How to Brain Tan a Rabbit Hide with Real Brains | Part 2

[@eyesofthecervino3366]

I have immense respect for you censoring your kid's face out. Thank you for protecting his privacy.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Thank you for saying that. I know it’s the right choice but every now and then I worry I’m being a bit overboard with it- it’s extremely nice to have someone reassure my decision to keep their faces private, thank you so much ❤️❤️❤️

[@elliotcarter2242]

@@CedarHillsHomesteadabsolutely NOT making the wrong decision I live to see it

[@andyabel3072]

Of course your the only video that shows things fully. Its so important good job.

[@TheVitolo1999]

Pls show us how you smoke the hides, I'm literally new to this world and still have 0 idea on how to do most things Great video again, I'm learning so much from you

[@BasementRuthie]

I'm delighted to see the old adage "God gave each beast just enough brains to tan his own hide" is true. Ive been so curious to see the process, thank you for sharing. I definitely think that if we do eat meat it's important we use as much of it as possible to be respectful. I'd rather use brains for tanning than eat them 😅😂

[@gabriellegibby3293]

There is a tool taxidermists use called a brain scoop that goes in the foreman (hole in skull that connects to spine), twists around and pulls brain matter out. Its like a little skinny ice cream scoop. Hope this helps, great content

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

That’s very cool, thank you!

[@jaredschwiner6844]

Post a hyper link for the tool here

[@vannemocilac274]

I'm just learning to brain tan deer. Next will be antelope. I've been making rawhide from deer and elk since 2017, so adding the steps to make leather has been fun! I used to raise rabbits and maybe I'll start again. I just last week made deer tallow soap scented with Balsam Fir essential oil. I used activated charcoal powder mixed with a little avocado oil, poured on top after the soap was in the box, swirled in with a chopstick, to make a cool wavy spiral design. Thanks for sharing! I live down by Butte on the east side of the divide; not SO much snow!

[@FoamyOpals]

You are my new favorite channel. I just got a pair of American Chinchillas and am dreaming of a king sized blanket as well! Keep posting ❤

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

The ultimate compliment!!! 🥰🤩 thank you so very much!! I am so excited about your new breeding pair, I’m wishing you the absolute best 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻

[@FoamyOpals]

@@CedarHillsHomestead you're welcome! I'm excited to watch your channel grow!

[@susancoulange382]

WOW, Sarah (I saw another post that called you Sarah!) You inspire me to try tanning pelts. We tried once, but didn't know what we were doing, so I gave up. Now, I want a rabbit quilt! I started breeding mini Rex mainly for the manure for my garden. I have breed and sold them. I love the different colors but honestly, the genetics gets mighty confusing. A couple of years ago, I jumped into NZ. I was surprised how much easier NZ are to deal with since they are so much calmer than the mini Rex. Maybe they are more confident because of their size? IDK I like that they are all white! I'm thrilled with your informative content and your presentation... honest and straightforward. Your scenery is gorgeous, though I couldn't take the snow. One winter in South Dakota reinforced that I'm a Southerner! I'm back on the Mississippi Coast, happily. (After Hurricane Katrina, the news referred to us as "the land mass between New Orleans, LA and Mobile, AL.") Hilarious, but pitiful! I'm happy for you and your family for having found such a perfect place for you. Thank you for sharing your journey. Knowing about you gives me a sense of connection, which is missing on other channels. We are all venturing into unknown territory and I embrace the "old ways". Please make a video on how to use herbs, especially the lavender tallow. I made my first tallow tonight and I am learning about herbs. Who knew lavender was such a thing?! LOL I've just put in a herb garden and am planting a variety of herbs, ( I might have cheated with 2 banana trees) LOL Keep posting your fantastic content! Thank you.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Thank you so so much!!!! I’m excited for you to try all the new things, it’s so much fun and I wish you the very best with it. I’m still pretty new to using herbs myself but I’m happy to share what I learn as I go. ❤❤❤❤❤

[@myname7914]

Can you please make a playlist with part one, part two, and the smoking video? I had a hard time finding them on your channel. Would love to watch them in order.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Yes I can do that 🥰 good suggestion!

[@SavvyGirl515]

​@@CedarHillsHomestead small friendly reminder to do this. Life is busy. ❤🫂

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

@@SavvyGirl515 just got it done thanks to you!!! 😁💖💖💖💖

[@countrysister700]

My greatgranddaddy raised rabbits for meat (mother says it was really good - like dark meat chicken). Im thrilled to find these videos so I'm prepared to follow in his footsteps

[@hamishfoxfire8834]

So cool! Been on your channel for over an hour now and hit subscribe after Part 1 of this series. Love how easy and adaptable all of this is to the average homesteader-can’t wait to do this tanning method for deer this season.

