How do I cure a small animal skin?

[Guddler]

OK, this is sort of fly tying related as that's what I want to use this skin for.

I was given a couple of freshly killed pole-ferrets today and skinned one and just nipped the tail off the other. I'd like to preserve them to use as tying materials, how do I go about it?

I've scraped the skin clean then spent the last half an hour Googling  but have gotten snowed under with umpteen different "best" methods. I won't be making a hat with it so maybe a full cure isn't whats needed, just a method of preserving so I can harvest the fur as and when required.

Anybody tried this themselves?

[Fishtales]

As the others have said. Pin it out, scrape off as much of the fat as you can and use either salt or borax. I have used both.

You might also find this interesting.

http://www.uky.edu/~agrdanny/flyfish/petti.htm

[Guddler]

Cheers to all for the info. I've just a had a crofter buddy drop by and his advice was pretty much the same. Skin is stretched out in the shed under a good layer of coarse salt and we'll see how it goes.
Not sure what I'll use them to tie, it's really just the novelty value of it so I can claim Polecat underbelly as my special ingredient if anybody asks next season!

[Pearly Invicta]

Not sure what I'll use them to tie, it's really just the novelty value of it so I can claim Polecat underbelly as my special ingredient if anybody asks next season!

I'm sure you'll find a use ferret.

[Ptinid]

Funnily enough I was thinking about this as I disposed of a few very healthy (well, previously healthy  ) rats and mice recently. Mice have very fine fur, and rats have loads of guard hairs which would make good leggy flies I think.

Will have to give it a try soon.