Hunters seldom agree as to the length of time a big-game carcass should be aged. Aging usually improves tenderness, but not all meat should be aged. Many practical considerations must be taken into account in deciding whether to age game meat.

Aging big game provides hunters and meat handlers with information to help them learn about the aging process, when it is beneficial and inadvisable to age big-game meat, and what should be done from the time a carcass is eviscerated until it is cut into serving pieces.