an animal 3 yo or younger. If you are a roast/burger guy then shoot any good size cow.
No amount of handling, aging or dropping an animal on the spot is going to change the eating quality of a 5+ yo animal vs. 2 yo.
That said - like many above posted unless you are going on private land with many animals take the first good shot you get.
Good luck!
I've shot old and young. They were ALL delicious!
I will say that the best eating I've had is a spike bull though if you are lucky enough to have the opportunity to harvest one of those! Four legged candy!
I hunt Wyoming and usually get one of the tooth aging boxes to return to G&F. After shooting a cow a few years ago, my family was commenting about how tender the meat was. I had forgotten about the tooth report and called G&F to find that the old gal was 11 1/2 years old. Go figure.
I've always been very particular about field care of game meat so I guess it pays off. I'm also not the greatest elk hunter so I always shoot the first elk that gives me an opportunity.
Here is a big ol dry cow I shot back in '08 [ I think]
Yum yum
I strongly disagree with Sagebuffalo's comments where he correlates beef industry meat toughness tests to elk meat from bow season. I'll stand by my own testing of around 30 bulls that the biggest have been some of the best eating (mostly early to mid-Sept kills). Elk aren't beef coming off a feed lot.....the big bull elk are fat and really mild flavored that time of year. My last CO unit 2 bull shot Sept 1 was super tender, (we make a lot of steak) and a large bodied and heavy horned old critter. Many of the 2-1/2 and 3-1/2 yr old raghorn/satellite bulls were tougher, as were most of the cows of various ages and sizes.
Kurt I'll challenge you to a cook off some time - I'll bring a 1 1/2 yo spike elk steak and you bring a 6 yo bull steak and we will serve a few friends.
I cook a lot of wild game of all varieties and am an avid cook. I'm not saying elk aren't delicious as they get older but it's just a fact that a 1 1/2 yo animal will be much more tender than a 6 yo elk.
I am not going to begrudge anyone though if they believe a older bull will out eat a younger spike when it comes to tender steak. Some people just have different opinions of what tender is.
Kurt, don't do it! Nothing beats Spike steaks! (big-grin)
ElkNut1
Spike steaks sound great!!! I'm sure I be happy as heck with ANTHING!!!
Much of my CO elk hunting was done under a "4-point" or "brow tined" bull reg. Out of 30 or so bulls, only two were spikes due to the game laws. I remember them as fine eating....better than the 4 and 5 pointers or most of the cows but really recall the biggest bulls as eating the best.....big, fat and I presume lazy during the summer. I doubt they would have been as good in mid-October post rut!
I think Jaq had a comment on some thread about his big bull from NW Colorado being fine, tender meat too? Anyway, I'll take an early Sept old bull any chance I get (not very often) as I think their meat is awesome and I like the big heavy antlers too.
Old time Montana elk slayers prefer a calf, be careful with the lead cow, she can be very old, I've found out not the best. a yearling cow is my choice for eating vs size. Times have really changed, though, been reading Theodore Roosevelt's "Hunting Trips of a Ranchman and The Wilderness Hunter", and it seems he didn't care for a bull during the rut. He only took the tongue and Horns. I've had tougher Bulls but they were always edible.
Being that I know longer consume as much meat as I used to. I would try to shoot an early calf. By far the best Elk meat you can get....for me now, its quality over quantity.
A later Sept calf is a heck of a lot easier packin'....... and great eating. We call em "blue bone". Kinda like veal, (you all know what veal really is right?) real tender, but sometimes it seems less "flavor". Not scientific, just an observation about eating calves and fawns, being the heartless bastard that I am.....
