Rabbit skin is a valuable raw material for the fur industry! With its help, you can imitate more expensive furs: sable, cat, beaver, chinchilla and so on. However, without special treatment, the material quickly loses its properties and becomes unusable. Therefore, it is so important to know how to make a rabbit skin. This is especially true for beginner rabbit breeders, as this is included in the mandatory breeding program for these animals.
Over time, having gained experience and useful skills, you can provide services on a paid basis to those people who need dressing, but they simply do not want to do it. The skill will also come in handy if you have to deal with more valuable fur in the future. For example, in the case of replenishment of the farm with nutria. Or perhaps a fur-bearing animal will be obtained in the process of hunting.
Basic terms
The technology of working with fur begins withpreparation of materials and tools. You also need to learn all related terminology.
The outer part of the skin with fur is called the front, and the inner part has an unusual name - the mezdra. Bakhtarma is hidden behind this layer.
Under the dressing itself, one should understand nothing more than the transformation of raw materials into a semi-finished product. In this case, the procedure consists of several stages, each of which, in turn, includes a number of important operations:
- Preparation.
- Finishing.
- Finish.
How to make a rabbit skin at home?
The simplest technique is used by northern peoples. To do this, first the skins are dried in a fresh-dry way. Then you should sprinkle them with milk and rub them with your hands, as if to remove dirt from clothes. All films are removed at the same time.
Traditional work is done using basins and containers in which it is convenient to soak raw materials. In addition, you will need other tools:
- chemicals;
- small knife;
- rule in the form of the letter "A";
- sandpaper or special scraper;
- gypsum or chalk powder.
But before we break it all down a bit, it's worth taking a look at the first (preparatory) steps.
How to peel the skin
The dressing procedure itself is not so complicated, but accuracy and precision of actions are required here. Some manipulations are associated with the use of chemistry, others cannot be done without physical effort, albeit small.
A simple recipe for how to make a rabbit skin has already been given above. Just take it off first. To do this, the carcass is hung upside down, and the hind legs are stretched to the sides. They must be firmly fixed, tied to a stick near the metatarsus, between the hock and fingers. After that, around the joint, a very sharp knife should be used to make an incision in the skin on each foot. Next, connect them with another incision running along the inside of the thighs and under the tail. In some cases, the skin is also removed from the tail, but, as a rule, it is simply cut off.
Then, incisions are made in another place - near the genitals, ears, front paws (in the region of the metatarsal joint). Now you can remove the skin starting from the thighs and gradually moving lower. This is where a little effort is required. Sometimes you have to help with a knife to remove the skin from the connective tissue that covers the fatty layer. In such work, it is just necessary to observe increased accuracy, otherwise you can cut through the skin, and the skin will look like a colander.
Approaching the head, the skin is removed from the area of the ears, where cuts were previously made. Now you should cut off the skin around the eyes, nose, mouth, pull it off the tips of the front legs. A fully skinned skin will look like a pipe with jagged edges and fur inside.
Step 1 – preparation
The initial stage of how to dress a rabbit skin at home contains the following operations:
- soaking (soaking);
- mezdrenie;
- degreasing.
The importance of preparation should not be underestimated.
Even before proceeding with the very first operation - soaking, something should be done. Dry skins are not amenable to dressing, and therefore require pre-treatment. It should be understood that it is extremely undesirable to leave the removed skin in a “fresh” state, since it will be unsuitable for further use.
Immediately after removing the skin, straighten it on the rule with the skin up, and the ridge line should be located on the middle border of the wooden board. And so that the skin does not shrink, you can fix the ends with small carnations.
Next, gently scrape off the remaining fat and meat with a knife from the surface of the skin. This also needs to be done immediately, since it will be quite problematic to remove them from a dried skin. Then it should be wiped with a dry cloth and left to dry.
Another important point on how to make a rabbit skin - all the steps will be given below. For conservation, it is better to allocate a separate, dry, ventilated room, where a certain temperature regime must be maintained (at least 25 °).
