The big tom i got in the coni-box set had a green belly spot. you cat guys tell me how bad it's gonna be ruint please. crapola...


is there anything i can do save it? i fleshed it right away and then rubbed borax into it to try and stop the bacteria. any other tricks? (aside from skinning them sooner, smart alecks! )

You might want to try Stop Rot. That is a very good product used by taxidermist and can be ordered from some taxidermy suppliers. ,,,, Rickey

Rub a little 20 mule team powdered borax on it and it will be fine. I've had lots of those with snares and never had one slip any hair. Cats are tough Coyotes would bloat and slip hair under the same conditions.

Get you a spray bottle and put a half a cup of bleach in it fill it up with water and shake a bit, then give the bellie a fine mist spray.

Works much quicker than the borax and is much more thurough!

I've actually seen the bacteria turn white when spraying and the bellie go lighter, it kills the bacteria right now.

You can use this on all greenies, and even worse than yours there!

thanks a bunch. i'll try the bleach thing. i've already rubbed 20-mule borax into it twice.

you have all ready done what you needed to do. borax will take care of it no big deal

While green belly isn't good, while running a pelting service for 70+ trappers I've seen it in all shades, sometimes even black belley - as long as the hair isn't actively slipping you should be all right. By actively slipping I mean many hairs or clumps pulling out. A very few hairs in spots usually means the start but if skinned and dried quickly it can be stopped.

As the gents above said, borax or bleach/water. Actually I give all long haired pelts (fox/cat/yote/fisher) a dusting with borax whether displaying gb or not; particularily the ears, arm pits and head. Borax is especially good for pelts with water heads.

ok, thanks guys.

TexA, the mods haven't said anything about it. and it isn't inflammatory. so it stays.

Rp your pushing your luck with your interpitation of your signature!! It is political no doubt about it!!


NS Trapper have you ever seen the fur you send in that way come back from a tannery?? I doubt it!! Once the leather drys and sets that fur in you can't tell if it's going to slip or not, however I'll garauntee you that a black or dark green belly will be bald at the end of the tanning process.

Borax is a better moisture gatherer than it is a bacteria killer. Thats why you see the pelts dry up around heavy meat and wet areas, especially around the ear pockets that most never even worry about.

I am with grit, get some bleach on that thing NOW. It will kill the bacteria instantly and stop the rot.

I usually wash any green bellied pelt in bleach water but it dosn't much matter how you get the bleach on it.

Gritguy, your right; I haven't seen fur come back from the tannery. I skin, flesh, make any necessary repairs to, dry and ship to NAFA for roughly 70 trappers. I should say that the only pelts I have seen "black belly" on is coyotes; particularily snared ones that were caught in warm weather. All long haired furs I do get borax around the ears, armpits and heads as well as a dusting on the belly if green. Pelts showing green belly get the bleach/water treatment as well.

Before skinning the critter, I give the pull test on the belly area. If only 2,3 or so hairs come out the critter gets processed. If I have hair coming out in steady patches and clumps then the critter goes on the carcass pile. While I don't buy fur, like fur buyers I have seen it all - roadkill, deer rifle shot coyotes, etc. When stuff comes in frozen I have no idea how long it hung around before it was frozen. You never know what you will be skinning. I have seen coyotes and cats with bellys the colour of a green pepper with no slip or smell at all; and have skinned others (mostly yotes) that looked fine yet smelled like they sat around for a week in 90 degree heat.

What I have seen however are the grade sheets for my customers, and other than the odd pelt that was beyond repair or natural damage such as bites in rats or old scars etc on beaver (these will show up as "VSL" on your sheet); the fur grades just as well as the other fur.

NS I'm not doubting your ability to put fur up!!
It's the use of borax for a bacteria killer I have questions with, you can use whatever method you desire to get people their bottom dollar, I'm just not happy trying to work with fur that falls apart cause some one is capable of covering over slipping fur.

A grading sheet only tells you the fur at the time it's graded not what it's looking like when it comes back from the tannery.

Those grading sheets would be a different story if they were used to grade the same pelt after it was tanned.

All they show is that you are able to slide poor quality fur past people who don't/won't/or are not interested in pelts that are worth nothing after being tanned.

My quest here in fur prep threads is to instill some sort of respect for a persons quality of work and fur prep prior to the final product and not be worrying so much about just getting a dollar for thier work.

If more would do this thier dollars would move up accordingly on all fur.

Believe me I've seen as much poor work on fur as you have put to the auctions, and thats a sad commentary on fur harvesters.