General Questions

• How do I care for a freshly harvested bird?
• How do I care for a freshly harvested large or small game animal?
• What do I need to do to prepare my European to be brought to the taxidermist?
• How do I need to prepare my velveted antlers before I bring them to the taxidermist?

Q: HOW DO I CARE FOR A FRESHLY HARVESTED BIRD?
A: First of all, no matter how great a taxidermist is, the quality of a mount will first and foremost be determined by the quality of the bird and the manner in which it was handled before being taken to the taxidermist. That being said, when selecting a specimen for taxidermy, I advise people to select mature, late season birds with the least damage possible. Obviously, a kid’s first bird, a dog’s first/last retrieve, etc can’t be chosen and you have to make the best of it and we will try our best. Late season, mature birds make the best mounts because they usually do not have pin feathers (which fall out during mounting) and have the best colors. Example: Early season Pintails usually don’t have their sprigs or full coloration until late December into January.The best field care for your bird is…
Be careful on allowing puppies and hard mouthed dogs to retrieve a bird you may want mounted, I mount numerous birds that are retrieved by dogs each year. Some dogs will basically ruin a bird and some birds you can’t tell they’ve been in a dog’s mouth. If the bird is still alive, the best way to dispatch it that I have found is to take your thumb and middle finger and squeeze just under the armpits of the birds wings until the bird expires. DO NOT wring the bird’s neck.

When carrying the bird, always carry it by the feet instead of by the neck. Don’t use a game strap. Basically, you want to handle the bird just like you would handle the mount. IF it has been handled by the neck we still may be able to mount it if the fine neck feathers are still in good condition. We will inspect the bird  before we help you make a decision to insure the highest quality mount for you the customer.  If the bird is bleeding out of the mouth stick a small piece of tissue or cotton into it to prohibit the bleeding to come out onto the feathers.  Side note: I always carry cotton in my game vest or hunting coat just in case I harvest a bird I want to mount.

When you get the bird back home or back to camp, rinse off any blood/dirt/etc with COLD water. Be gentle with the plumage as you rinse it. You will hear all kinds of advise about putting the bird in panty hose and stuff like that, but don’t do that. At this point, all you need to do is to gently place the bird in a plastic garbage bag with the head folded against the body (not stuck straight out make sure not to ruffle the feathers.) With the bird at the bottom of the bag, roll the bird up in the bag so that the air is forced out the top. If you have a bird with a long tail (oldsquaw, pintails, etc) take care not to bend the tail. Place this inside another garbage bag, get the air out, and seal it up. Freeze the bird until you can get it to us. Birds frozen this way should keep at least a year in the freezer if you have taken care to get the air out of the bags before freezing. If you plan to take the bird to your taxidermist the same day or the next day, you can bag them up and place them in the fridge. I would keep a bird in the fridge no longer than 48 hrs.

Q: HOW DO I CARE FOR A FRESHLY HARVESTED LARGE  OR SMALL GAME ANIMAL?

Depending on the type of mount you want to do you have multiple options. Life size for big game: Make smallest incision to gut the animal and then get the animal to taxidermist asap for the animals measurements and so he can skin it properly. Life size small game: Fox, Raccoon, Bobcat etc., bring animal asap to taxidermist whole or if not able to get to taxidermist for a day or two depending on temperature then put it in a freezer. Other mounts : Make shortest incision possible to gut the animal, skin the animal from behind the shoulder tube the legs to the elbow and then all around animal tubing and up the neck leave head and at least 4inches of neck in cape and send to taxidermist.

Q: WHAT DO I NEED TO DO TO PREPARE MY EUROPEAN MOUNT TO BE BROUGHT TO THE TAXIDERMIST?

BRING IT FRESH, taxidermists hate seeing maggets and infested heads they start to eat away the bone and ruin the mount. Skin off hide if possible and bring the head in.REMEMBER quality animal equals quality mount. If its not possible to bring to taxidermist asap put it in a freezer.

Q: HOW DO I NEED TO PREPARE MY VELVETED ANTLERS BEFORE I BRING THEM TO THE TAXIDERMIST?

How do I need to prepare my velveted antlers before I bring them to the taxidermist.
Bring whole head in fresh immediatly or get immediatly frozen. Taxidermist will preserve the antlers.