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Your deer is down. Your heart is still pounding. And now you’re standing over it, knife in hand, trying to remember what comes next.

That’s normal. Almost every hunter feels a little lost the first time. Field dressing just means taking out the insides so the meat cools fast and stays clean. Do it soon after the deer is down and you’ll have better meat to eat.

If you can, go out with someone who has done it before. Watching once is worth a lot. Until then, here’s the order to follow.

Before you touch the deer

Make sure it’s dead. Walk up from behind, away from the legs. Watch for breathing. Touch the open eye with a long stick. If it blinks, it isn’t done. Stay back and be ready for a second, careful shot.

Tag it first. Many states want your tag filled out and attached before you move the animal. Follow the rules on your tag and in your state’s regulations.

Check what you need to keep. Some states require you to leave proof of sex on the animal, or have rules about moving the carcass. Read your state’s rules before the hunt, not after.

What to bring

You don’t need much. Keep this in your pack:

• A sharp knife (a 3 to 4 inch blade is easy to control)
• A small sharpener
• Rubber or nitrile gloves, the long kind if you can find them
• Rope or paracord to tie back a leg
• Game bags to keep meat clean
• Paper towels or rags
• Water for washing your hands
• Zip-top bags for the heart and liver, if you want to keep them
• A headlamp, because it’s often getting dark by now

Step by step

Take your time. Slow and careful beats fast and sloppy, and it keeps you from cutting yourself.

1. Roll the deer on its back. Point the head slightly uphill if you can, so things slide toward the back end. Tie one back leg off to a tree or bush, or have a friend hold it open.

1. Make the first cut. Pinch up the skin just in front of the back legs. Make a small cut through the skin and thin belly muscle. Go shallow. You don’t want to poke into the stomach or guts.

1. Open the belly. Slide two fingers into the cut, with your palm up, and push the guts down and away. Put the knife blade up, between your fingers, and cut toward the chest. Your fingers keep the blade off the guts. Stop at the bottom of the rib cage.

1. Cut around the back end. Carefully cut around the rear opening so it comes free from the pelvis. Some hunters tie it off with string so nothing leaks. Take your time here, because this is where meat gets dirty.

1. Open the chest. Cut through the thin wall of muscle (the diaphragm) that separates the belly from the chest. Cut it all the way around, close to the ribs.

1. Free the windpipe. Reach up into the chest as far as you can. Find the windpipe and cut it. Be careful, since you’re cutting where you can’t see. Keep your other hand clear of the blade.

1. Pull it all out. Grab the windpipe and pull down and back. The heart, lungs, and guts should come out in one big pile. Use your knife to free anything still holding on.

1. Save the heart and liver if you want them. Put them in a clean bag and keep them cool.

1. Drain and clean. Roll the deer over so the blood drains out. Wipe out the inside with paper towels or rags. Keep dirt, hair, and leaves out as best you can.

Cool the meat fast

Heat is the enemy of good meat. In Arizona, it can still be warm in the afternoon during deer season. That makes this part a big deal.

• Prop the chest open with a stick so air can move through
• Keep the deer in the shade
• Get it back to the truck and on ice as soon as you can
• If you’re quartering in the field, put the meat in game bags right away

Don’t leave a deer lying in the sun while you take a long lunch. The longer it sits warm, the worse it tastes.

Common first-time mistakes

• Cutting too deep on the first cut. A punctured stomach makes a mess and can taint the meat. Go shallow.
• A dull knife. It slips and makes you push harder. That’s how hunters get cut. Sharpen before the hunt.
• Waiting too long. Field dress soon after the deer is down.
• Forgetting gloves. They keep your hands clean and are worth packing every time.

Getting it home

Many states have laws against wasting game meat, so plan how you’ll get it out before you take the shot. Bring a friend, a pack frame, or a game cart. If you’re new, a lot of meat processors will cut and wrap your deer for you. Call ahead and ask what they need.

Next step: Still putting your kit together? Use our first deer hunt gear checklist.

