You may not eat rabbit very often, but you never know when you will have to skin a rabbit yourself. Knowing how to skin a small game is an indispensable skill. Skinning a rabbit is actually quite easy. If you decide to kill an animal, reward it by skinning it and eating it properly, not throwing it in the trash. The following tutorial will teach you how to skin a rabbit with or without a knife.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Skinning a Rabbit Using a Knife
Step 1. Make a circular incision around each rabbit's paw, just above the leg joint
Just cut to the skin. Don't cut too deep into the rabbit's skin, as that's both unnecessary and inefficient.
Step 2. On each leg, make an upward incision from the circumference of the leg to the back of the rabbit
This step makes the rabbit easy to skin.
Step 3. Start pulling on the rabbit's skin, pulling from the circular cut at the paw to the rabbit's back or genitals
The skin will come off relatively easily.
Step 4. Cut through the tailbone, making sure you don't cut or puncture the bladder
The tailbone protrudes, relatively easy to find.
Step 5. With both hands, begin to pull the skin off the body
At this stage, the skin will come off very easily. The steps are similar to peeling a banana.
Step 6. Insert your finger under the skin, where the rabbit's hand is, separating the skin from the rabbit's hand
At first, this may be a bit difficult, so don't be discouraged if you have to scrub hard.
Step 7. Pull the skin down from the upper torso to the head
Pull the skin down to the base of the skull.
Step 8. Cut the head from the spine
That way, the skin is completely removed from the remaining flesh.
Step 9. With your hands, break the joints of the arms and legs
Then, cut the skin from the joint using a knife.
Step 10. Wash and clean the rabbit, saving the skin if needed
Make sure the rabbit is clean before you eat it. If possible, check the rabbit's liver to gauge the safety of the meat. Save the leather for tanning or other use.
Method 2 of 2: Skinning a Rabbit Without Using a Knife
Step 1. Bend the knee joint of the rabbit until the skin separates from the meat
This method requires a little practice. Basically, what you're doing is bending the knee joint in one direction and pulling the skin in the opposite direction. the skin and flesh will separate well.
Step 2. Slide your fingers around the foot, until the skin around the joint separates completely from the surrounding flesh
Step 3. Pull in the knee joint while pulling the skin down, removing some of the skin from one leg
This process is the same as pulling the pants, except the "pants" here are rabbit skin.
Step 4. Repeat this process on the other leg
Step 5. Underneath the genitals, insert your hands under the skin to the stomach
Remove the skin completely from the bottom by pulling it.
Step 6. On the back of the rabbit, just above the tail, slide your hands under the skin up to the back
Pinch the skin and pull it from the back until it is completely free from the tail.
Step 7. Pull the skin down with both hands until it reaches the rabbit's arm
Step 8. Tear off the thin skin between the forearm and head
Do this with your finger. Even though it's leather, you don't have to put in a lot of effort to do this. Once you've done this, pull the skin of your hand up until it's free from the flesh.
Step 9. Break the spine where it meets the head
When you wash and clean a rabbit carcass, you can cut off the head and any remaining skin with a knife incision.
Step 10. Wash and clean the rabbit, saving the skin if needed
Make sure the rabbit is clean before you eat it. If possible, check the rabbit's liver to gauge the safety of the meat. Save the leather for tanning or other use.
Tips
- If you want to keep the leather, you must dry it as soon as it is removed. You must cool and dry it quickly to prevent enzymes from reacting in the dermis, which will attack the hair roots and cause hair loss.
- Try to skin the rabbit as soon as possible after death so that the meat does not spoil.
- When pulling off the leather, pull it like you would take your sock off the top.
Warning
- Rabbits may have rabies, so hunt only in February and March.
- Be careful because the knife used must be sharp.
- Take a hunter safety class before hunting any animal.
