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Do I have to bone out a MOOSE to cross t

I plan on hunting in Newfoundland , CA. if I harvest a moose, will I have to Bone out the meat to get it across the canada / Us Border??

Hunter harvested game birds (pheasant, quail, goose, etc.) or cervid carcasses (e.g. deer, moose, elk, caribou, etc.) from Canada are allowed entry when importers present to the Customs and Border Protection officer evidence such as a hunting license that the product is hunter harvested wild game. Hunter-harvested wild non-cervid animal (e.g. wild sheep, goats, or bison/buffalo, etc.) meat or carcasses, which must be eviscerated and head removed, are allowed when the hunter shows to CBP officers a hunting license, tag, or equivalent.

I am not sure of the exact laws, but I crossed the border last Oct coming from NL, I had meat boned out and skull cleaned of all meat and brain matter. I had zero issues, extremely friendly and they didn’t check my coolers or skull. I did come back from AB one year with an elk and they did inspection of skull and meat, I did it the same way as above and didn’t have any problems.

It might not be required to... but why wouldn’t you?

I havent boned out any of the last three moose or a caribou that have traveled back from NF. However be aware of an CWD laws in the state you are traveling to. For example i can not bring back any of the spinal column or any brain tissue. So the skull caps are clean and all the loin and the chuck/neck is boned out. The hinds and the shoulders are on the bone.

If all your paper work is in order i have yet to have a US customs officer even open a cooler.

GF so you can bone it out at home, or take it to a butcher you know and trust I make and can bone stock so I definitely want the larger bones

I would bone it out just to make sure the hams cooled down good and didn’t spoil.

Heck, I rarely bring any bones home from any deer or elk I kill around the house...

To GF and rodb, Because I LOVE Moose Ribs on the grill ! Those would be the ONLY bones I would be bringing back.

Have you ever killed a moose? Do you know how much even a half rack of moose ribs weigh? I 100 percent agree with above why mess with all that extra weight and hassle? Shawn

To Shawn, my buddy killed a nice moose in 2004, and we had a special 120 qt cooler JUST for the ribs!! They were fantastic! On the grill and in the smoker!!! That year I took a nice Caribou and a big Black Bear!! It was a very GOOD year!!

lol

Answer: As long as you can cool it down properly not boning meat means less surfaces to be exposed to bacteria and to dry out. Whenever possible I don’t bone meat until I’m actually processing it.

good point Mule Power. honestly my main reason is that I utilize the bones

They are concerned with the brain and spinal fluid. If that's gone then you can bring it back with the rest of the bones.

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