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Life Like Taxidermy
A Quality Mount Begins with
Proper Field Care
Field
Dressing
1.With deer on its
back make a shallow cut through the skin just below the
breastbone. Make sure that you start your cut well away from the
brisket allowing plenty of uncut skin for your shoulder mount.
Insert two fingers of the free hand, cradling the blade, to hold
the skin up and away from the entrails (Diagram 1.)
2.Cut straight down
the belly and around the genitals, separating but not severing
them from the abdominal wall. Slit the belly skin all the way to
the pelvic bone (Diagram 2.)
3.Cut deeply around
the rectum, being careful not to cut off or puncture the
intestine. Pull to make sure the rectum is separated from tissue
connecting it to the pelvic canal. Pull the rectum out and tie a
string tightly around it to prevent droppings from touching the
meat. Lift the animal’s back quarter a bit, reach into the front
of the pelvic canal, and pull the intestine and connected rectum
into the stomach area.
4.If you want to make
a full shoulder mount, do not cut open the chest cavity. Cut the
diaphragm away from the ribs all the way to the backbone area.
Reach into the forward chest cavity, find the esophagus and
windpipe, cut them off as far up as possible (Diagram 3.), and
pull them down through the chest.
5.Roll the deer onto
its side, grab the esophagus with one hand and the
rectum/intestine with the other. Pull hard. The deer’s internal
organs will come out in one big package with a minimum of mess.
Caping
Caping is the process
of skinning out a trophy animal, is best left to the
taxidermist. Their experience skinning, especially the delicate
nose, mouth, eyes, and ears is invaluable toward producing a
quality mount. Damage to a hide is costly to repair. Some types
of damage simply can not be “fixed” by the taxidermist.
Many trophies are
ruined in the first few hours after death. As soon as the animal
dies, bacteria begins to attack the carcass. Warm, humid weather
accelerates bacteria growth. In remote areas, or areas not near
your taxidermist, a competent person may be required to cape out
the hide in order to preserve it.
Every taxidermist has
a preferred method of caping a hide. Contact your taxidermist
prior to your hunt in order to get instructions on their caping
requirements. However, the following techniques are generally
acceptable.
Skinning Life-Size Big Game
There are tow major
methods of skinning for a large life-size mount such as deer,
elk or bear. These methods are the flat incision and the dorsal
method.
The Flat Incision
The flat incision is
used for rug mounts and for a variety of poses. The areas to cut
are shown in (Diagram 4.) Make these slits (cutting the feet free
from the carcass) and pull the skin off the carcass. The head is
detached as with the shoulder mount.
The Dorsal Method
The dorsal method of
skinning involves a long slit down the back (from the tail base
up into the neck). The carcass is skinned as it is pulled
through this incision. The feet/hooves and the head are cut off
from the carcass as with the shoulder mount explained later.
Only use this method with approval and detailed instruction from
your taxidermist. Use this method only when the skin can be
frozen quickly after skinning.
Caping for a
Shoulder Mount
1.With a sharp knife
slit the hide circling the body behind the shoulder at
approximately the mid-way point of the rib cage behind the front
legs. Slit the skin around the legs just above the knees. An
additional slit will be needed from the back of the leg an
joining the body cut behind the legs (Diagram 1 and 2.)
2.Peel the skin
forward up to the ears and jaw exposing the head/neck junction.
Cut into the neck approximately three inches down from this
junction. Circle the neck cutting down to the spinal column.
After this cut is complete, grasp the antler bases and twist the
head off the neck. This should allow the hide to be rolled up
and put in a freezer until transported to the taxidermist. These
cuts should allow ample hide for the taxidermist to work with in
mounting. Remember, the taxidermist can cut off excess hide but
he can’t add what he doesn’t have.
Note:
When field dressing a
trophy to mounted, don’t cut into the brisket (chest) or neck
area. If blood gets on the hide to be mounted, wash it off with
snow or water as soon as possible. Also, avoid dragging the deer
out of the woods with a rope. Place it on a sled, rickshaw, or
4-wheeler. The rope, rocks, or a broken branch from a dead fall
can easily damage the fur or puncture the hide. If you do need
to drag it out with a rope, attach the rope to the base of the
antlers and drag your trophy carefully.
Note:
Because of the
various diseases that wild game transmit to humans, always use
extreme caution when handling the carcass. Use rubber or latex
gloves and thoroughly wash your hands with soap and water after
handling.
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Fish - Field Care for Skin Mounts |
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Select a show side.—
Once you have determined that you have a special trophy
the care of your fish must begin at once. Carefully look
at both sides of your fish. From here on you want to
keep the "show side" of your fish up. By "show side" we
mean the side of the fish that is the most perfect. This
will be the side that has the least amount of scales
missing, least amount of scratching or scarring.
Handle Carefully.—
Keep your trophy fish separate from others. If in a
cooler or fish box, keep your fish on top of others.
This will help to eliminate any blotchiness of the skin
that may occur if other fish lay on top of it. Do not
gut or otherwise cut or damage your fish. Do not place
your fish in a plastic bag or wrap it in newspaper.
Freezing.—
If you have access to a freezer you will need a board,
or some other type of rigid surface that is as long as
the fish is. You will also need a piece of freezer paper
(shiny side up), or wax paper that is as long as the
fish is. Lay the board in the freezer, lay the freezer
paper on top of the board, lay the trophy fish on top of
the freezer paper. Make sure nothing is touching the
fish from the top or the sides. Freeze the fish solid.
After the fish is frozen solid, mist with water creating
a glaze over the fish. After the fish is glazed it can
be placed in a plastic bag.
If you will not have access to a freezer within 48 hours
then the following procedure would apply. Determine the
"show" side of the trophy. Keep this "show side" up at
all times. Cover both sides of the fish with 20 Mule
Team Borax. Lay the fish on a flat surface with ice
underneath to keep the fish cold. Do not lay the fish
directly on the ice itself. You may not need the ice
depending on air temperatures at the time the fish was
caught.
If you are ice fishing, the entire outdoors is your
freezer! In this instance you can place the fish
outdoors to freeze, ideally it should be placed on a
rigid surface on top of a piece of freezer paper.
Alternatively, place the trophy fish directly on the
snow, not on the ice. It needs to be on a completely
flat surface so that nothing is poking into it and
creating sharp edges on your trophy.
Take photos.—
Always remember to photograph your fish! Photos should
to be taken within 60 seconds of dispatching your fish,
because a color changes occur quickly. |
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Requirements for Fiberglass Reproductions |
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Measure length.—
The live fish must be measured before releasing it back
into the water. The most essential measurement necessary
is the overall length. This is a nose to end of tail
measurement.
Measure girth.—
A girth measurement, a circumference measurement at the
largest part of the body (directly in front of the
dorsal fin) is also helpful, although not essential if
the fish is stressed.
Take photos.—
Take photos, being careful not to stress your fish! Good
photographs will enable us to create an accurate
fiberglass reproduction of your fish.
Please remember that the less you stress a fish the
better chance it has for survival. With that in mind,
the two most important pieces of information you can
supply us with is a nose to tail length measurement and
a color photograph.
Custom molding.—
We can also produce a custom molded fiberglass replica
of your trophy fish, which provides more durability and
longevity than a skin mount. The result is an exact
fiberglass reproduction of the fish you caught, which is
positioned according to your specifications. With custom
molding, your fish must be delivered fully intact, and
field care is the same as with
skin mounts.
The best fish mounts are made from the best fish, and
whether you keep or release your fish, proper handling
will result in both a happy taxidermist and a happy
angler. |
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