[@brittany6229]

Again another excellent break down! Thank you so much!

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Ahhhh thank you so much!!!! You were quick! I appreciate it! ❤️❤️❤️

[@doinacampean9132]

2:27 - how did the feet magically teleport themselves to the Borax box and the take-out container? Was this step 1 or 2 or 3? Where did they teleport from? And what did you do with them after? How about the ears? Any chance of a video, even if it's with random rabbit imagery, where you talk about all these? Did you make any money from the ears? (Did you market them?) And how is the dehydrating happening?

[@mxthompson7376]

Thank you so much for sharing all this info. I appreciate how you share your wins and your mistakes. Keeps it real. Have a great day.

[@CerberusOnFire]

nitrile gloves for anyone that doesn't want to put up with the feel. Great video series.

[@zernadarkwolf]

I honestly really hope to have meat rabbits some day, even if I cant home stead...I want enough space to have some rabbits to fresh home grown food. And watching these videos is SO informative! I had no idea brain tanning was so.....simple! GIves me hope for the future :)

[@ana5301]

For the sink, in my country you can find Domestos, it is chlorine in the form of a gel, quite concentrated, designed to clean toilets, but once every 3 months I clean the sink. The other option, which I use very often, is lemon, not vinegar, lemon, which I leave for 10 minutes to act, but it is not so strong.

[@countrysister700]

The Domestos website only shows European availability, but Google shows it's available via Amazon.

[@doinacampean9132]

9:05 - there's something very wholesome about the music you used - and it's very hummable. Can I ask why didn't you submerged the whole pelt in water to get rid of the yolks/brains?

[@jerryallen8086]

Very cool. Subed and notified. Havent brain tanned or smoked a hide before.

[@Becky-tw2kl]

Will you be doing your smoking you hides video? We enjoyed your part 1 & 2

[@kevinwilliamlowe3050]

Great video! New subscriber here from East Tennessee.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Hello & Thank you so much! 🥰

[@josiegoodwin2816]

forbidden strawberry jam 🤣🤣🤣 i’m so thankful to have been recommended this video. sometimes the youtube gods does me a favor i’m not sure what i did to deserve. anyway, THANK YOU!

[@manwithbeers]

I enjoyed both these videos immensely. I had to go look up the make up of rabbit fat. The soap and lotion nerd in me kicked in. It seems pretty conditioning to me. Likely better as a lotion than as a soap. Cheers!

[@lehcargnireve6974]

So Happy I stumbled upon your videos!!! This is exactly what I was looking for in a tuturial for tanning Rabbit hides! Thank you so much!

[@ruthb7832]

For the sink- it looks like heavy iron content in your water. Bleach will make the iron precipitate, causing white clothes to yellow in your wash. So forget the Chlorine Bleach. My grandmother (in South Dakota) had very hard water and always used ZUD brand sink cleaner. It took out the rust stains in her sink. Maybe you could try that.

[@geogeo3644]

The tyler durden of rabbits

[@antoinettevisentin9110]

How did you smoke them ? I've been watching your videos and very helpful.

[@JamesKing-jw6hs]

I too have American Chinchilla rabbits, awesome that you blirred you boy out, creepy world now🎉

[@katebishop3831]

Excellent videos!! Thanks

[@Johanna_of_Ritterwald]

I'm following this series of videos from the dispatching video, and I'm with others on asking for a chicken version!!!

[@jennifernagy7164]

This is really good information!! I wonder if I can make the same pickling mix for a bear skin.. my bf has it in his freezer and I wanna tan it. As for the rabbits I wanna do the same thing now and make a rabbit fur blanket omg it’s going to be so luxurious and beautiful! I have a variety of colours of rabbits. I’m breeding two silver fox does to a chinchilla buck.. I’m hoping all the kits are the same colour! That would make a nice throw. Or even pillow cases for couch pillows!! I’ve never done any of this before. So far I’ve only bred them.. just starting out, and none of mine are big enough to dispatch yet. They are still in cute bunny stage. lol and I’ve never dispatched anything before.. wanna learn so bad. I flinched when you did the rebar thing lol I’d love to see more of your cages.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

I’ve *barely* fit a deer hide in a 5 gallon bucket but that wasn’t a good idea haha. I’m gonna estimate that a bear skin will need at least a 35 gallon container with 20 gallons of solution- maybe a 55 gallon barrel with 35 gallons of solution if it’s a bigger grizzly. I bet that would turn out so cool!

