20 
THE CARE OF SHEEP SKINS 
Sheep skins represent no small item in Station or 
Farm management, and are worth careful treatment. 
It will be found quicker and easier work to skin the 
sheep immediately it is dead, as at that period the 
skin comes off very much better, and is more easily 
kept clean. The closed fist is used to punch the skin 
off, this method being quicker and better than using 
the knife. Trim off the trotters, tail and neck pieces, 
and dry and sell them separately. 
The next step is to dry the skins off. They 
should be hung up as soon after removal from the 
sheep as possible, and not thrown in a heap where 
they may sweat or stain. Wash the pelt with warm 
water, especially round the neck and hind parts, thus 
keeping them free from blood. i 
Dry the skin by hanging lengthwise (not side- 
ways) with the flesh side up, over a3in. x 2in. batten, 
wire, or other support, in the shade where there is 
a good current of air. Preserve a neat, even shape 
by spreading out the neck and seeing that the points 
do not curl up and remain green after the rest of the 
skinis dry. Pieces of stick should be used to keep the 
points open, and if the wool is atall damp, the skin 
must be hung with the wool-side up for a day or two. 
Before packing for sale, make quite sure that the 
skins are dry and not likely to go mouldy or rotten. 
Tie them in bundles with rope not with wire, for it 
rusts and stains the wool). 
If the skinsare to be stored for some time, especi- 
ally in the summer, itis advisable to paint the pelts, 
as soon after skinning as possible, with an arsenical 
solution that will keep away weevils and the like. A 
suitable preparation for this purpose is Cooper's 
* Weedicide,” used at a dilution of т to 150 of water. 
