Defects of Hides and Skins

Defects of hides and skins
Defects
Imperfections causing an unusual aspect
and/or an alteration of the natural
properties
Physical/mechanical damages: caused
through mechanical means
(a) ante-mortem (on the farm, during
transport)
(b) post mortem (at market, during
storage)
Pre slaughter/Ante-
mortem
involving human activities:
These include mechanical action and
mechanical damages like abrasions,
bruises.
Abrasions:Abrasions damage skins by
rubbing, scrapping, etc.
Bruises:Bruising is damage caused by
an injury or blow to the body.
Skin Diseases: A considerable portion
of the pre- slaughter defects that
accounts for 65% are directly related
to skin diseases caused by the
ectoparasites;
or to the secondary damage that
occurs when the animal scratches
itself to relief the itching
Fungal Diseases
Ringworm:Ringworm is a fungal infection

of the skin that is common in many animal
species.
It occurs in sheep and goats but not with
great frequency.
Lesions are most common seen on the
head, ears, neck and shoulders.
The lesion is often circular with hairless
areas and the development of a thickened
and crusty skin.
Bacterial Diseases
Dermatitis:The disease is characterized as an exudative

dermatitis. Lesions usually begin on the animals back.
Early signs include matting of the hair or wool into clumps
due to sticky secretions exuding from the affected skin.
Dermatitis can be very destructive of the skin and lead to
extensive rejection of skins for tanning.
Streptothricosis: Is a common disease causing
supportive lesions which break out spontaneously or
become hardened. These cause blemishes on the
superficial grain tissues.
Dermatophilosis: The main disease in lambs, lumpy
skin disease or lumpy wool disease, affecting the dorsal
part of the body
Viral Disease
Goat and sheep pox:It is a viral

disease of sheep and goats which is
highly contagious. Healing of the skin
affected by pox is slow and
permanent scars can be left. This
causes huge economic losses in the
tanning sector.
External Parasites
Mites: Cause the skin disease known

as mange in sheep and goats. Mites
can cause extensive and visible
damage but cannot be seen by the
naked eye.
Keds:Keds are wingless flies brown
in color. They are found on goats but
are more commonly seen in sheep.
Keds suck blood and can cause
anemia as well as skin irritation.
Post mortem/post slaughter
defects
Veininess: Vein leather is the result of blood vessels in the skin where the
blood is not completely drained through proper bleeding.
Improper ripping:Results in small-sized and incorrectly shaped skins
Small size:The small size of skins yielded by the hair sheep of tropical
and mountain area origin is not considered a drawback because of the
skins superior quality of high tensile strength, compact fiber structure
and excellent grain. But small size skins that are downgraded due to poo
rquality are unwanted by tanneries. To the tanneries, processing these
skins represents loss of profit due to the chemicals and labor involved in
tanning a skin with a small, poor quality surface unsuited for finishing.
Incorrect shape:This is the shape of a skin formed by not following an

accepted pattern of ripping before flaying. A bad pattern obviously
affects the utilization of the leather produced and reduces the
marketability of the finished product.
Cuts/holes: These are damages caused by careless use of an
axe and knife during flaying/skinning by penetrating through
the skin.
Gauge marks:Knife damages to skin during flaying taking
out scooped portions of corium
Putrefaction:The main constituent of skin is protein.
After an animals death, skin proteins are exposed to
bacterial attack that leads to decomposition.
Hair slippage is a sign of putrefaction, usually occurring
due to delays in preservation, improper curing, or when
dried skins are exposed to rain during transport or
storage. If hair slippage is not checked in time,
putrefaction starts which can be from both the grain
and flesh sides. This leads to decomposition of the grain
layer.

Types of leather
Grains of Leather
Cowhides are too thick to remain as they are, so they must be split into
thinner layers.
There are two primary grades or cuts of leather: top grain and split
grain. When a hide is split into layers, the surface layer is referred to as
the
top grain. It is approximately 3/64 inches thick and is the strongest,
most durable part of the hide. However, it is also the most supple and
soft part of the hide.
Split grainis stiff and less durable, and is typically only used in areas
of furniture that aren't seen.
Corrected grain leatheris top grain leather that has been buffed,
sanded, and embossed to restore a natural-looking grain pattern and
minimize flaws and surface imperfections
Full grain leatheris another variation of top grain leather, where the
grain of the leather is not mechanically altered and left in its natural
state. Full grain leather is the best quality, but is limited in availability.

Defects of Hides and Skins

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Defects of Hides and Skins

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Defects of hides and skins

Ringworm:Ringworm is a fungal infection

Dermatitis:The disease is characterized as an exudative

Goat and sheep pox:It is a viral

Mites: Cause the skin disease known

Incorrect shape:This is the shape of a skin formed by not following an

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