Thank you all for being interested enough to read my second blog post. I will get right back to where I was at.
The raccoons were first brushed, in order to remove any burrs or tangles that they might’ve had, their fur was just absolutely beautiful! Once that was done then the skinning began. The first cuts that I make are around the ankles, which gives me access to the joints by which I hang them up. A cut is then made from one ankle to the other, and then from the base of the tail around the vent and to the original cut. The sin around the tail and the legs can then begin to be pulled off, and you are then just about halfway done with skinning it! The skin can continue to be pulled down until you reach the front legs, at which point the skin must be pulled off from around the legs, and then cut just before the paws. The skin can then continue to be pulled down from the neck, but you must begin to use your knife to cut the thin membrane in-between the skin and the body of the raccoon. The cartilage that connects the ears to the skull must then be cut as well, the eye holes cut and the lower lip cut off.
The moment when the skin comes free from the raccoon, is a moment that is like very few others. You feel like you have accomplished something, that thing might not have been very big, but regardless you still did something. You took a living breathing animal and you took it one step closer to being used for something completely different than its original state. Anyone can feel these feelings, in any situation. I would encourage all of you to go out and accomplish something, I guarantee that these feelings will help you as a person, and help the world because there is now a better person in it.
outdorrsguy 