How do I skin a squirrells foot to the toes. It seems very difficult. Thanks for the help it is greatly appreciated.
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I hang them up to skin them and I gently pull the hide down to the 'heel' of the foot. Carefully find and cut the "thumb" off or your hide WILL tear. Once you remove that, carefully peel each toe down to the last joint which contains the nail or claw.
I skin the squirrel down to just past the heel of the foot. I then take some wire side cutters and cut the foot off at the leg bone. I then put the "heel" bone of the squirrel in a small vise and gently pull using a small scalpel blade go around the foot. Like George says. find the thumb an cut it off first. Once the foot is skinned down to where the toes start, I take the wire cutters and cut across the foot freeing all of the toe bones. Do this at the top of the foot where the metacarpals and metatarsals start, that way you will leave a lot of toe bone to grab on to. Now I take each toe bone and put it in a vise and gently pull while just touching around it with the scalpel. It will pull right to the nail bone. Take the cutters and cut it of at the nail. Repeat for the remaining toes. I know this sounds like it is complicated and takes a long time but (for me anyway) it does not take long at all and it is very effective. I do all mammals like this coons, skunks, squirrels, etc.
Hope this will help, Mark