The skin can be considered ready for further manipulations if, when crushed, it begins to “rustle”. It is important to keep it in the shade and away from heat sources (oven, battery). Otherwise, the skin will become stiff and the hair brittle.
Soaking or soaking
The purpose of this operation is to give the skin of the rabbit a paired state and get rid of soluble proteins and preservatives.substances. For this, a special solution is being prepared, which may include the following components (based on 1 liter of water):
- Regular table s alt (40-50g).
- Any antiseptic - furatsilin, norsulfazol, sulfidine (1-2 tablets), formalin (0.5-1 ml), zinc chloride sodium sulfate (2 g).
- Extracts of plant origin - decoction of leaves of eucalyptus, oak, willow (50 ml, no more).
- Detergent - washing powder in the amount of 1.5 g.
Many novice rabbit breeders are interested in: how to make a rabbit skin at home quickly? It is unlikely that everything can be done in a short time, since this business does not require haste. The soaking procedure alone takes 12 hours, but it can take several days due to the nature of conservation. If it was produced recently, then the skins will soak for a relatively short time. However, if the skin was overdried or poorly cleansed, the procedure will be longer in time.
In this case, it is necessary to adhere to the following ratio: for 3 liters of soaked solution - 1 kg of rabbit skins. They should be loose.
Mezdrenie
After the skins are soaked, they should be thoroughly rinsed and, while they are still wet, stretch on the block with the fur down. The skinning process begins, which involves the removal of the remaining fat and muscle deposits, including the entire covering film - the skin.
There are two ways to make a rabbit skin at home. It can be simplyscrape with a brush or the blunt side of a knife. Or pick up the edges of the film and, with effort and skill, tear it off the dermis with your hands. In this case, the process of skinning itself should be carried out in the direction opposite to the growth of wool. In other words, from the edge of the tail to the head and sides, or from the back to the abdomen.
Degreasing
After the mezdreniya operation, you can start degreasing. To remove the remnants of fat and muscle fibers, you should use soap, washing powder or shampoo. Based on one liter, one of the means is taken:
- soap - 10 g (finely grate or take a dissolved product);
- powder - 3.5g;
- shampoo - 25 g.
After washing the skins, rinse thoroughly under running water, wring out and wipe dry with a cloth. A sponge will do to remove moisture from the fur.
Step 2 – Dressing
Actually, this is already the main scope of work, which includes the following operations:
- picking (fermentation);
- tanning;
- fatting;
- drying.
Carrying out this part of the process, how to make a rabbit skin at home, is difficult and troublesome. It’s not always possible to do everything the first time, but it’s clearly not worth giving up at the first failure! Only in this way experience is gained, and the corresponding skills will come with time.
The following step-by-step procedure will help you understand all the difficulties that await the master in the process of dressing rabbit skins.
Picking
This operation should be considered the main one. It is heldwithout fail for dressing almost any type of furs or fur raw materials. With its help, the skin becomes soft and plastic, in addition, it avoids damage to the fur.
Experienced specialists carry out pickling before this, but beginners should start with pickling because of its simplicity and reliability. At the same time, you can make a rabbit skin with your own hands in one of two ways:
- dipping;
- prayer.
For dipping, a special acidic solution is prepared from s alt (40 g), water (1 liter) and vinegar. The amount of the last ingredient is taken depending on its concentration: at 70% - 42 ml, 12% - 250 ml, 9% - 330 ml. In general, you should adhere to the same ratio of raw materials and liquid as when soaking: 3 liters per 1 kg of skins.
For spreading, the concentrate is cooked twice as strong. The solution is applied with a brush to the mezra, more than once and after a short period of time.
Pre-skins are turned inside out with fur. The procedure itself takes from 5 to 8 hours, but the main thing is not to overdo it. After this time, it is worth performing a simple check, which is carried out only visually:
- The skin is removed from the pickle, a small section of its skin layer is bent anywhere so that the hair is on top, and the skin is inside.
