Skinning Beaver With a Leg Bone?

Seems I saw a video somewhere of a person clean skinning a beaver using a leg bone tool. I can't find it anywhere. Anyone have any idea where this might be found? Seems BOCO mentioned this method a while back.

That is it! Thanks!

Was thinking of trying something like this just to see how it works. There was another video that showed someone using what looked like an axe head to basically pound between the hide and the carcass to cleanly remove the hide. Not sure how well something like this will work on the thin southern beaver I deal with.

There are few shortcuts.

There are few shortcuts. Maybe try compressed air. Simply get the psi up around 120, insert the blower attachment into the beaver's anus, and give the nozzle a charge. Just like that, you are back to doing it the "old fashion way".

Yep a beaver can be skinned with a bone.Otter too.The cree did a lot of skinning with bones.Alot of their tanning tools were bones also.The hides are extremely clean and smooth when skinned with a bone.Bear bone or cattle bone I have seen used.I have a bear bone.It works good on small and medium beaver and big beaver on the belly.
You will get into some tough chopping with the bone on a big beaver around the shoulders and cheeks.
One year at the Fur harvesters trappers convention we had 7 trappers doing a demo skinning beaver 7 different ways,one method was with the bone.

I wish that video was longer, it was interesting. I would’ve like to watch until he was finished.

Anthony
I use a bone scraper to skin almost all my animals especially fatty ones. You can use lots of things to make them but leg bones work about the best. Been doing it for 45 years now. When the hide finally come off the animal it never needs any more fleshing. I have hardly ever fleshed an animal hide - maybe a moose hide that gets ripped off the animal fast and that I want to thin and then I use a draw knife. Anyway I figure the extra work of scraping a hide off is made up when I don't have to flesh. Only thing is when it's something like a bear and you are off in the field somewhere it can be hours of work but when it's done it can go directly into the tanning vat. Beavers are especially easy to scrape in some places. I have a 3 inch wide scraper for them and then a narrower one for the harder places. I still use a knife on the really tough places of course but even then it's a scraping motion. To me there is no easier time to get the skin off then when the animal is holding on to the hide for you. Your wrist gets real strong using one after a while. Stan

Sure Glad your on here Stan, and chimed in with your experience. I do follow your project on Facebook. Setting up a beaver colony soon myself. Going to explore this method.

Wish I had a video (and plan on a short one on it) as this comes up a fair amount and many don't know much about it. If done a little different than in the video above the fat/blood is almost completely squeezed/scraped out of the skin. On bears that have the hair roots well into the hide a scraper will work the fat out without damaging the roots like a knife. As to the shape of the scraper here's a regular one and a wide one for soft fat easy places (beavers bellies). The regular one was longer and these things wear down from sharpening often during skinning. Use a file, sandpaper, rock etc. In a pinch I made them out of everything but a piece cut from some hard plastic pipe was similar to bone. The notches on the working edge are to help grab membrane etc. and keep sideways slipping down to a minimum. Edges should not be right angles to keep from cutting hide. Which is a lot of why they are made of bone as if you get it sharp as you can, it's never razor sharp like a metal scraper. Sharp as you can on a bone scraper is just right and you should never cut a hide. Got lots of great knives and this is what I use.

2 bones on the right are skinning bones,one on the left is a scraper for the beam.
The longer one is for skinning cased fur and the shorter one is for skinning beaver.

I've used moose bones for many beaver. Have found that the Alaska beaver (much more subcutaneous fat) are much easier to use a bone than a knife, except around the ears and face, and sometimes on the upper back/neck. These Idaho beaver are considerably thinner animals, and the bone works well on the bellies and about halfway around the animal, then I need to shift over to a knife. My scrapers (from moose or elk longbones), are thus:

look at the film-"Cree Hunters of Mistassini" and scroll to the 36 min mark and you will see a Cree woman using a bone skinner in the proper way.Sitting with the beaver alongside her leg and using the chopping motion with the bone.

Stan - thank you for the great explanation and pictures. I think I will make a couple from some heavy pvc pipe - don't have any elk or moose bones laying around here in ky (probably could come up with some beef or sheep bones, for sure deer). These southern beavers don't have much fat so I may only be able to get them around the belly and part way on the back.

Gulo - that is a beautiful scraper!

Boco - your scrapers give me some good ideas and I will be sure to check out that video.

Thanks again, Anthony

Neat looking tools but It seems that a good knife would do the job a bit better.

Not Better beav,but a bit faster.And not so hard on the arm/wrist.

That makes It better when you have 30 beaver laying on the floor. LOL

Beav,they have their women trained to do the skinning,lol.