Further to the Launching Rituals question and the use of urine and the making of glue -

http://www.leathernet.com/tanning.htm

"... Next, the tanner needed to remove the hair fibers from the skin. This was done by either soaking the skin in urine,..."

"... Leftover leather would be turned into glue. Tanners would place scraps of hides in a vat of water and let them deteriorate for months. The mixture would then be placed over a fire to boil off the water to produce hide glue. ..."

I'm not sure how waterproof this glue is but from watching it being applied on TV the other night, it looked very good in a dry situation.