I've sold skunk with feet on but only to a private buyer
How do auctions like the front feet? Pointed towards the toes by hanging from the lip (as in photo) or pointed towards the head hanging from tail side as is traditionally done with no feet? Thank you for any responses

I would imagine you're wasting time sending em to FHA with feet on as they'll be bundled with regularly skinned hides.

Local auction with craft buyers, they won't care how you've got em as long S everything dried properly.. I like to do feet on critters the way you have it so it shows how you've done the feet easier.

Thank you Sniper. They will be going to my local auction not FHA

Feet should hang toward the tail so they are less likely to rip when packaged and/or handled. Use a little borax under the front legs or be sure nothing hangs with wet leather touching wet leather while drying. I've seen a lot of red foxes, especially, with bad rips around the front legs when feet are left on due to handling at the auctions or packaging to get them there. No sense in going through all the extra work of skinning the feet out, only to have them seriously damaged before they ever get to the dressers.

I know that Gary (Moscow Hide & Fur) won't buy feet on fur if it is hanging to the tail. He thinks it's too risky that the fur will slip in the armpit area. And Gary does buy a lot of feet on fur.

If your selling to the fur market cut those feet off and just leave about a 1" of leg fur.

I agree with Beav. I wouldn't send anything to FHA with feet on. But I don't think that was the OP's point for the thread.

Thank you guys, for the fur market I cut off the legs ,you can see one in the picture I put up 2 days before this one. The auction I'm sending these to is known for crafters spending good money for feet on. Figured I'd send a few each way and see what they do.

BP, playing the market as you say. Prices are decent for skunks but not spectacular so what the heck...see what happens.

I make sure the armpit is dry. As you can see I have already used borax liberally and will brush off and reapply as necessary

Thank you all for your input

I one time had some otter that I had skinned feet on and in the hanging down position. I boraxed the armpits real well so I was sure they were good. Gary Shroeder (Moscow Hide and Fur), noticed them in a stack as I waited to get my fur turned in at an OTC sale. He was pointing them out to some young trappers about how "not to do it". He was claiming that put up that way where there is no air space for that armpit area to dry at the same speed as the rest of the pelt which opened up the possibility of slippage. So he always steered clear of pelts like that.

Gary has always been one of the biggest "feet-on" buyers at our sales. The lesson to me was: I know it was dried correctly...but does the buyer? Since then I make sure that the buyer can see light between the leg and the main body of the pelt just to prove it's OK.

That's why I do it, I hang the cards so the hide is parallel to the ground so the legs hang straight down and you get air to all sides of the legs.

Yup, me too, except I lean my boards so that they are standing at roughly a 45 degree angle. Legs are kind of pointed down but no skin on skin areas.

I put a thin piece of cardboard between the body and the foot. Keeps it at a 45° angle approx.
Will move cardboard around a little now and then
and borax as usual

Never had a problem with slippage according to my one buyer. Just wanted to give the market the look it wants.

I really appreciate the well thought out responses. Feet on is something I have done with fox, coyote and skunks but selling them to a group of bidders is where I lack experience and of course giving them the look they want is what drives the bids

I love putting up fur, never to old to learn. Sometimes the market changes for what it likes and I like to go with it.

Next year I'm going to put up a few square coon and see if there's any interest at my association sale. Might peak the interest of some of the crafters. Just keeping busy doing what I enjoy. And with the low prices for coon I don't have much to lose, or gain for that fact lol

I like your thinking Turtle

FHA sells a lot of fur to the taxidermists,they are always there looking for wolves bears and wolverine and will bid on complete lynx also.
Not sure about other fur with feet on,I think I seen some badgers there in a bin one time with feet on.
Probably should give them a call if you want fur to be pulled out for the taxis to bid on.

I'm surprised that taxidermists would have a use for feet on pelts unless the faces were skinned and prepped to taxi standards as well.

Small skins dont require any extra work around the head,other than fox or cats which should have the back of the ear separated from the cartilage,even that is not critical if you dont leave a bunch of meat around the earbutt and have good drying conditions, A little salt works well if you are not sure you did a good enough job on the feet or ears.
Lips can be split and ear cartilage can be removed from smaller skins after tanning by the taxidermist.
Just make sure all the parts are there.

I've never tanned a pelt yet. Guess it's a skill I haven't tried. More stuff to buy, space to do it and motivation have gotten in the way.
The private buyer I do have right now prefers to do his own tanning. I sell him my trapper put up furs. He has all the fur he can handle now and figured my next step in learning was knowing how the general market prefer things done.