How to Skin a Bear

By eHow Sports & Fitness Editor

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

3 to 5 inch skinning knife
6 to 8 inch hunting knife
Salt

Step 1:
Start the incision just below the anus cutting towards the head. Staying centered, continue this cut up through the chest to the neck stopping at the corners of the mouth. Do not remove the bears genitals (penile sheath or vaginal opening) just keep them to one side of the incision.
Step 2:
Decide how to handle the paws. For rugs, the paws can be taken off, but life size mounts require the pads be left on. If you are keeping the pads start at the hairline and cut around the pads, leaving one side attached to the skin also leaving the claws attached if your state requires. Slide under the pad and cut the skin from bone. If you are not keeping the pads, continue your cut around the entire pad.
Step 3:
Cut the legs. Start at the bear's front paws and cut down to the elbow then across to the chest incision. Make sure each cut meets at the same place at the main incision. For the hind legs, start at the heel and cut down the center of the leg to about 2 inches above the anus.
Step 4:
Starting with the rear paws, begin to remove the skin off the body. At each paw, skin down to the last digit then separate the toe bone leaving the claw with the skin.
Step 5:
Skin the bear to the back of the head, then begin turning and cutting the ear muscle from the hide. You must turn the ear inside out being very careful not to cut the ear off the hide. Keep the cartilage on the hide as you cut it away from the skull.
Step 6:
Keep skinning until you reach the eyes. Poke your finger into the eye and carefully cut away the membrane around the eye keeping as close to bone as you can. Slice and pull the hide down from the cheek until the teeth are exposed. Cut the lips from the gums close to the jaws, leaving as much lip on the hide as possible.
Step 7:
Skin the bear down the nose until you reach the snout. Cut down through the bear snout right through the middle of the septum so the nose is laid open inside out on the completely separated hide.

Tips & Warnings

Remove as much flesh as possible from the hide, then rub salt in thoroughly.
Salt the hide using about 20 lb. of salt for a black bear, 40 for a grizzly and 80 for a brown bear.
Never wrap the hide in plastic. Wrap in a burlap or a hunting bag
Dry the hide in the shade, not the sun

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