Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 5: Preparing the game for evisceration
• Part 2 of 5: Skinning a Rabbit
• Part 3 of 5: Separating Organs
• Part 4 of 5: Skinning and Cooking Your Rabbit
• Part 5 of 5: Other ways to quickly cut carcasses
• Tips
• Warnings

Gutting game is the process of skinning and removing the internal organs of an animal in order to keep the meat edible. Rabbits are small game that can be gutted very easily and quickly, making them ideal for training not only beginners but also experienced hunters. If you want to know where your meat comes from, it will take a special skill. Skip to the first step to learn how to gut a rabbit.

Steps

Part 1 of 5: Preparing the game for evisceration

1. 1 Hunt the rabbit as humanely as possible. It doesn't matter if you are going to butcher a rabbit that was killed while hunting or you want to track down a rabbit on a farm, you need to make sure that it dies painlessly and as soon as possible.
   • If you shot a rabbit, hold it firmly by both hind legs and use your hunting knife to sever the spinal cord with a quick cut. At this point, you can separate your head completely to allow the blood to drain out, or you can wait until you begin skinning.
   • If you're hunting a farm rabbitUsually, a blunt object such as a rolling pin, broomstick or other tool is used to hit the animal at the base of the skull, or you can dislocate its neck with your hands. It is easier to dislocate the neck, as it eliminates the possibility of missing on impact, which is natural for beginners. Holding the rabbit by the hind legs with one hand, squeeze the animal's head with the other hand, make a sharp movement with your hands, turning your head back in order to dislocate the neck. If you do everything right, the animal will immediately pass out.
2. 2 Hang the rabbit to drain the blood. Before butchering, the rabbit's head is usually cut off with a large knife, placed on a flat cutting surface, and the knife is thrust into the base of the skull where it goes into the neck. Chop it off with a strong knife blow. Hang the rabbit by the back underneath the knee tendon to drain the blood into the bucket.
   • You can poke the rabbit's hind leg through the Achilles tendon to hang it upside down, just below the knee tendon (most of the hind leg, i.e. the femur).
   • Many disagree on whether there is a need to wait for blood to drain from the rabbit that is going to be eaten. Since there is a lot of blood leaking from the rabbit, some hunters skip this step and separate the head during the skinning process. However, once the blood is removed, the meat looks "cleaner" and in some cases tastes more tender if the blood is released from the rabbit immediately after killing.
3. 3 Butcher the rabbit as soon as the opportunity presents itself. You can butcher the rabbit immediately or a little later after killing, but since it is usually easier to skin the rabbit while it is still warm, it is recommended that you butcher the rabbit as soon as possible. If you don’t do this until you get home, it’s okay, although it’s harder to handle the rabbit when it’s cold and stiff. The whole process will take you only a few minutes.
   • Since the rabbit hunting season usually occurs in cold weather, you should not rush and worry about the fact that the meat will go bad. Since it will likely be cold, nothing will happen to your rabbit carcasses until you get home. You may want to consider doing this in the field - this will leave all the dirt outside your home.

