Thawing

[SmokinJoe]

Anyone have a better method of thawing coyotes? I have chains hanging in the shack with a giant wood stove close by, I can't thaw these things fast enough, I need a new method. Was thinking a giant microwave with a good defrost, obviously kidding. Just looking for a better method, just like everyone else I want to put my fur up with class but on a budget, and show as much respect to the animals I harvest.

I think my next move is a smaller little shack with an air tite, my shack now is 12x20, might build an 8x8 specifically for thawing fur, on the same note I'm not sure if its a bad idea to bring them to a decent skinning temp too fast...

Anyone?

[martinnordegg]

Not sure what kind of facility you have but for wolves is they are frozen I use a stock watering tank and luke warm water. (not hot) Takes a little while but works good.

[SmokinJoe]

So do you use a stock tank heater with it? How do you hear your water, I have stock tanks here on the farm with a few tank heaters

[martinnordegg]

I have a hot water tank in the shop but a tank heater would probably work. I like to thaw slowly and skin as soon as the pelt will come off without damage...avoids some of the stink especially with wolves..LOL.

[TRAPPER92]

I hang them one night and the next they are ready to go. Temprature is around 15 C in the garage. Never seem to have a problem.

How fast you lookin' to thaw them?

[HunterDave]

I just studied this in the manual yesterday. I'm sure that you fellas know a heck of a lot more than what the book tells me but for what it's worth......

They say to hang the animal so it has good air circulation and to thaw it gradually at a temperature of 10 to 15 degrees over a period of several days.

The book is one thing but I'm interested in how you guys with experience do it.

[SmokinJoe]

I have not had a problem until it hit -40. Got down the line on the second day after I had a snomobile problem, and had the most froze animals I have ever seen. These suckers are stiff, have them in skinning shack for second day and they are finally loosening up a little.

[Brian Bildson]

If you wrap the coyote in an ACE bandage they will thaw out way faster. By flattening the hair you take away its thermal efficiency.

[SmokinJoe]

Ya know I'd read that on another forum, I figured it was a southern thing, I just finished skinning 7 plus 2 extra frozen ones was a busy day, and a busier night in the skinning shack. She's midnight now and I'm just getting in, takes me about 7 minutes to skin a warm one and about an hour to do a half frozen sucker. I will try the ace bandage next, air seems to help a bunch until you get to where the snare caught,

[HunterDave]

I have some frozen yotes that I have to skin and it'll be my first time doing it. They are thawing right now but I have a question that I haven't been able to find an answer for:

At what point is the best to skin frozen yotes and what's a good indicator that they have reached that point?

Also, how concerned should I be about fleas? Are they dead or will they come back to life?

They aren't rock hard anymore but there isn't much give in the meat the whole yote over just yet.

[Brian Bildson]

Throw your coyotes in a bag and spray down with raid and leave for an hour. You can skin them while still half froze just tougher to peel down. There's a method to skin frozen pelts using a ball peen hammer to pound them off but maybe you better wait a while before trying that one.

[SmokinJoe]

I tried the ace bandage as recommended, went back to Walmart and bought more, works like a charm, skip all methods and tricks, use this one.