In a lot of states, you walk into a store and buy a deer tag. Arizona doesn’t work that way for most big game. For elk, pronghorn, and most deer hunts, you apply months ahead and hope your name gets drawn.

The first time you look at it, the draw can feel like a puzzle. It isn’t that bad once someone lays it out. Here’s the simple version.

Before you apply, always check the current rules and dates at azgfd.com. Deadlines and details can change from year to year.

Why Arizona uses a draw

There are more hunters who want tags than there are tags to give. So Arizona Game and Fish sets a number of permits for each hunt, and a computer picks who gets them. It’s fair, and it protects the herds.

The three draws each year

Arizona splits big game into three draws. Roughly:

• Pronghorn and elk. Applications are due in February.
• Deer, fall turkey, fall javelina, bighorn sheep, fall bison, and sandhill crane. Due in June.
• Spring javelina, spring bear, spring turkey, and spring bison. Due in October.

The rules booklet for each draw usually comes out a few months before the deadline. Read it before you apply.

What you need to apply

• A free AZGFD portal account. This is where you apply, see your results, and check your bonus points. Arizona Game and Fish says the portal is the only place to find your draw results.
• An Arizona hunting license. Anyone 10 or older needs one to hunt.
• Your hunt choices. Each hunt has its own number. You can pick up to five.

Your five choices

When you apply, you list hunt numbers in order. First choice is the hunt you want most. You can add up to five.

Think of them in two groups:

• Choices 1 and 2 are your “dream” hunts.
• Choices 3, 4, and 5 are your backups.

This matters because of how the computer reads them, which is next.

The three passes

The draw runs in three rounds, called passes. Each time, every application gets a random number. Low numbers go first.

Pass 1: The bonus point pass. For most species, up to 20 percent of the tags in each hunt go to people with the most bonus points. The computer looks at your first and second choices only. If you have zero bonus points, you skip this pass.

Pass 2: First and second choices. Everyone who didn’t draw in pass 1 gets a new random number. The computer checks first choice, then second choice.

Pass 3: Third, fourth, and fifth choices. Anyone still left gets another new random number. Now the computer checks your backup hunts.

Arizona also limits how many tags can go to nonresidents, so most tags stay with Arizona residents.

How bonus points work

Every time you apply for a species and don’t get drawn, you earn a bonus point for that species. Each bonus point gives you one more random number in the draw. The computer uses your lowest one. More points means more chances at a low number.

A few things to know:

• Points are by species. Elk points only help with elk.
• If you draw a tag, your points for that species go back to zero.
• You can earn a loyalty bonus point by applying for the same species at least once a year, five years in a row. You keep it as long as you keep applying every year.
• You can earn a hunter education bonus point too. Arizona Game and Fish lists its “Ethically Hunting Arizona” course as one way to get it.

This is a bonus point system, not a preference point system. Even with zero points, you still have a chance. It’s just a smaller one.

Applying as a group

Up to four people can apply on one application. The computer averages everyone’s points and rounds to the nearest whole number. There has to be a tag for every person in the group, or the group gets passed over for that hunt.

So if your buddy has lots of points and you have none, applying together pulls the group’s points down.

If you don’t draw

It happens a lot, especially for elk. You still get your bonus point. Then you have a few options:

• Leftover tags. Tags that don’t get drawn are offered after the draw. Watch the Arizona Game and Fish site for dates.
• Over-the-counter tags. Arizona sells some tags without a draw, including some for deer, elk, bear, javelina, turkey, and mountain lion. Check what’s open for your area and season.
• Apply again next year, now with one more point.

Quick tips

• Apply every year for the species you care about, even if you just want the point.
• Use your first two choices on hunts you’d really be happy with.
• Look at past draw reports on the Arizona Game and Fish site to see how hard each hunt is to draw.
• Mark the deadlines on your calendar. They come fast.

Next step: New to all of this? Start with how to start hunting as a total beginner.