While Pelashe skims the fat off the hide,
Antoine uses a bone from the animal's hind leg
to make a tool for scraping off the hair,
once the fat has all been removed.
Removing all the meat and fat gives the hide more flexibility.
We wash and preserve the membrane.
The entire caribou is used, nothing is wasted,
not even the membrane.
We hang the meat up to dry.
And to preserve it for a long time,
we wrap it in the membrane before placing it in the cache.
It might come in handy during winter portages.
When we've finished, we make some tea
and cook the membrane on a stick near the fire.
Once the tool for scraping the hair is finished,
we "nourish" it with meat
before using it for the first time.
It will then have the capacity to cut well.
Skimming the fat off a caribou hide
is a very time-consuming activity,
involving repetitive tasks.
That's why we tend to carry out
this activity with as many people as possible.
We dampen the hide with hot water
to warm it before scraping off the hair.
You have to remove the little black layer
on the hide before it hardens.
After we've removed the hair,
we wash the hide and let it soak overnight.
That gets rid of blood stains,
and the hide turns white.