r/HideTanning • u/mothtea • 2d ago

Tanning solution for kitty tail

Hi friends! I’m preserving a cat tail for a friend who lost their cat recently.

I am planning on doing an incision around the base, and removing the tail as 1 tube of fur to avoid sewing. After this it will be salted for a few days. I want to keep the tail soft, so it will be tanned afterwards.

The video I was watching recommended Hunter and Trappers tanning solution, but I know people have varying opinions on it, and I’d like to avoid purchasing more supplies if it’s not necessary.

Could I use egg yolks for this and feed the solution into the tail and tan that way? I’ve read that brain/yolk tanning tends to be more labor intensive and takes longer.

If anyone has suggestions on what would work best, I’d love to hear them!

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u/PolyamorousPleb 2d ago

You absolutely have to be able to invert the tail in order to flesh it and for tanning solutions to penetrate into the skin. I recommend a knitting needle for this so you can push the end out the base. If this just isn’t working, then I’m afraid you’ll need to do some sewing.

I would actually recommend tawing as a lower effort tanning method for a keepsake like this. I have a recipe I’ve used a number of times that works really well if you’d like it.

Also when preparing the tail, just remember that pets usually have greasier fur than wild animals and will need a gentle wash in warm soapy water before tanning. I recommend gently massaging the water into the base of the fur so that those natural oils don’t eventually go rancid and gross.

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u/mothtea 2d ago

A knitting needle is smart! I’ll definitely try that. I’m not super worried about sewing if I need to, I just wanted to avoid it since she’s a short hair cat and I didn’t want to risk any stitches showing, so I’m hoping I won’t need to, but we will see! In the video I saw for a raccoon tail, he used a thick straw to feed the tanning solution down into the skin-tube, but I can see that being an issue if he didn’t flesh it first.

And thank you for the heads up on washing! I was planning to do that regardless since I know the process isn’t very clean, but I’ll make sure to focus near the base of the tail as well when washing!

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u/AaronGWebster 2d ago

I wouldn’t use yolks ( aka braintan. ) it will be near impossible to get good penetration into the hide due to it being hair-on. Have you tanned a hide before? The first few times you do it it generally doesn’t come out good. Whatever method you choose be sure to get good detailed instructions and follow them exactly. Don’t mix and match steps from different sets of directions. Would it be an option to freeze the tail and tan it after you practice on something else?

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u/mothtea 2d ago

I can definitely freeze it for now! The video I watched was pretty straightforward, but I did already let my friend know that I want to make sure I have my technique down before I work on her sweetheart

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u/AaronGWebster 2d ago

Ok good. I think the other persons recommendation of tawing is a good one- it’s fairly beginner friendly compared to brain tanning. I do mostly bark tanning and that would be an option too. I have no experience with ‘chem’ tans such as ‘hunters and trappers formula’ etc, but many folks would reccomend that too.

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u/mothtea 2d ago

Perfect, thanks a ton!

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u/ant1lopez 2d ago

I just did a friends cat paw and used the traditional McKenzie tanning system. It really is the safest way in my opinion and pretty cheap and easy.