# Anyone know how to skin a raccoon?



## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

Mashin home about 30 minutes ago, a damn raccoon darted out in front of my truck. Flipped a dick went back to put it out of it's misery. It was dead on contact I guess, clean kill. So I was like shit, I don't wanna leave this poor creature here for the vultures and rats. Gloved up, threw him in the truck bed. I'd like to give it's death a purpose, show it some respect. Figured maybe I'd make a hat, mittens shit I don't know. Anyway, I know fuck all about processing a raccoon. Anyone got any tips? How to process? Supplies I'll need? Ideas as far as creative ways I can put as much of it to use as possible?


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## Tony Pro (Feb 5, 2020)

All you need is a short, sharp knife, a 5-gallon bucket, a wooden pallet and a bottle of tanning solution (available at your local taxidermist, or from Uncle Bezos) and a strong stomach. Use rubber gloves and good hygiene; you don’t know what the little dude’s got.

If you’ve never skinned anything before you’ll likely make a mess of it. Watch YouTube vids and practice on squirrels. You might try freezing it (spread-eagle) and letting it thaw skin-deep; it peels somewhat easier that way. Once the pelt is off and it’s time for scraping, stretch it over a wooden pallet with nails.

I don’t have any tips for what to make with the pelt; god knows I have enough coonskins piled in my closet awaiting that moment of inspiration.

Be sure to save the baculum for spells.

RIP Bandit. Respect to you for respecting his remains.


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## TheUndeadPhoenix (Feb 5, 2020)

Huge respect for not leaving him to rot. Make sure you don't hit the scent glands around it's anus while you're skinning him.

If you plan on using the meat, check the liver for spots, I don't remember what it is but it's bad, discard the meat in that case. There's a chance he had rabies, you'll need to fully cook the meat to well done, something like a stew would be the perfect application.

I'll grab a couple pictures from some survival books I have and post them, they mostly pertain to deer but the same thing will work for any other mammal.

Edit: Here they are
Edit 2: Images were removed, changing it to a PDF and I'm going to chop it down so it's not shitty images
Edit 3 now in PDF format for ease of access

Wanted to be thorough so I posted everything related to the skinning and tanning part of the chapter


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

Thanks, both of ya. I've watched a couple videos, it doesn't look too complicated. It'd be nice to have some of the specialty tools for spreading the legs and hanging while skinning but I'll improvise with strong wire from opposing trees or something. I don't think I'll be using the meat. I wish I had it in me but it just seems too risky and I guess vultures gotta eat too. I'll take the fur, claws, skull, maybe some bones if I like em, and I'll huck the remaining carcass out on my property far enough that my dog won't come across it and hope some nasty animal makes it a meal. This sucker is huge, it's gotta weigh 40+ lbs. Not a single blemish on it's fur, I can't even figure out exactly where it was struck. It's just got blood coming out the mouth. No tire marks, nothing seems smashed or broken I think it took a head shot from the tire but didn't actually go under the tire? Just a violent concussive blow I guess.


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## TheUndeadPhoenix (Feb 5, 2020)

Without seeing it myself, it sounds like it probably hit the bumper. It probably took the impact straight along its whole body, maybe the chest. Sounds like the lungs ruptured cuz of the blood. You'll know for sure when you start cutting passed the broken bones.


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

Truck is lifted, it couldn't have been the bumper unless it jumped up to it.


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## TheUndeadPhoenix (Feb 5, 2020)

That's weird as hell

This is from the SAS Survival Handbook, make something like this to skin him. Make sure you put a drip pan below to collect the blood to avoid attracting animals to the area. If you want me to post the full page, lemme know


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## Deleted member 27969 (Feb 5, 2020)

Do not eat the meat, is best advice. Even if it had been fully dressed after a brain pan kill, don't eat racoon. They, despite their predilection for licking everything before eating it, are filthy. I've seen people have to get warts burned off from handling them and nicking a glove.

Even on a large racoon there is surprisingly little usable real estate for making something. If you wear men's medium or larger gloves, you probably need 4 of them to create a pair of gloves, and then unless you have access to an upholstery (sewing) machine, forget getting the leather seams done to the point you seal access. Also even with the tanned leather, be out in the rain or snow and then have them start to dry off- you'll cut gloves off by the time you feel them getting tighter.