Part 2 of 5: Skinning a Rabbit

1. 1 Prepare a clean work surface if possible. While it's always best to butcher your rabbit immediately after killing to reduce the risk of meat contamination, cleanliness also matters.Even if you're in the thick of the forest, use a sharp, clean hunting knife free of rust and other contaminants, and rinse the carcass with clean water when you're done.
   • It is a good idea to wear latex or thick rubber gloves when butchering your rabbit, especially if you are dealing with entrails. Keep your hands and meat clean.
   • Some hunters have a cutting board specifically for butchering small game like rabbits and squirrels. Wash it thoroughly with soap and clean water before and after use, especially making sure there is no fur or other contaminants on the work surface.
2. 2 Separate the rabbit's legs. There is no meat in the legs, and it will be easier for you to skin the skin if you first get rid of the legs by separating them from the joints around the ankles. They can be separated easily and quickly, and it is better to do this now than when you deal with the hide.
   • To separate them, bend each leg forward, making a small incision under the knuckle to loosen the joint.
   • Using the knife, continue to cut through the rest of the joint, making deep cuts with the knife. Do not press too hard to sever the joint.
3. 3 Make a small hole in the skin across the rabbit's back. Squeeze the skin near the shoulder blades of the rabbit so that you can pull the skin up and away from the muscle, and make a small full-width incision, perpendicular to the spine. It should be just big enough to fit your fingers.
   • When removing the skin, be careful not to pierce it and be very careful. The knife should not cut through the meat, because then bacteria or parasites can easily penetrate from the fur into the meat, contaminating it and ruining all your work.
4. 4 Pick up the hide with your fingers and pull it in opposite directions. Use your thumbs to touch the hole you made in the hide, then pull it up with one hand toward the tail and the other toward the head. Continue pulling the hide until you reach the neck.
   • The skin of a rabbit comes off quite easily, shedding from the muscles like a jacket. This is done in no time. You don’t have to use a knife, as is the case with deer or other larger game, and you don’t have to press hard.
   • If you want to keep the hide intact, it is best to make a larger incision in the abdomen after removing the limbs, next to the pelvic bone, then pull the hide towards the legs and back towards the back. This method is recommended for beginners, as there is a risk of piercing the abdomen and entrails, and this will ruin the meat, but it is not so difficult if you fill your hand.
5. 5 Separate your head by turning it. The skin should now hang from the mascara, connecting to the neck. Take the rabbit by the hind legs with one hand - let the head and skin hang to the floor, with the other hand, gather the skin around the head, and twist it with strong movements, turning the body and head in opposite directions. She should immediately fall.
   • You can also cut the head off with your knife, making a deep and sharp cut in the nape of the neck under the skin.
   • If the tail did not fall off when you cut the fur at the back of the rabbit, you can now also cut it off as close to the body as possible.

Part 3 of 5: Separating Organs

1. 1 Carefully make a small incision in the skin around the abdomen. Pinch the skin to separate it from the lower organs and make an incision with your knife so that you can gently extract the organs. Squeeze the top of the skin as high as you can and make an incision, then insert two fingers to lift the skin up and to the side, keeping the abdomen open to the ribcage.
   • When you get to the ribcage, you will also have to cut through the sternum to open the cavity and expose the organs above. You should be able to easily slide your knife through the hole between your ribs.
   • The skin of the rabbit is quite transparent, so at this stage you should be able to see the organs underneath quite easily. You must be extremely careful and especially avoid damaging your bladder and colon, which can ruin the meat.
   • Be prepared for an unpleasant smell. The abdomen of a wild rabbit will not smell like petunia. However, this does not mean that there is something wrong with the meat.
2. 2 Detach the sheath holding the organs. On the other side of the chest, you will notice a small transparent membrane that protects the heart, liver, and other major organs from damage. You may need to cut through the sheath over the ribs to lift it slightly to make it easier for you to pull out the organs. This is not always necessary, but it will make your task a lot easier when you start to separate the organs.
3. 3 Hold the carcass higher to pull the organs out. Lift the rabbit carcass with one hand so that its hind legs are facing downward. Insert two fingers of your other hand into the uppermost part of your ribcage and scrape out the organs with calm but strong movements. Thanks to gravity, they will fall down, and it is better to substitute a bucket for easier cleaning.
   • Some hunters pay special attention to the bladder, trying to pull it out before the rest of the organs, especially if it turns out that it is full. The bladder looks like a small, pale yellow ball and sits near the anus. To remove it, squeeze it firmly only where it connects to the carcass, then separate it, taking extreme care so that it does not burst or leak.
4. 4 Leave the organs you want to yourself. The heart, liver and kidneys are usually considered edible. If you wish, you can roast them with the carcass or feed your dog fried or raw.
   • It is a good idea to check the liver for age spots after you have taken it out. Yellowish spots on the liver can be a sign of a dangerous infectious disease, and this means that such meat should not be eaten. If you notice strange spots on the liver, get rid of the rabbit immediately.
5. 5 Rinse the carcass and clean up after you. Rinse carcass immediately in cold, clean water. This will lower its temperature and prevent rotting, as well as help get rid of pieces of wool, blood and other particles from the inside and outside of the body that accidentally get into the meat.
   • If you are out in the field, place the meat loosely in the cooling container. Do not wrap it in plastic until it has completely cooled down, otherwise it will start to release moisture and may deteriorate. The carcass must be stored at a temperature not exceeding 39 degrees F (4 degrees C).
   • If you want to tan your leather, rinse the fur right away and dip it in cold water to keep it intact until tanning.
   • If you wish, you can bury the guts and hide, or collect them and dispose of them quickly. However, in some cities it is forbidden to leave entrails in nature. Check your local laws to be sure.

