Is Venison (Deer) Kosher?

Venison is the meat of deer, which is a kosher species. Provided that it was slaughtered, salted, and deveined according to Jewish law, it would be kosher. In fact, venison is occasionally found at high-end kosher restaurants. However, odds are that you will not find it in the freezer at your local kosher supermarket.

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7 Comments

Louis Eisenhauer Lockport December 16, 2024

I am a deer hunter and have been for many years with a bow and rifle. I hunt primarily for food but I enjoy the cabin time with my best friend and my four children. I don't hunt for antlers but if a nice one comes by I will shoot it, I mostly target antlerless deer. Hunters play the vital role in herd population. I read the Rebbe's, of Righteous memory, remarks about hunters. It seems he was focused on trophy hunters who are often falsely accused of wonton waste and kill an animal only for the sake of killing. If it is forbidden why does Torah make allowances for successful hunters in that they must follow a procedure described in Leviticus 17:13?

13 And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among them, that taketh in hunting any beast or fowl that may be eaten, he shall pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust.

Thank You,

Lou Reply

Dov Stein for Chabad.org December 22, 2024

in response to Louis Eisenhauer:

The Hebrew words in the verse, יָצ֜וּד צֵ֥יד, are translated as trap rather than hunt. After the animal is trapped alive, then it is ritually slaughtered and the blood is covered. Reply

Vezzie Ur moms house April 25, 2024

So how exactly does it need to be slaughtered, deveined, and salted to make it Kosher? I wanna know if there's a way for me to hunt deer and share some with my Jewish friends : D Reply

John Texas January 26, 2024

If i live in the country and i can only hunt for DEER with rifle for food..is that allowed provided that a kosher butcher , butchers And salts it properly? Reply

Eliezer Zalmanov for Chabad.org January 28, 2024

in response to John:

Killing an animal with a rifle automatically renders the animal non-kosher, and nothing can change that regardless of how it's butchered and salted after the fact. Reply

David April 21, 2024

in response to Eliezer Zalmanov:

Just out of curiosity, why does killing the deer with a rifle automatically make it not kosher?
Would a bow be an acceptable form of hunting then if killing the deer with a rifle is bad in terms of whether the meat is considered kosher or not?
I am new to all of this and stumbled onto this while trying to do some research on the subject.
I wish to follow the commandments and laws as they were laid out, I understand fishing is fine as long as the fish has scales and fins. Does eating kosher mean that you can’t traditionally hunt for food though? Reply

Shira Jerusalem October 3, 2024

in response to David:

Kosher slaughter involves slitting the throat, particularly one particular vein, burying the blood and saying a prayer over it. It is complicated to learn how to do properly, but the meat of an animal killed by hunting is not kosher.

Regarding following the commandments: so long as you are not Jewish, all you need to follow are the Seven Noachide laws (seven laws for all mankind).

There’s a lot of information available via google, but from my understanding responsible hunting is fine for non-Jews (track all your shots, kill the animal as quickly and painlessly as possible, don’t eat the flesh of a living animal - Rocky Mountain oysters are out).

I think chabad.org might have a section on the Noachide laws. (Note - I just noticed that this is a Chabad site)

Hope this helps! Reply

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