Tips on How to Skin a Beaver with Ease at Home

You just had a great hunting session, and you got yourself a beaver. What follows next is that you get to skin it. For most people, this might be the scary part. But you do not have to worry, as the process is simple. With the right tools and a great guide, you should be done in no time.

We get to look at how to skin a beaver with ease in this guide. Make sure to go through each step so that you get to do it right always.

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What you’ll need

Step by step:

​1. Brush to remove the dirt

The first step to skinning a beaver starts with brushing the fur as a way of removing dirt. Use a soft bristle brush to remove of the dirt around the whole body so that skinning is easier and does not leave dirt on the skinned beaver. Most of the time, you will make the cut around the belly section straight up to the mouth. After brushing, you will now have a clear line of sight to make the cut.

2. Making cuts around the legs​

As much as most of the skin will be removed after the cut around the belly, you can start by cutting the skin around the pad and legs. With the skin removed, you can proceed to cut off the legs are as shown in the image below. You might need to have the right butcher knife if you are going to make the whole skinning process easier for you. Once you have removed the front paw, proceed to remove the other.

A top tip for removing the rear feet is by slicing in the leg at the heel just close to the joint. You will then need less effort to get the leg free. By twisting just a little bit, you should get to go through the tendon and get off the feet.

3. Remove the tail​

After you have removed the feet, it is time for the tail now. It is easier to cut off the tail by bending it towards the belly first. Make the first cut and then lay it flat again to make the second cut. Make sure to slice the tail around the hide for easy remove. You are supposed to be careful not to go so deep when making the cut. You are just to remove the tail and not the hide.

4. Making a clean straight cut from top to bottom​

To make the cut, start by cutting through the lower lip and going down the belly. When making the cut, just be careful not go too deep past the fat layer especially around the stomach. Keep the line straight until you get to the end where the tail is located. Since the tail had already been separated from the hide, then you should have an easy time making the cut. Below is a picture of how the beaver should now be looking.

Source: http://www.buildanark.net/

5. Start skinning the beaver​

When it comes to skinning, you might want to start around the head. You need to separate the carcass and pelt by using the skinning knife. If your knife is not sharp, make sure to sharpen it before you can start skinning. To skin the beaver, place the blade in a flat position against the beaver carcass.

Proceed to skin the other places of the beaver carcass in a gentle manner. You still have to be extra gentle around the legs as the pelt is often thinner around these sections.

One quick tip is that you always keep the pelt under some tension when skinning. This should help with easy removal of the skin from the beaver without any problem.

The beaver would have a small black spot that should be easily noticeable when skinning it. Cut it out when skinning so that it remains on the pelt. The black spot is just an oil gland, so it would have no use when left on the carcass.

Keep going on with the skinning and in no time you should be done with one side. Now that you have completed one side, it should not be so hard to complete the other side.

6. Skin the other side​

You simply have to turn the beaver on its side and start working on the other side. Take the same amount of care as you did for the done side to ensure you easily get to remove enough skin correctly.

7. Skinning the back​

Source: http://www.buildanark.net/

Once you are done with the other flank, lay the beaver on its belly to skin the back now. This should be the only remaining part that is yet to be skinned. To skin the back, start at the tail and skin all the way up to the head. Make sure to keep the knife steady and flat on the beaver carcass.

Whenever you are skinning the back, you might need a different type of knife technique. It is recommended that you give the pelt more tension with one hand and skin with the free hand. When you apply more tension to the pelt, it will create a clear white area, this is what you follow when skinning the back.

Proceed to skin the back until you get to the ear. Skin around the ear so that it is fully exposed. When you can put a thumb through the carcass and pelt it then means that the ear is exposed. You can now cut at that point to remove the ear from the hide and head. Make sure to cut on both sides to remove the ears and get the hide from the head. With the pelt removed from the head, you should be done with the process of skinning a beaver.

Conclusion​