Part 4 of 5: Skinning and Cooking Your Rabbit

1. 1 Separate fat, tendons and muscle film with a boning knife. Once you've allowed the carcass to cool completely, you can start carving up the meat and preparing it for cooking in a stewing pot, skillet, or oven. The first step is to grab the carcass and remove unwanted pieces of tendon and fat with your knife.
   • Rabbit fat doesn't taste that good. Lean, lean rabbit meat is generally best cooked without additives.
   • During butchering, the skin comes off quite easily due to the thin layer of muscle film that covers the meat. You can leave it on if you want to fry your rabbit until crispy, but it's best to spend a little time removing it anyway. Gently peel off the muscle film with your knife and discard it.
2. 2 Separate your legs. Rabbit legs, especially the hind legs, account for about half of all rabbit meat.This is one of the most delicious parts of meat - tender, fatty and tasty.
   • To separate the front legs, slide the knife along the rabbit's ribs from top to bottom to the front legs. They are not connected by bones, which greatly simplifies the separation process.
   • To separate the hind legs, lay the carcass on your back and bend your legs to expose the joint. You may need to use a knife to poke a path to the pelvic bone between your legs and pelvis in order to expose the joint. Use the edge of a knife to separate the joint and separate each leg loosely.
3. 3 Consider separating the belly meat from the sirloin. Since rabbits are small in size, people usually skip this step when cooking rabbits. However, if you come across a large rabbit, separating the torso meat under the ribs (this is called bacon) from the sirloin, as well as the meat from the spine, you can get delicious separate pieces.
   • To separate the belly meat, turn the carcass onto its back and scrape off thin slices of meat from the back, next to the pelvic bone, towards the ribcage. The place where the meat becomes slightly thicker and darker along the spine is called the loin.
   • To prepare the sirloin, it is usually left intact and separated from the ribcage through the spine, where it is connected to the ribcage. You can also pull the sirloin out through the ribcage by bending it backwards and breaking with a quick motion. If desired, the ribs can be left and boiled into broth, or thrown out, since there is almost no meat in them.
4. 4 Roast the rabbit whole. Nothing will delight the hunter like a whole rabbit roasting over a fire on a spit. Don't you want to steam and butcher the carcass? Don't cut. Especially if your rabbit is small, it will be much easier to leave it whole and cook it as one piece of meat rather than breaking it up into tiny pieces.
   • Alternatively, you can also super-quickly split the carcass into two halves with one chopping blow at the place where the ribs meet the abdomen, splitting the rabbit into two equal pieces. This is a great way to stew a rabbit or use it as a base for a soup.
5. 5 Think about how to remove the smell. If you are interested in trying a rabbit, but you are not a big fan of its specific smell with a smell, then it is better to put it in salt water overnight - this will help soften the smell and it will look like chicken.
   • Use one tablespoon of salt for each cup of cold water you use to make the brine, then soak the rabbit in a covered plate and refrigerate overnight. No matter how you cook it, the taste will be excellent.
   • You can add ground red pepper, finely chopped basil or oregano and crushed garlic to the brine - then there will be no trace of the smell.
6. 6 Cook your bunny and enjoy! Rabbit is a lean, flavorful, and tasty alternative to more common grocery meats, especially when properly cooked. It makes the perfect stew and can also be roasted like chicken, although there are many ways to cook a rabbit:
   • Prepare a rabbit Italian style. Although rabbit is not traditionally considered “Italian food,” rabbits stuffed with aromatic spices and stewed with tomatoes and red wine are very popular in Italy. It is very tasty and original.
   • Fry the rabbit. Marinate your rabbit in a mixture of mustard, olive oil and black pepper and sauté it in chunks in oil until crisp. Finally, fry it at 425 degrees F for about ten minutes. It will turn out to be tender and tasty.
   • Cook the rabbit over low heat for six hours for a super tender meal. Add some water and vegetables to taste - carrots, onions, water nuts, etc. Thicken the sauce with a little sherry and cornstarch in the last 45 minutes.Now you can try!

