Skinning

The skin may also be used as a trophy or taxidermy, sold on the fur market, or, in the case of a declared pest, used as proof of kill to obtain a bounty from a government health, agricultural, or game agency.

[2] Skinning, when it is performed on live humans as a form of torture, murder or capital punishment, is referred to as flaying.

[8] The final step is to scrape the excess fat and flesh from the inside of the skin with a blunt stone or bone tool.

This method of skinning is very popular among taxidermists, as the backbone is easier to access and cleaner than the stomach and between the legs.

[10] A dorsal incision is made by laying the animal on its abdomen and making a single cut from the base of the tail to the shoulder region.

[13] Since Native Americans were practiced in the means of acquiring and manipulating animal skin, fur trading developed from contact between them and Europeans in the 16th century.

Animal skin was a valuable currency which the Native Americans had in excess and would trade for things such as iron-based tools and tobacco which were common in the more developed European areas.