Moved from a place with no otter to one with no limit. NAFA fur handling book talks about singe and boards but nothing about how THEY want them put up. Details like opening cuts, fleshing, put up, and boarding are detailed for coons, mink, etc.
Oh there are nutria here. Do they take them and is it worth it to send them? I have sent land possums from PA.

Otter - fur in, do not pleat the tail,

NAFA does accept nutria. But they might not sell right away. Could sit there for several years. And when they do sell, it isn't for. My ch money. Less than a $3.00 average before commissions and fees. Not sure if there are better options, especially if you have to pay shipping.

phil go to strictly trapping forum page 3 to otter boarding... swampwolf has some good pics there and opening cut is tail side of the vent

Put them up like mink. Actually that's all they are.

Spot on bctomcat.

No way you can put up otter like mink.lots of difference in put up.
Mink-Saddles on,tail and back legs pleated on back,front legs tucked in.
Otter-Saddle removed,Tail and legs pinned natural,front leg holes sewn or pinned closed.
mink

otter


otter


mink

Nice pictures "Boco" but not much difference in mink and otter except size. Legs on the back next to the tail, saddle off only if fat under it and whether front legs are tucked in ,pinned or sewn closed is supurflous

I never seen a saddle left on an otter to dry.If you ask the graders that question I know what their answer will be.
And legs go on the back of a mink but not on otter(no pleating on otter-leads to taint on the thicker skin),Legs on the belly side at the edge where they hang naturally.You cant tuck in the front legs on an otter-they will taint before they dry because of the much thicker skin.
Same as tail-natural shape on otter,never pleated.Pushed short and pleated on mink.
Lots of difference between the two.
Read the Nafa and FHA fur handling manuals.

The only difference between the two IMO is size. Yes I have read both fur handling manuals many times. Maybe you should read them again yourself. The NAFA manual says nothing about where to put the hind legs and the FHA manual says to pin the back legs onto the tail side of the board. And by the way you don't pleat mink tails you just tack them out more or less normal. Again I suggest you update yourself on the manuals recommendations.

Right from the manual-the current one.Mink-Pleat the tail pushing fur up into the inspection window,and tuck in the front legs.

So what, you can do the same slight pleating with otter without overlapping the hide and causing spoilage. Did you note where they said hind legs to the tail side?

In any event I doubt if many of these nit picking details matter much, if any, as long as the pelt is fleshed and dried properly and provided with a decent inspection window.

And according to NAFA It's allowable to remove the saddles on mink.

Why would pleating keep a tail from tainting?

I'm with Bctomcat legs front back what's the difference. In fact It's probably better to have the legs positioned so half are on the front and half on the back.

The grader Is looking for leather defects and fur quality. As long as you leave a window of some kind you should be good to go.

He won't answer this question. I agree with you and Beav, no need to be anal.

I'll answer any questions you turkeys have if they make any sense.Graders all say pin otters as they hang on the board.There are no back legs on an otter if you skin it right.If you want to call the flank "back legs"feel free.

You must have push pin thumb.

I put up 1000s of otter back when I was doing contract work. WE used a long piece of hard ware cloth and used about 6 staples out of the electric stapler.
You can put In 100s of push pins or 10 but It's not going to effect the final grade.

This "turkey" would have trimmed that part of the leg/"flank" off to the board edge pins with the window cut, that you have pinned in this picture as it has no significant value.

Cutting the window too far into the flank on otter is a no-no-re read the fur handling manual.Its a common mistake for amateur fur handlers.
They think they are getting a better window when in fact they are damaging the pelt by making proper blocking after tanning impossible.

Beav,save yourself an extra minute or two and just cut the tail right off.Its not your pelt anyway and the owner wont know why he got a crappy price,and you get paid the same,lol.

You must be referencing to some old manuals. I suggest you get some new ones in order to explain to others how to do things. The current manuals from the auction houses state the following re handling the back legs on otter:

From NAFA Manual page 33: “Tack the back legs onto the back side of the board next to the tail. This will help to make a nice inspection area that needs little trimming of the belly.

From FHA Manual page 16: “Begin pinning the tail onto board. Push as much fur into the inspection area as possible. Now pin the back legs onto the tail side of the board. The next step is to trim the belly area with your skinning knife. By pinning your otter in this method, the inspection area will already be formed and by trimming the belly area you will have a perfect window.”

Just a suggestion from an "amateur turkey".

Page 35 of the NAFA manual-tips from graders.Never take fur from the flank when trimming the inspection window.
Looks like you didn't read far enough,lol.

That part you have pinned on the belly side of the board is not flank, its the worthless lower portion of the leg on the belly side. Also look at the picture the manual shows, no leg on the belly side!

On mine it is the flank I take the excess leg skin off when I skin.
When I did competition skinning I always beat out the guys that did them your way.

This explains a lot. I think the OP is not going to submit his fur in a skinning competition; but maybe he is. Graders at the auctions are not grading the put-up, they are grading the fur and leather quality. The extra pretty ones may be put in the samples, but the less pretty ones in the bale will sell for the same price. IMO

FYI for the OP: the latest Fur Handling manual is on the NAFA website under "Auction"....... Selling with NAFA"......Wild Fur " Learn More"......Resources

For anyone interested here's the direct links to the NAFA and FHA Pelt Handling Manuals:

http://www.nafa.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/NAFA_PeltHandlingManual-E-web1.pdf

http://www.furharvesters.com/pdf/pelthandling.pdf

Ok ok for a Guy like me that has never caught an otter ( but might ) , can you put them on a fox board? Or do they have a specific board that they go on ?

Otter have a specific board for small, medium and large specimens. See page 34 of the NAFA manual. If absolutely necessary you could use a split coyote or cat board so that you can get the butt widths correct and maintain pelt length.

Well thanks for all the replies. Since the first post, my sets for otter are froze. Here we can set anywhere in the tidewater without permission. After reading all this I have decided that if I catch an otter I will give the hide to my dog and put the meat in the smoker.

Otter are my favourite animal to board (guess I like punishment). The 2 old guys are having a p I ssing match. I agree with them both partially, but I put up exactly like BOCO, a few less pins:) If I remember correct BC Tom used to grade Otter back in the day for NAFA???






Pretty sure I got a slip for the mink.

Spruce

Just to keep the record correct I have never graded fur for any auction house. I am just an old retired trapper.

Cool, mixing you up with a different "old retired" trapper from BC! Post away, you are helpful to many on hear, myself included.

Spruce

Trapper Ron is the guy you mean Spruce.

Boco, Your fur in the pictures looks awesome to me... nice job!


Looks I got off easy the last time...