Not sure why you'd want to do this.

Bleaching or dyeing healthy hair on a living creature is horrible for it. It turns brittle and weak.

The hair on the tanned hide of an animal is already becoming weak and brittle because it's receiving no nourishment. It has a tendency to fall out after awhile. I would imagine that bleaching and/or dyeing it would only accelerate that process.

Sounds like a waste of good hide, to me.

 

Thanks to everyone for the replies.

As for why I'd want to do this, I was brainstorming things to make with it, and a hat seemed like it would be really good (where I hunt the temp is regularly in the teens) - a hat made out of nice warm fur would be awesome (although I'm guessing rabbit would be warmer, I don't have a rabbit pelt). Same thinking for the doggie coat (it's a very small dog that basically needs something anytime the temp is below 50 degrees).

Then realizing I'd need to make it orange was a natural next step in the thought process.

It doesn't sound like it would be a good idea though. I guess for the doggie coat I could try to sew on some blaze orange fabric strips....As far as the hunting hat goes, I think the whole thing has to be orange to be legal, so it would take a lot of fabric sewed to the outside. I'm guessing that would seriously reduce the thermal value of the hat, at least to the extent that the fur is compressed where it is sewed on?

Sewed tanned hair on deer hide..hair turned in for shooting pads on the orange game vest.

Tried to dye the white side with RIT Dye to match..came out brown....filled in with Orange Perm. Marker.

We made dog vests for our labs from old orange sweat shirts.

We had a neighbor make a horse style blanket in a neon yellow for our brindle Dane. 150lb Dane looks a lot like a doe and we live in a hunting area. Dying a hide like that seems sacralidigous.

 

Sewed tanned hair on deer hide..hair turned in for shooting pads on the orange game vest.

Tried to dye the white side with RIT Dye to match..came out brown....filled in with Orange Perm. Marker.

We made dog vests for our labs from old orange sweat shirts.

 

We had a neighbor make a horse style blanket in a neon yellow for our brindle Dane. 150lb Dane looks a lot like a doe and we live in a hunting area. Dying a hide like that seems sacralidigous.

 

When I read the title....."Dying animal pelts (Blaze orange)"

I was hoping they would be dead first before you take the pelts off......

Bazinga

 

ha....I realized that after I posted, but I can't seem to be able to edit the title so people know I'm dyEing animal pelts, not prematurely separating the poor beasts from their skins.....

 

Yeah, sorry man....couldn't resist.....

 

OP you are not the first one to try
http://leatherworker.net/forum/topic/33146-hunter-orange/

We have a fawn great Dane as well,and goats in the past I've taken a spray can of scarlet oil and painted the word "DOG" or "GOAT" on both sides of the appropriate animal.
I've had hunters from the surrounding properties complain that they were "insulted" that someone felt the need to do so. I thanked them for not being stereotypical rednecks and being able to read.

Hides seem to take colors darker so an orange cloth dye would come out brownish.

 

Go to Dharma Trading Company on line they have about every dye under the sun. That said I would just make the hat and coat as is, and during hunting season wear another orange one.

 

http://www.dharmatrading.com/dyes/dharma-acid-dyes.html

Fluorescent safety orange,