[@jennifernagy7164]

@@CedarHillsHomestead thank you for your message :) how much alum and salt do u think I’d need for a 30 gallon tub? It’s a black bear.. not too huge.. now he says he has two lol so would I be able to thaw one skin and use the brine and then reuse the brine?

[@politicallywhat5630]

so what happens if the hair gets wet in the process of putting the brains on. What Im asking is why you couldnt just get it wet to wash the eggs off?

[@sylviawylie9218]

An older video so you might not see this but I was wondering if there is a significant difference in cleanliness when sawing a frozen head compared to a thawed one. Does the brain make a big mess when sawing if thawed? That was a weird question to ask if you disregard context lol.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

They’re actually about the same in terms of mess. The skull flakes off more when frozen, but the brain matter is more intact. If you do it when fresh, the skull is less messy, but the brains are a texture between a mushroom and pudding.

[@CatoftheStorm]

I am very interested in your rabbit fat soap/tallow mix idea. I've always wondered what to do with the extra fat, it seems like such a waste.

[@toneandersen2944]

Im gonna egg yolk tan not brains. I dont think i would have the stomach for brain tanning :D Thanks for much for showing how to do it :)

[@countrysister700]

I'm with you but isn't it amazing that God made the brain work so you can save the eggs for food if needed

[@shannonrice1543]

I wonder if bartenders keeper/helper would work on the sink? Those white porcelain sinks can be so hard especially with well water. If you can get the stain out. You may want to look into resealing it. Depending on how rough you are on it maybe resealing once a year. Hope this is helpful.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Thank you!

[@shannonrice1543]

Hey let me know if it works. We are finally looking for our homestead and it would be my luck that the sink will be white and porcelain on a southern red clay well 🤣🤣🤣

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

@@shannonrice1543 I think resealing it is the ticket because things like barkeepers friend works for about a day before it starts going back to a stain. I don’t really wanna use that daily so I think I need to reseal it.

[@shannonrice1543]

I totally agree and have experienced the same thing with old sinks and clawfoot tubs. Hope this works for y’all and isn’t too disruptive with all the lifey stuff.

[@margaretokuzumi5294]

there is a scouring powder with phosphoric acid I think called Bar Keepers Friend which will likely work wonders on your sink. I couldn't really tell from the video, did the blood stain come out from the brain? Which substance worked better or did eggs and brain produce similar results?

[@philjones2766]

Have you made the smoking the hide video yet? I can't seem to find it?

[@masong695]

Forbidden finger painting...

[@doinacampean9132]

Does it matter if it's the rabbit's summer coat or the winter coat?

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

It all depends on your preference. Summer pelts have nicer skins with thinner fur. Winter pelts have denser fur, but the hide is thinner.

[@angiecway3482]

So for conditioning you just rub the tallow on the skin all over and that makes it soft?

[@shirleyhall3880]

I think a melon baller might work better than a table knife. Unless there is something in the skull you don't want to come out with the brains. They are fairly common in the secondhand shops.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

The brain cavity gets way too narrow and pointy towards the eyes for something like that to fit in there unfortunately.

[@nokkenfolk2312]

What else can you use instead of tallow at the end? Thanks!

[@sylk-b8g]

Great video! I have my rabbit frozen whole in the freezer waiting to be tanned (it's been about a year) any suggestion of how to go about thawing it without risking it rotting? Also, is it too late to do a brain tanning method since its been in there a while?

[@ingweking8748]

This is so interesting

[@nicoleludwick2677]

Tip out sink drawer

[@mikeg5616]

For the sink mess id try toilet bowl cleaner or if you wanna risk it you can use draino as a cleaner.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Thank you, I’ll see if those fix it 🤞🏻

[@ruthb7832]

Drain will eat the porcelain! Don’t try it! I ruined a bathtub that was clogged with draino. Ended up calling a plumber for the drain and a tub refinished too.

[@ToolWrangler]

I had a few questions for you, after you scraped the hides and soaked for two more days, did you wash them or dry them or do anything before applying the eggs? Mine have been soaking for 3 days but I have to leave for a week and I'm not sure what to do here. I could let it continue to soak for a total of 10 days or pull it now early rancid and freeze it any suggestions?

[@tangoreal9098]

Awesome!

