I will respond to your questions to the best of my ability based on what we do.
!) If we butcher in the late fall/winter/early spring when it's still fairly chilly out, we will let the carcass hang to chill down and drain off, not necessarily to tenderize it. I don't feel that this breed needs to have that down. We butchered just 2 weeks ago and instead of letting it hang, we rinsed off the carcass, then cut it into large pieces and placed it into a freezer to chill it down.
2)My husband is a taxidermist also and uses just a good hunting knife and once and awhile will use his scalpel to skin. He pretty much skins them out like deer. He also made two metal holders that he can insert between the cord and bone in the back of the hind legs to hang it evenly. We also have a meat saw and hand grinder and that's about it.
3) We had to purchase a new grinder and needed a new blade for our meat saw. We got them at Scheel's Sports store in Sioux Falls ( they have a large area devoted to hunting )but I would think that any store that carries hunting supplies would have the equipment that you would need. I would think a Cabela's or store like that would have them. I believe that Cabela's would be online also.
I would be interested in the title of the cookbook. I have " invented " some ways to cook this meat. Soi far I've been successful. When we grind the meat, we only run it through once and that has been good enough. We bag it, mark it and freeze it. We don't cut actual lamb chops but we take out the loins and butterfly them instead.
Also when I said that we had a sheep that lost its scurs - that it one of our ewes so I'm not sure about the ram. I have seen ram lambs break off horns when young from playing and they have grown back. Not sure if this is any help. If you have anything else you would like to ask - feel free.
HAppy Butchering!!!!!!!! Sue Miller
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