Hunting Washington Forum
Other Activities => Trapping => Topic started by: Sheep_lady on October 24, 2018, 11:34:30 AM
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I learned to trap from my grandfather, who did it during the Depression (Also raise and butcher sheep, which is where this question comes from). My hide prep is giving me issues in the PNW. Worked ok in the midwest and great when I trapped in Cali, but not so well here. How do you dry hides in this damp????
I normally skin, stretch and salt the hide. After 3-5 days knock the salt off, scrap the icky bits off and dry the hide. I just lost a sheep hide because the darn thing wouldn't dry. How do you deal with the humidity here?
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I'm guessing you are on the wet side of the state. :) I've never had that problem when I lived in Eastern WA, but did have problems in the HIGH humidity of Virginia. The way I combated it was to run an ocillating fan non-stop and constantly wiping they hides down with a cloth to keep the oils and grease off of the hide side while they dried. Some guys there also stoked up their wood burning stoves, they kept the furs well away, and they also ran a fan. It helped a lot.
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Never had an issue with fur bearers but they aren’t sheep. I bet wet wool could be a problem. Fan and heat sounds like a solution. Never used salt tho.
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Never a problem with a fan on the wetside
