The best way to preserve a hide for tanning is to salt it. The salt pulls the moisture out the hide and helps to protect the fragile hair follicle. If the hair follicles break down the hair will slip which basically means fall out.
How to Salt a Hide
Remove all the big chunks of meat and fat and then cover the hide with salt. We recommend using hay and stock salt that is available at your local feed store. It is about $4.00 for a 50 lb. bag. The finer the grain the better. There is not enough moisture in the hide to break down rock salt.
The rule of thumb is to use 1 lb. of salt to 1 lb. of hide but you can't over-salt a hide.
After you have salted the hide make sure to check it the next day and if there are any places the salt is completely gone, apply more salt. That area has more moisture and requires more salt.
It usually takes 4-5 days for a hide to cure out completely but the important thing is that it gets salted ASAP. This gives you the best chance at producing a beautiful hide. Once a hide is completely cured out you can roll up the hide and store it in a cool dry place.
The hide does not have to be cured out completely to start the tanning process. As soon as you are ready to tan the hide you may begin.
--Please Note--
A completely cured out salted hide will last for up to two years before you have to tan it.
A hide will only last in the freezer for about a year. After that it becomes freezer burned and the hair will fall out.
