Hey y’all.
So, something sad happened.
One of my rabbits died.
She had burrowed into her hay and suffocated.
I didn’t know how to deal with it at first… the plan was for me to kill the rabbits myself and be able to use the parts fresh. By the time I found this rabbit, she had gone rigid. I had checked on them just a few hours before, but it had been long enough that I didn’t want to use the meat.
I decided that I may as well take the skin off and practice my butchering. It was a lot longer process than need be, so it’s good that I practiced some, but I eventually did get the skin off the rabbit, and I dug a hole and dropped the body inside. It looked like it would have been fine if I had found it earlier. There were no weird spots or discoloration from disease or worms, but by finding her late in the heat, the meat was beginning to turn already by the time I finished the skinning.
For now, the hide is in the freezer. It was too late in the day and I was too tired to finish it. I don’t know how tanning the hide will turn out, but I did successfully get the skin. I also kept the head so that I can use the brain to preserve it. I don’t know how that’s turn out having been frozen… but whatever. My plan is to traditionally brain-tan the skin, so we’ll see how that goes.
If anyone has any advice, please feel free to comment.
Frugal Treehugger 