I don't know why you would not dress and eat it immediately.

In fact, in warm environments, butchering it and cook it immediately would ensure it remains safe to eat because it would not have time to spoil.

If the deadfall trap is not checked regularly, and you're in a warm environment, the question of "Has this been dead too long?" seems to be a serious one. Now, BG will eat anything, but my GI tract is not up to that task.

Some might argue that the meat should be aged. If I'm collecting meat using deadfalls, then aging it is the last thing on my mind.

I've found that the dear family prefers squirrel that's NOT been toted around for a couple of hours marinating in it's own juices.

Once I started treating game -- deer, fish, squirrel -- as fine meat and not road kill, people started liking it a whole lot more.