Skinning the pig properly
Tools to use: Scissors, blunt probe, bare hands
You will first be skinning the pig, removing one side of the pig's skin (left or right).
The first step to skinning the pig is to make a small incision around the neck/chest area with your scissors. You can cut the chest, and work your way up and down, or cut from the throat and move down (but be careful not to cut any of the throat muscles if you choose to cut here).
You will first be skinning the pig, removing one side of the pig's skin (left or right).
The first step to skinning the pig is to make a small incision around the neck/chest area with your scissors. You can cut the chest, and work your way up and down, or cut from the throat and move down (but be careful not to cut any of the throat muscles if you choose to cut here).
Once you make a small incision, use the blunt probe and see if you can separate the skin from the connective tissue/superficial muscle. Optimally, you should be seeing white, not a brownish-red (which means you've cut into the superficial muscle of the chest). Once a large incision has been made, use the blunt probe and wiggle it back and forth to separate the skin from the connective tissue. Sticking your entire hand under a flap of skin is also effective, as it will remove the skin from the connective tissue much faster than the probe.
The above picture shows how to begin dissecting the hind leg. Generally speaking, you can use the scissors to cut anywhere into the leg as long as you make shallow cuts. Use the scissors carefully, and use the blunt probe once you have an opening to pry the skin off. You can do the same with the forelimb.
You should be able to make a "jacket" of skin that is connected up to the spine of the pig. You can keep the difficult-to-remove skin around the feet of the pig, as there are no muscles of note that would necessitate the removal of skin there.