Middle English; earliest use found in Feet Fines of Kent. Partly from pelt + -er, and partly from Anglo-Norman pelter, variant of peleter pelleter. Compare Middle Dutch pelser skinner, (rarely) furrier (Dutch †pelser), Middle Low German pelser, pelzer, Middle High German belzer furrier (German †Pelzer).

Early 18th century; earliest use found in Jonathan Swift (1667–1745), writer and dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin. From pelt + -er.

Mid 19th century; earliest use found in The Spirit of the Times: a chronicle of the turf, agriculture, field sports, literature and the stage. Origin uncertain; perhaps a transferred use of pelter, ‘in allusion to the mud thrown up by a horse's hoofs when traveling on muddy roads’ (Dict. American Eng. s.v.), although it is unclear why this should apply particularly to an inferior horse; a connection with pelter is unlikely given the chronological gap; ironic use of pelter is also unlikely, as this is first attested later.

Late 17th century; earliest use found in Matthew Stevenson (d. 1684), poet. From pelt + -er.