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Skinning aside from those that wear leather seems to be a rather underrated profession. Considering that the other two World of Warcraft gathering professions herbalism and mining require merely hunting for nodes, skinning seems like more effort. That and unlike herbs and ore (and smelted bars), animal skins seem to have less across the board uses in many professions.
Most skins get used by leather workers, and aside from a great outfit or that time in Burning Crusade where drums were all the rage most people use the mats for that outfit and are done till the next upgrade. Rarely are skins used in trades such as blasksmithing, engineering, and tailoring in an occasional recipe.
Herbs and ore are used by more than one profession and in consumables like potions. But like the other two, skins can sell simply because of people power leveling. Gathering mats to level a trade is a tedious process. Selling stacks of gathered skins like any other trade skill necessary item can rake in some cash. But skinning has it's own perks aside from simply making money. So break out that skinning knife cause some of these perks are rather nice.
Profession Stat Bonuses.
Skinners get a passive trait called Master of Anatomy. Working like an extra passive racial, this ability grants a bonus to critical strike rating based on skill level in skinning and character level. For dps classes this is a significant boost to personal dps (and healing)...it's like a free enchant.
In fact even at high level raiding, the extra crit is just the gift that keeps on giving.
Skinning Hides a Body Trail.
No, this is not to encourage and Azerothian serial killers, but say if you are being trailed in PvP. Leaving corpses around of the mobs you are questing for is a tale tale sign someone is questing. Skinning them will leave the impression that mobs are just sparse or that the mobs were killed but a bit ago and are in the middle of re spawning.
Either way, skinning that trail of thunder lizards leading up to you in the back of a cave will aside from combat sounds make it hard for a person to trail and get the jump on you.
Skinning Off of Others Bodies.
In your quest to kill off so many animals, some else probably is doing the same quest. The same quest, killing and looting the same creatures. In doing so a bunch of animal carcases are probably laying around just wasting away. The person questing along probably sees dead mobs.
A skinner should see free profit. The work is already done for you. And unlike experience and loot, the skin of a creature once the person that tapped it looted it completely, is free game to others. Why let that carcass go to waste?