PREPARING SKINS 



13 



3. Skinning breast and belly. Ease away skin equally on each side of 

 incision, working back towards tail until concealed knees appear, close to 

 body. 



4. Detaching legs. Take hold of leg outside and push firmly inwards to 

 body and upwards until accessible from inside skin. When knee is clear of 

 skin cut right through at joint with stout scissors (or pliers for large birds), 

 (fig. 2) severing leg from body. Repeat for other leg. 



Fig. 2. 



5. Detaching the tail. Continue skinning down and around pelvis until 

 the base of the tail is reached. Lay bird on back with tail towards you (fig. 

 3), supporting body by forefinger of free hand pressing up under rump, and 



Fig. 3. 



thumb pressing down and back on tail to stretch abdomen and make tail- 

 stump visible. With scissors cut carefully through body and vertebrae just 

 above base of tail to free it from body, sliding lower blade between body and 

 skin of rump. Finger under rump should feel if skin is penetrated. Cutting 

 too near tail will cut the base of tail quills causing feathers to fall out, cutting 

 too far from tail will open body cavity. 