[@antoinettevisentin9110]

Use bar keepers friends for your sink ❤

[@1111atreides]

You know how when you tell your kids, "Go ahead, ask stupid questions...others probably want to know but are afraid." Well....here goes. Brains? Why? Is it because it's so fatty? Could you use crisco? I've got the how covered, I'm just unclear about the why. Am I the only one who's wondering this? Does everyone know but me? Cause that happens sometimes. ;-)

[@ruthb7832]

The Sioux Indians tanned with the brain of the animal whose hide they needed to tan. “Each animal has enough brains to tan their own hide.” I had a recipe from the Sioux where you broke open the skull, extracted the brain and simmered it in water, then pick it up and rub it into the hide (with your bare hands) then using a fist sized river rock, rub the slimy stuff into every square inch of the hide until it is absorbed. You can use the water it simmered in to help spread it and rub it over the entire hide. Let it rest for a day, then pull and stretch the hide every direction to make it pliable, and repeat until the hide is dry. The hide is perfectly white and preserved. I did this with a sheep hide (hair on) and immediately had tremendous respect for the strength and stamina of the Indian women who tanned buffalo hides for their tribes. So great to see demonstrated how to use every part of the animal!

[@TheVitolo1999]

What if a mix brains and eggs? great video btw

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

You can definitely do that, I did that before with a deer hide and it seemed to work.

[@Jesusisnumberone5740]

Is there no stretching?

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Yes there is, a lot happens in the sink while it’s drying, and I did a little more just running it over the edge of my kitchen counter.

[@angiecway3482]

​@@CedarHillsHomesteadis the stretching before or after the condition ing

[@doinacampean9132]

13:11 - peonies bar soap reminder for a video (even if it's just voice over, with random peonies, lard, etc, infusion, end product pics/clips - even if it's half gone, even if there are mistakes, actually, *especially* if there are mistakes :) )

[@christinenatvig2313]

What was the brush you used after you rubbed the hide with the cloth? It was at your sink when you were wiping the brain/yolk off.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

It’s an old dish brush from Walmart. When I replace them I save the old ones for gross projects like tanning hides and scrubbing fish tanks haha.

[@doinacampean9132]

I'll confess to being an enthusiastic consumer of brains, even if it happens very seldom. Brains are such a small portion of an animal... I find it weird that chicken wings are so expensive while chicken livers are so cheap. In all fairness, liver wins the yum contest every time... Back to brains. I find no similarity whatsoever with any kind of mushroom. I do find them somewhat similar with bone marrow. But you know what they say, de gustibus non disputandum... I eat both very salted. Like roe (as in fish eggs).

[@orianaspiderowl769]

Yeek! Crunchy 😬😂

[@CerberusOnFire]

lol, it's locked. My kids did the same thing.

[@myname7914]

After you smoke, it will the Hyde smell like smoke permanently?

[@Prairiemeadowfarm]

Lysol toilet bowl cleaner will get that stain out of your sink. Definitely not a natural product but it works. I use it in my toilets and bathtubs every so often as we get that staining from our well water.

[@thedancingcarnivore]

Do you use the same brine for the remaining 2 days or do you maie a new one?

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

Yes that’s what I do 😁❤️

[@off-labelbotanist5355]

Why should you have used gloves with the brains? Is it because you are worried about prion disease?

[@cherwhichwitch2344]

I can’t find the tallow recipe. 😢

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

I just uploaded 2 shorts for you. It’s about 1 pound of tallow to 4-6 tablespoons of olive oil. I rendered and filtered mine three times before whipping it in the food processor. ❤️

[@cherwhichwitch2344]

@@CedarHillsHomestead Thank you so much. You are amazing and I love your channel. Xx I’ll be trying the recipe at the weekend and I’ll post a comment when I’m done. Won’t be rabbit or dear tallow, though, as it’s difficult to get hold of in the UK at the moment. Beef will have to do for now. 😉

[@timbeaumont3584]

it got age restricted... oof

[@NOTurbuisness-r5q]

Yo I think I was just sold on saving the fats to make soap

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

My infused oils are almost ready to use, I’ll have a rabbit soap video within the next two weeks 😁❤️

[@mystlkitchengarden]

In my sink I do vinegar and baking soda. When company is coming, I will do a little bleach in the sink.

[@shawnkezar]

To clean the heavy water stain in the sink my wife uses lysol toilet bowl cleaner

[@John67-zk8mb]

Great video, Try WD40 on the sink, it might help.

[@CedarHillsHomestead]

That’s a great idea, we have plenty laying around too, thank you! 😊😊😊

[@binxer70]

Could you suck brain out with baster?

[@brittany6229]

If you kinda scrambled it it a bit with a stir stick I'd say yep