provement. Less disturbance in type and color usually, ensues when an 
outcross is made to a dependable sire of a collateral or slightly related 
branch of the same strain. 
Careful seelction of the stock destined for breeding purposes and a 
resolute refusal to use any individuals as breeders which are not especially 
well-furred, well-colored, and possess the desired utility size and conforma- 
tion of the body best suited to the given purpose, will result in success, 
while thoughtless breeding will result in scrubs. 
Preparing Rabbit Skins for Market 
BY C. E, ANDERSON, MANAGER “RABBIT SKIN HEADQUARTERS” 
; A. B. SHUBERT INC., CHICAGO 
The manner in which skins are prepared is of utmost importance for 
many times breeders will unwittingly sacrifice profits due to their own neg- 
ligence. It takes no longer to stretch and dry pelts properly than to han- 
dle them improperly. A well handled prime and full furred skin will bring 
a premium but the same skin badly mishandled is useless for fur purposes. 
Fur houses cannot and subsequently will not pay fancy prices for inferior 
merchandise. 
When to Pelt 
Ordinarily all rabbits prime at the age of six months and then at reg- 
ular intervals approximately every three months. Breeders who are able 
to determine these periods and can conveniently butcher their animals will 
naturally receive better returns on their pelts. Summer prime skins, does 
not always mean a furskin, for in most cases summer skins are very thinly 
furred. When rabbits are in the moult or shedding stage, it is usually 
visible by a break in the ticking and in many instances by very bad discol- 
oration of the fur. When these conditions are not noticeable, run the hand 
over the fur quickly but gently and should the animal be in moult, loose or 
dead hair will shed. Some people have advised blowing into: the fur, moult 
being detected by dark skin discolorations. 
Skinning. 
Have a plank or board suspended and braced from the ceiling running 
down to about shoulder high from the floor and in such a position as to 
make it possible to pass entirely around it. Drive two heavy nails or spikes 
in the bottom of the suspended board slanting upward filing the heads off 
to a point. After the animal has been killed it should be hung up by the 
tendons of the hind legs upon the two nails or hooks and the head cut 
off. Some breeders would leave the heads on but experienced butchers have 
proved that time required for skinning can be cut in two by first removing 
the head. The front feet are then cut off at the knees. Proceed by cut- 
ting down the inside of one hind leg across the center under the tail and up 
the other leg. The skin so cut can be pulled down over the body, using a 
dull knife to cut the flesh and fat from the pelt. Superfluous fat or fresh 
adhering to the skin should be carefully removed. The skin‘is then ready 
for stretching. Do not salt your pelts. Keep your pelts cased and do not 
cut open. Following these instructions one person should be able to butcher 
thirty animals per hour. 
Stretching and Drying. 
Wire stretchers have been proven the most efficient for the purpose. 
Boards are also used but not to be recommended as considerable difficulty 
15 
