fleshing to sell

C

ColoradoHillBilly

New member
I was wondering how good a coyote or bobcat needs fleshed to sell. Do I need to flesh the legs and head and face or is the bulk of the body sufficient? Will the fur slip if the legs and face aren't properly fleshed? Thanks.
 
I personally don't flesh the head. I start about the base of the neck. Front legs are cut off at the elbow. Anything near the base of them gets fleshed. Back and Stomach fleshed well. Usually not much to worry about on the legs. I wash my fur and occasionally have a little slippage in the ears. Does not affect sale.
 
I'm wondering the same. Here's a pic of one I just fleshed and have on the stretcher. I get all the fat and chunks of meat off, but as you can see on this one around the shoulders and briskett area there is a very thin layer of not really meat, but more membrane. How much time does a guy spend on that stuff. I tend to work at it pretty hard, then next thing I know I get through it, but then I'm in the hair or have a hole.

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The buyers who come to our fur sales tend to discount you for any flaws, so I do flesh the head area. I have an old wooden baseball bat that I slip the head area over and then use a really sharp knife to slice off the majority of the meat and fat. I also remove the cartilage from the ears (some prefer it, but in general I think it makes for a better presentation than those with the ears sticking up). I have some taxidermist's ear splitters that make this pretty fast. Can get pictures if needed.
 
I don't have any fresh coyotes to show the techniques, but here's the tools. The baseball bat is just a cheap one that I picked up for a few dollars. I cut the handle end off and rounded it over. I have a couple of pieces of pipe that are welded into a T and the bat slides into the top piece of pipe and is held in place by jamming it tight. I slip the coyote's head over the fat part of the bat and then use the knife shown to slice a thin layer of meat off. Keep the hide tight against the bat with one hand and use the knife with the other. After a little practice, you'll get the knack and it goes pretty fast.

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For the ears, I cut them off at the butts when I'm skinning and then go back with my ear turning tool. You just start separating the leather and cartilage on the back of the ear with a knife (about 1/2" is all I go) and then slide the tips of the tool in between the leather and cartilage. Squeeze the tool gently and work it towards the tips. I also turn it sideways and squeeze it out towards the sides. Once I've made it to the tip, I open the tool all the way and it'll tear through to the outside. Then I can pull the leather down the side with my fingers until I get to the butts where I cut it off. Remove the cartilage and then pin the ears towards the eyes.

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Next time I'm doing a coyote, I'll try to get some pics of the action.
 
I'm in the process of switching over from trapping coyotes to getting ready for cat trapping. I doubt I'll have anymore coyotes this year unless I catch one in a cat set. If I can I'll shoot one and take some pics in the field. We normally are camping and cat trapping for at least a month and sometimes longer so it might be awhile.
 


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