Gonna start taking down some song dogs (possible other critter such as fox and possible bob's) and wanted to know of some good material, books or dvds/videos, on skinning and doing something (stretching/cleaning or fleshing/tanning or preserving) with the hides.
Was wanting to see if it is something I want to take on or if I should just take them to a tanner or just sell them. Either way I would like to get some good advice on skinning them the right/best way.

Thanks!!!

There is a video called "Two Minute Coyote" that is for sale at some trapper supply houses that will show you how to do coyotes pretty fast. There are other videos that show you how to do all furbearers.

If you want to sell your fur, you are going to have to case them. hardest part to learn properly is how to do the head (eyes and ears) but once you learn it its not too bad.

About the hardest part of skinning a coyote is the stink.

Go easy around the eye's, lips and nose, you can cut them really easy.

IF you can find a buyer for fresh skinned I think you'll be ahead, at least on the work end of it. But, they sure won't bring anywhere near the price of dried, cleaned and properly stretched fur either.

Good luck and have fun.

George

I only ever skinned that one coyote i caught last year. With it, or anything else, i always start from the inside of the mouth and cut just far enough to get the lips and nose cut loose. Then start at the other end and when i did the coyote i skinned its feet clear down to the toenails and used a pair of wirecutters to cut the ligaments to get them loose with the pads and nails intact. After i was all done i realized the whole skin was ruined anyway because the shoulders was rubbed. I still kept it though, it's in the freezer.

Another thing about the eyes and ears: the main thing to be careful about is to bear down deep against the skull when you're skinning the head. You have to realize where the cups of the ears start and as you work down the neck sever the bottom cartrige well below where it connects to the head so you get the whole ear off with the skin. With the eyes, keep a light touch but severing against the skull always and to the point that you cut the eyeball itself because it's the eyelid that you must not cut.

Relatively inexperienced advice, but i seldom get holes. Except in that one skunk tail.

Plinker

Plinker:
We always skinned them from rear end down when hanging.

Then cut the ears, then lips from the inside being real careful. So far haven't ruined any pelts doing it.

I did ruin a nice muley buck cape a couple weeks ago pulling the ear out. Didn't realize the inner fur was staying in place til it was way too late. Then when I put it in the shop a couple days. The damned cat's got thru that drain pipe in the wall and chewed it up enough to ruin it even if I hadn't.

Disgusting! Am gonna get some more cats!!

Thanks, enjoy it, gonna be spring soon enough.

George

If you get a particularly good prime fur you may want to get it professionally dressed (you tan leather, you dress furskins). Try Moyle Tannery in Idaho, they have a website.
Of course its always fun to try and do it yourself, expect to make a few mistakes the first time out.
Now skinning, hanging them up by the hind legs is the way I do it, though I had a partner once that did everything on the ground. he would work on a table and cut the hide free of the leg and tail and then step on the skinned feet and pull the hide up. Too much back aches for me.
Any way hang them up by the rear legs, if you are going to keep the feet on you will have to start on a table and make the slit from each paw to the tail. work your finger around the base of the tail until you free the skin all the way around. Then cut the tailbone through with a pair of wire cutters. Let the tail hang with the bone in it, you remove the bone last.
Now work the skin free around each of the legs, work the skin as close to the paw as you can get, then like you did to the tail, cut through the bone and leg meat and let the paws hang free. You can trim and cut away the extra bone and flesh later.
Pull the hide down to the front legs, kinda like pulling a sock off your feet.
Since the leg above the paw is narrower than the paw you are going to have to make a slit. On the inside of the leg just above the paw (would be the wrist on a human) make a one inch slit parallel with the leg. That would be a one inch slit up the wrist/ This slit will allow the hide to pull freely off the leg so you can cut the front paws free.
Ok, youve made the slit in the front paw wrist area. Now pull the hide down and pull the front legs out of the hide. When you get to the paws, which the slit allows you to do, cut them free.
Work the skin down, pulling and cutting till you get to the ears, Cut straight down to keep the ear holes small, if you cut in line with the skull the ear holes will be bigger. Pull and cut the hide to the eyes, cut free from the eyes carefully. pull the hide down to the nose and cut it off square to the face. Pull the bone out of the tail. With a knife and good wire cutter clean up the four paws.
Your done, board it, flesh it and put it in a stretcher, hang it till its slightly damp to the touch. Turn it furside out and hang it till dry.


Pointers;
Use a sharp knife
Brush the fur clean of burrs and dirt before you skin.
Wear gloves

Thanks everybody!!!!

YES THEY DO STINK and even worse when you shoot them after a hard rain!

Ended up with the DVD "practical fur handling" by T&M outdoors.
They go through everything from muskrats to yotes. Skinning from back legs to nose. They also show how to flesh and dry/stretch.

I gave it a try on a song dog that happen to tip over after the little 40grnr from the Marlin 22WMR poked him. (about a 35lb male) Let's just say I need to drop, unfortunatly , some more to get practice and get better at clean cuts. (this is a good time of year for practice since coats are turning around here)
I will get a few stretchers and fleshing scrapers.

Again thanks to you all!!