Lifted truck, little vermin still ran out- can't quite articulate its thought process but given they are a primary vector for rabies and disease and his guts will attract coyotes and coydogs that are the same carriers and vectors, uh... take him off get bonfire going of wood and send him out via funeral pyre ?

One asshole's thoughts and experiences, this asshole will leave you to your roadkill.


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## croc (Feb 5, 2020)

Okay, hot take tho..
Other animals eating a dead animal is the opposite of it going to waste. Buzzards n shit gotta eat too and that's how they stay fed. 
@shred till yer dead knows about skinnin and cookin coons too tho. Has a sick hat to prove it.


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

@TheUndeadPhoenix 
I believe Kaya solved the mystery. As crazy as it sounds, I believe it ran head first into my rear rim and got it's bell rung.


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## Jerrell (Feb 5, 2020)

Random knowledge I recall from a field trip in junior high. The natives used the penis bone for a toothpick.


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

I'll save it for ya, brother.


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## MetalBryan (Feb 5, 2020)

RIP trash king


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## iamwhatiam (Feb 5, 2020)

All I know is that every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide.....if you wanted to try and go the brain tanning route


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## Deleted member 27969 (Feb 5, 2020)

Jerrell said:


> Random knowledge I recall from a field trip in junior high. The natives used the penis bone for a toothpick.



Holy smokes. I got the quote to work.

They used them for fletchette's too. Same for possums.

When I went to Australia and went to the NT, I learned that the indigenous people would keep that bone, and small ones to use in blow guns. Went to NZ and asked a maori fella who was putting me edit: forgot word "up" if the Maori did that ? "No, we just beat the white man to death traditionally."


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## Deleted member 27969 (Feb 5, 2020)

I call 2nds on the bacculuum. Nobody expects to die by dick bone.


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Feb 5, 2020)

So I kinda got a lot going on right now and felt pressured to do something quick with this guy. Ended up making contact with @Caveman118 & brought it to him. Awesome guy, he offered to skin it and teach me how or talk me through it if I wanted to do it myself. 

Animal furs kinda seem more his thing than mine so I was like you can just have this if you feel up to skinning it. All I cared about was that it became something for someone. I know I'm being shamed(jokingly I realize) for depriving vultures of their meals but they'll find something else. 

I just felt like it's death was at my hands in a sense. The universe put that raccoon in my life, I couldn't just leave it. Plus where I live there's so much roadkill, those buzzards ain't missing any meals. Anyway, it's skinned now. Thanks for all the tips y'all. It's been a learning experience.


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## Deleted member 27969 (Feb 6, 2020)

Damn decent to do. In far east TN there is limited access to vets and many people allow pets to run free. Raccoons just get trapped, killed here, and discarded.

No frothy blood I'm sure you know means it did not suffer or likely even survive a few seconds.


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## Doobie_D (Feb 6, 2020)

Damn.. Wish Ida known about the possible dangers of consuming raccoon meat... 

A few years ago a raccoon was messing around in my baby food forest and my puppers took it down with the quickness but didn't put it all the way out. I finished the deed with a 1800's Era, double headed axe that murt (@wokofshame ) had sent me...later made some of the best racoon tacos ever. After much work to separate the meat from sinew and bone I marinated in achiote oil, cumin, garlic, onion, malt vinegar, and Cuban oregano for about a day.. Then pan fried . Shit was bomb.. But now...I'll be wary about the possibility of not so delicious outcomes.


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## Deleted member 27969 (Feb 6, 2020)

Doobie_D said:


> After much work to separate the meat from sinew and bone I marinated in achiote oil, cumin, garlic, onion, malt vinegar, and Cuban oregano for about a day.. Then pan fried . Shit was bomb.. But now...I'll be wary about the possibility of not so delicious outcomes.



Dude, man's fucked up the planet so much that nothing is entirely safe. In the early 90's I remember seeing "edgy" rednecks with the bumpersticker "I can remember when sex was safe and racing was dangerous". 

In AL and East TN, whitetail deer have lesions and growths(think like a furry skin tag that can get as big as your fist, avg size your big toe). The state dept of fish and game both put out releases saying "It's safe to eat." It's not something I'd eat.