Part 5 of 5: Other ways to quickly cut carcasses

1. 1 Try gutting the carcass without touching the intestines. Some hunters, who have killed a lot of rabbits, have learned to gut carcasses very skillfully, with minimal use of a knife. You can quickly separate the hind legs and muscles or loin of the rabbit by first peeling the hide from the hind legs and then tucking it in and off the animal's legs. You will be left with the most delicious rabbit meat, and all the fur, intestines and front legs will remain in another pile if you do it right.
   • Turn the rabbit upside down and, holding its hind legs, begin making a small incision along each hind leg. Pull the hide from each leg down to your groin, as if you were removing a pair of pants. Slide your finger under the skin in your groin to pick it up, separating it from your legs and working your way around your ribcage.
   • When the bunny's hind legs are exposed, take the skin and tuck it under the skin that remains at the top of the rabbit's ribcage. Holding him firmly in the middle, pull off the top of his hide while pulling back his hind legs. It takes some effort, but you can safely separate the hind legs and spine from the rest of the mascara, leaving you with the best, cleanest part.
2. 2 Try the long grip method taken from the survival technique manual. One of the most unusual methods of butchering a rabbit was introduced to the world in an old Air Force survival technique manual. You don't even need a knife.
   • After killing the rabbit, hold it upside down, belly towards you. Feel where the ribcage ends in the rabbit's belly and squeeze it with both hands, squeezing your thumbs firmly where the ribs end.
   • Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder level and "throw" the rabbit back between your legs as if you grabbed a soccer ball for a long time, preventing a professional player from picking it up. Throw hard. When tossing, apply firm pressure to the rabbit's abdomen.
   • If you did everything correctly, the entrails will very quickly come out through the anus of the rabbit, you can remove the skin with your fingers, and after 30 seconds the rabbit will be completely gutted. If you did it wrong, you are left with a disgusting and spoiled pile of rubbish. You shouldn't do this if you have a knife.
3. 3 Try to find your own ways to speed up the skinning process. Many hunters try to butcher the carcass as quickly as possible for the sake of interest. If you often hunt rabbits, then cutting carcasses will tire you very soon. The more you hunt, the more ways you will come up with ways to speed up this process. Just make sure you have a sharp hunting knife and decide which works best for you. Always devote the proper amount of time to this activity. There is no point in fussing and spoiling your meat.
   • Domestic rabbits are usually harder to handle due to their heavy weight - it is important to slow down and act with caution throughout the process. You don't want to spoil the meat with your impatience.

Tips

• The best time to hunt rabbits is in the early morning and just after sunset, when they are most active.
• In cold weather, the number of parasites may decrease, but this will not completely eliminate them.
• Soaking in salt water or vinegar will help get rid of the smelly odor, and the rabbit will taste like chicken.

Warnings

• The meat in the supermarket is delicious and ready for human consumption. But this not say about the meat of animals you kill, which can be infected with diseases and have parasites, for example, Tularemia (rabbit disease) or rabbit fever - a rare but dangerous disease that is transmitted through blood and air and destroys internal organs. Hunters are at high risk because there is a chance that they can become infected by inhaling bacteria while cutting the carcass.
• It is illegal to hunt rabbits after the hunting season is over. Check your local laws to make sure you only hunt at the start of the season.