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April 2009
Choosing a Taxidermist
by Deb "Huntress" Ackeret
It
may seem strange to think about
choosing a taxidermist at this
time of year, well before most
hunting seasons start, but if
you do it now it could save you
from some stress or even the
loss of a trophy. Many years
ago, before I started doing
taxidermy myself, my husband and
I were on a hunt and he shot the
bobcat of a lifetime.
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At 50 pounds
and with prime fur he knew immediately
that he wanted a full mount but neither
of us had a clue as to who to take it to
or even how to care for it before we
took it in. We knew if we skinned it
wrong it could ruin the mount but should
we even gut it out? We didn’t have
access to a freezer on this hunt so how
could we store it? I started calling
around to find a taxidermist to at least
skin it out and freeze it but most that
I called didn’t want to deal with it. I
finally found one who would skin it out
for $25 and if we had the mount done by
him he said he would take the $25 back
off the price. We were happy to find
someone to even touch the thing so we
had him do the mount. About a year later
we went to pick up the cat and something
didn’t look quite right to me but I
couldn’t put my finger on what it was.
We paid the taxidermist and took the
mount home. After a couple days of
looking at it I finally figured out what
was wrong. He had mounted the eyes with
the slit pupil turned the wrong way! I
took the cat back to him and he fixed
the eyes but I was never quite happy
with the mount and learned a hard lesson
from it.
If you’ve
had mounts done by a taxidermist already
and are pleased with his work great! If
not, you might want to start
interviewing a few now, before you shoot
that trophy of a lifetime. Having your
taxidermist on ‘speed dial’ could save
you some headaches and here are my tips
for choosing the perfect one.
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Think
about what mounts you might want
done in the future. Maybe fish are
your thing or you might want a wall
full of turkeys or only deer mounts.
Some taxidermists specialize in
certain areas of taxidermy so decide
if you want a taxidermist who does
it all or have one taxidermist for
each type of mount you want to have
done and then interview several in
your area
-
Try to
visit during the off-season so the
taxidermist will have more time to
answer your questions. Call ahead
for an appointment and have a list
of questions with you when you
arrive. You can also bring photos of
live animals that you are interested
in to compare to the taxidermist’s
work. You might think, ‘I don’t need
a photo of a deer, I know what they
look like.’ But do you really know
the shape of a live deer’s eye or
ear? Do you know how the hair
patterns lay? The best taxidermists
will use photos or live reference
when doing their work so they
shouldn’t have a problem with you
using it for comparison also.
-
Your
list of questions should be made up
of all the things that are important
to you and may include….
-What
is the turn around time?
-What
are the prices? Are there extra charges
for bases, backboard, open mouth mounts,
flying bird poses, etc.?
-Is
there a deposit required? When is the
balance due?
-Does
the taxidermist have a business contract
for customers? What does it include?
-Will
the taxidermist give references for you
to call?
-Does
the taxidermist have a state and/or
federal license?
-How
long have they been in business? Where
did they go to school? Do they belong to
their state and/or national taxidermy
association?
Mammals
-Is the
fur clean with no odor and well combed
out?
-Are
there any stitches visible?
-Is
there paint or glue on the eyes or in
the hair?
-Are
there gaps in the lip area or around the
eyes?
-Do the
ears have crisp, well defined edges or
are they curling? Are they set on the
head correctly or are
They
too far up or down?
-Do the
eyes look set correctly (not cross eyed
or ‘bug‘ eyed)?
-Is the
hide tanned or preserved some other way?
Birds
-Is the
mount clean, no grease bleeding through
the feathers, no blood or paint on the
feathers?
-Does
the mount look natural…head, neck and
wings in a natural position?
-Do the
feather ‘tracts’ look natural or are the
feathers ruffled (not laying flat)?
-Are
the eyes set correctly?
-Are
the feet dried/shriveled or natural
looking?
-Are
the bill/beak and feet the right color?
Fish
-Is the
‘topline’ of the fish one smooth line
with the head correctly lined up with
the body?
-Are
the fins/tail in the right position? Do
the edges look clean/crisp or
curled/chipped?
-Are
the scales laying nice and flat (tight
to the body)?
-Are
the eyes set correctly?
-Do the
mouth and gills look natural or are they
open too far?
-Does
it look ‘over painted’ or more naturally
tinted? Are the colors correct?
-On
wall mounts, is the back of the mount
finished cleanly or is the seam visible?
Keep in mind
that the perfect mount may come with a
trade off. Taxidermists who continue
schooling or enter taxidermy
competitions might have a longer turn
around time. Those that use the very
best materials and tanning practices may
charge more. A quick turn around and low
prices don’t always equal the highest
quality mount so once you decide what is
most important to you, choosing the
perfect taxidermist should be easy!
Next month: Big Game
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