I don't hunt and don't have any opinions on hunting but I think unless mankind changes its ways in regards to how it interfaces with Nature/Earth, then man is, to be crude- fucked. And deservedly so in my asshole opinion.


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## Deleted member 13433 (Feb 8, 2020)

I'm late to the party, but against my better judgement I'm going to come out with this and state that I've been a licensed trapper, but not for reasons which you might think... I did it to get more involved with conservation efforts with the state wildlife biologists, along with my dream of re-locating wildlife from highly toxic and polluted areas to areas better suited for their survival.

I also believe that mankind has a moral obligation to help mother nature keep our wildlife populations in proper balance, but that is a whole 'nother topic for another day.......

In CT, raccoons are considered rabies vectored species, which means you got to be ultra careful with handling them.

I read this thread faster than I should have, only because I got to get moving with my chores, get the animals fed etc.... but never feel bad about leaving a road killl as road kill.

Yes, move it out of the road if possible, but everything lives and dies for a purpose.

That raccoons death would have helped others survive and even the fur would have not gone to waste as small rodents would have used it for bedding material.

But it sounds like a good ending all the way around.

Here, the Wildlife Rehabilitators who work on raptors will actually take carcasses from skinned fur bearing animals - because they will use the carcasses for food for the raptors being rehabbed.

Eng JR Lupo RV323, you are a good human being.

Most would have kept on going without even giving it another thought, but you showed compassion, and felt that something needed to be done so as I believe you stated this raccoon did not die for nothing.....

LonesomeDove: You are right on the money.

My own volunteer work involved with river clean up, wildlife rescue, and now wildlife monitoring also indicates how mankind is destroying life for all.

A few years back, I came across 4 dead Canadian Geese in a body of water known as the Ferry Blvd Creek, which is super toxic.

I wanted to fully fund cause and manner of death, but NOBODY wanted to take this on.

Why ??

Because it would show that this body of water is still super hazardous, and the supposed former brownfield site which is now home for - surprise - big box stores, including Walmart... - is still probably - definately leaching out very bad things......


Appologies for going off topic, I just wanted LD to know that I am noticing such things too out here in CT.

Respect,

Big George+ Loki the dog...............


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## White Hawk (Feb 16, 2020)

split it from it's ass to just below the jaw. Only cut the fat.


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## Kikin (Nov 10, 2020)

Eng JR Lupo RV323 said:


> Mashin home about 30 minutes ago, a damn raccoon darted out in front of my truck. Flipped a dick went back to put it out of it's misery. It was dead on contact I guess, clean kill. So I was like shit, I don't wanna leave this poor creature here for the vultures and rats. Gloved up, threw him in the truck bed. I'd like to give it's death a purpose, show it some respect. Figured maybe I'd make a hat, mittens shit I don't know. Anyway, I know fuck all about processing a raccoon. Anyone got any tips? How to process? Supplies I'll need? Ideas as far as creative ways I can put as much of it to use as possible?
> View attachment 54371
> View attachment 54372


I Know how to skin an opossum


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Nov 10, 2020)

I'd be scared to skin an opossum, like maybe they're not even really dead. I think that would really bum an opossum out.


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## Kikin (Nov 10, 2020)

Eng JR Lupo RV323 said:


> I'd be scared to skin an opossum, like maybe they're not even really dead. I think that would really bum an opossum out.


Same situation as yours it was roadkill wanted to make a hat but didn’t have the time to dry it out or the tools to take of the membrane from the skin
It’s easy at the base of the tail cut a triangle around the anal hole and go down to one of the arms and from there depending on the size of the animal you can just pull the skin off without ruptureing the scent glands ( same for raccoons, skunks, and possums)


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## Eng JR Lupo RV323 (Nov 10, 2020)

Yep, I took it to @Caveman118 and watched him do it in @Heaven's back yard. It didn't look too complicated as far as the cutting work but I could tell his hands were sore and tired after a while from having to grip and pull so hard/so much. @croc skinned the face/head portion. I believe the head is somewhere in Florida and the main body skinned section traveled down to Slab City and was given to someone. I like to think that raccoon has done more traveling than most raccoons have. It's remains were tossed in the woods up in NorCal so the vultures/flies/maggots still all got their share.


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