Post by bitbyter on Mar 27, 2013 18:37:37 GMT -5
I apologize for the pictures that aren't fully in focus. This is how I gut Guinea Pigs for my fuzzbuts. Any whole prey this size or larger (rats, young rabbits) I gut as well or the intestines end up being flung all over the cage in protest.
Needed Tools:
Very Sharp Knife: Boning Knife works best
Cutting Board
Whole Prey to be gutted
Optional Tools:
Cleaver or other heavy blade: For chopping up carcass if you want.
Knife with a gut hook: Help cut through skin & membrane without piercing guts. Easier to use than a straight blade.
Blunt ended scissors: Like the ones from a first aid kit. Work well for cutting through skin & membrane without piercing guts. Much easier to use than a blade.
Latex / Vinyl Gloves: for the squeamish. You can get them from most drug stores.
This picture shows the position of the knife while cutting. You want the edge of the blade to face away from the carcass. Be careful with sharp knives (note: dull knives are more dangerous than sharp ones).
You want to make a small cut just a little south of the front legs. You still want to be over the rib cage so that you don't cut into the guts. There are two layers: the skin and the membrane that contain the guts. I cut slightly through both (skin & membrane) but will focus on the skin in the next few pictures.
NOTE: you can actually just pull the skin apart at this stage. Using a knife is optional.
Here you can see how the skin separates from the membrane underneath.
Skin pulled back and membrane fully exposed.
Membrane cut open. Be careful at this stage as you don't want to pierce the guts.
A clear picture of the guts. You want to pull out the brown / green intestines. The stomach is usually up under the rib cage on the right-hand side.
Here the guts are partially pulled out.
Guts removed. I didn't get the stomach this time and just rinsed out the cavity to clear the stomach contents.
Cut in half with a cleaver.
Portioned for dinner.
Appreciative Fuzzes!!
Needed Tools:
Very Sharp Knife: Boning Knife works best
Cutting Board
Whole Prey to be gutted
Optional Tools:
Cleaver or other heavy blade: For chopping up carcass if you want.
Knife with a gut hook: Help cut through skin & membrane without piercing guts. Easier to use than a straight blade.
Blunt ended scissors: Like the ones from a first aid kit. Work well for cutting through skin & membrane without piercing guts. Much easier to use than a blade.
Latex / Vinyl Gloves: for the squeamish. You can get them from most drug stores.
This picture shows the position of the knife while cutting. You want the edge of the blade to face away from the carcass. Be careful with sharp knives (note: dull knives are more dangerous than sharp ones).
You want to make a small cut just a little south of the front legs. You still want to be over the rib cage so that you don't cut into the guts. There are two layers: the skin and the membrane that contain the guts. I cut slightly through both (skin & membrane) but will focus on the skin in the next few pictures.
NOTE: you can actually just pull the skin apart at this stage. Using a knife is optional.
Here you can see how the skin separates from the membrane underneath.
Skin pulled back and membrane fully exposed.
Membrane cut open. Be careful at this stage as you don't want to pierce the guts.
A clear picture of the guts. You want to pull out the brown / green intestines. The stomach is usually up under the rib cage on the right-hand side.
Here the guts are partially pulled out.
Guts removed. I didn't get the stomach this time and just rinsed out the cavity to clear the stomach contents.
Cut in half with a cleaver.
Portioned for dinner.
Appreciative Fuzzes!!
I do that with Adult Quail way nicer to do it that way.