- The place of the fold is strongly compressed by fingers.
- Now the skin can be unwrapped. If a white strip remains where the bend was for 5-7 seconds, then it is ready for further processing.
But the operation, how to dress the skin of a rabbit, does not end there. It is also necessary to neutralize the acid. To do this, the skins should be placed in another solution for 20-30 minutes: 1.5 grams of soda per liter of water. After extraction from the liquid medium, the raw material is squeezed out, turned inside out with fur and placed in a pile under the press (any board with a load). In this position, the skins ripen within 12-24 hours.
Tanning
This procedure will allow the material to consolidate the strength and ability to maintain its physical properties for a long time after the pickling (or fermentation) operation. There are also several types here:
- Tannin - tanning is done using a solution based on the bark and branches of oak, alder or willow (250 g), s alt (50 g). All this is placed in an enameled container and boiled for 30 minutes, after which it cools. Next, skins are placed here for a day.
- Chromic - here the solution is prepared using s alt (50 g) and chromic alum (6-7 g) diluted in 1 liter of water. In it, the skins are tanned for 6 hours, no more.
The exact time of the procedure when answering the question of how to dress a rabbit skin directly depends on the physical parameters of the raw material. The operation lasts until the material is saturated with tannins. To check for readiness, you can carefully cut off a small piece in an inconspicuous part of the skin (in the groin area) - it should be yellowish.
After the tanning procedure, the skins are once again placed under the press for a sore fora day or two.
Fatting
We can say that this is almost the final operation at the stage of dressing rabbit skins. With its help, softness, elasticity and safety of the material are ensured. For this, a special emulsion is prepared, which is rubbed with a brush or driven in using a swab. It may have a different composition:
- Glycerin is mixed with the yolk in an equal ratio (1:1), then everything is whipped until smooth.
- Mixture of fish or animal fat (pork, beef, rabbit) in the amount of 500 grams, laundry soap (200 grams) and ammonia (20 ml).
The description of how to dress the skin of a rabbit suggests that the prepared composition must be carefully applied with a brush to the entire surface of the mezra, making sure not to get on the edges with fur. All this is left for 3-4 hours. Tip: you should first spread the skin on the rule to evenly apply the mixture.
Drying
This is already the final operation of dressing raw materials. Now the skins can be cut in the middle along the line of the abdomen, after which they are dried at room temperature. In this case, it is necessary to constantly expose the fur to physical influence: wrinkle, stretch, etc. If the mezdra remains stiff, it should be further kneaded to a soft elastic state.
Finally, the flesh undergoes the following treatment:
- rubbed with chalk or tooth powder;
- sanded using fine sandpaper;
- excess chalk or powder is slightly knocked out;
- fur combedbrushed.
This part of the process of how to make a rabbit skin at home should not be underestimated. As a result, the mezdra acquires a beautiful white hue and finally gets rid of fat, and the fur becomes softer. After this treatment, the skins can be stored for a very long time. And it is better to use linen or cotton bags instead of plastic bags.
Step 3 – finishing
The final operation of finishing the skins is carried out in the conditions of fur manufacturers. Those who breed rabbits can hand over raw materials after complete drying and stripping.
After dressing, dyeing of the fur is done in rare cases, since the natural fur of rabbits looks much better than after this procedure. The need for a haircut and other types of finishing depends on the further use of the material.
Conclusion
Currently, there are many companies where rabbit skins are made: in St. Petersburg, Moscow, any other city. Therefore, it is worth thinking about rabbit breeding, because the product in such an activity is not only meat. The beauty and color variety of rabbit fur is difficult to compare with the integument of other members of the domestic fauna.
Moreover, fur can be used both in its natural form and in imitation of a beaver, marten, sable and other animals. Skins of lower quality can be used to make velor, felt, and good haberdashery products are obtained from leather. And do not forget that the presentation is fullydepends on the dressing procedure - the more competently it is done, the better the quality of the output.
