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Forms and Brochures
Skinning Mammals for lifesize mounts
With heavy furred animals, the preferred incision is made down the back. (Diagram 3)
Skin the hide off as if the animal had a shirt on backwards., Skinning from the back to the front. Skin the animal until you reach the feet and head. Detach them from the carcass, leaving them attached to the hide. If the head and feet need to be skinned out because of no access to a freezer, then slowly remove the skin being very careful around the eyes, ears and lips and toes. Do not salt the hide unless the feet and head is skinned, lips and ears turned and fat removed. Salt will not penetrate that part of the hide and will not preserve the hide with the head, feet still and fat still on the hide. It has to be removed before salting.
Diagram 2 can also be used if you're unsure of what type of mount you want. This way is used by may outfitters.
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| Animals For Rug Work |
(Bear, Wolves, Coyotes, etc.)
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- When making skinning incisions, do identical cuts. Start cutting from the anal vent, up the center of the belly and chest, ending at the throat. Next cut from the center of the pad of the front foot down the back of the leg meeting your center cut on chest. Repeat on the other front leg. Then start at the rear heel cutting down to the anal vent. Repeat on the other leg. (See below at Diagram 2)
- Refer to Big Game section for freezer care.
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Game Heads and Shoulder Mounts
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- Clean off excess blood.
- When skinning leave plenty of hides for a shoulder mount, especially at the brisket. Cut off the hide several inches behind the front legs and 90 degrees to the back. If uncertain leave the complete hide intact. Excess can be trimmed off but can?t be put back on.
- If possible let the taxidermist skin the head areas. This area can be tough to do with out damaging the cape.
- If you can?t get the specimen to the taxidermist within 12 hours and the temperature is over 50 degrees it must be in a cooler or freezer.
- Do not cut the throat of the animal or tag the animal by cutting a slot in the ear.
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Big game tip - If you?re hunting in a remote area on warm days with no access to coolers, ice, or freezers. The cape or hide can be kept cool by placing it in a burlap sack and burying it about three feet or more underground. The underground temperature will be much cooler than in the sun and the warm air. ( Don?t forget where you buried it.)
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Skinning a Game Head
SeeDiagram (1)
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| Make a 7 shaped incision only if the animal’s head has to be skinned out in the field. And you know how to do it. Cut from the under side out and follow up the back of the neck to the base of the horn Or antler, and across to the other one. Then go around the body and legs. Follow the diagram closely. Use care around the eyes and lips. If there is no access to a freezer right away or in warm temperatures, the ears and lips have to be split and turned inside out. Then salt the entire cape. |
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Big Game Freezer Prep
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- Remove as much fat and meat from the hide as possible.
- Put the hide in the freezer with the hide open up or rolled loosely. As the hide starts to freeze, wrap it in an airtight plastic bag. Have the head rolled up in to the outside of the skin, because it takes it the longest to freeze and thaw. Place hide into two heavy plastics bag. Freeze solid or bring it to the taxidermist right away.
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NEVERS for any type of big or small game mounting
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- Never cut the throat of the animal. It’s just an old myth started years ago and serves no purpose. It bleeds out when gutted and can spoil the look of the finished mount.
- Never leave the animal lying on the ground. If it can’t be skinned out right away, prop the animal up with chunks of wood so the air can circulate underneath and cool the body down quicker. This may help prevent hair slippage caused by bacteria and warm temperatures.
- Never hang the animal with a rope around the head or feet. This causes rope burns in the skin and kinks the hair, leaving a possible permanent mark on the finished mount.
- Never drag the animal. This can cause the hair to be pulled out and rubbed off.
- Never go for a headshot. It could ruin your trophy and break the antlers or horns.
- Never cut a slot in the ear to tag an animal intended for mounting. Refer to tagging regulations for other areas to attach the tag.
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FISH
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- If possible, take a colored photograph of the fish. The coloration of the fish can vary dramatically throughout the year, and from one body of water to another. There are also coloration changes of certain species even in the same body of water.
- Inspect the fish for bad spots, scars or missing scales. Then let the taxidermist know so they can decide on positioning and show off the best side of fish.
- Get the fish wrapped and on ice or frozen as soon as possible. Especially trout and salmon. The fish should be wrapped in wet towel (paper or cloth) to prevent the fish from drying out. Place the fish into an airtight plastic bag, and freeze.
- If you want a reproduction fish done for one that is caught and released, you will need at least two of these measurements. The over all length, the girth, of the belly, and an accurate weight.
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NEVERS for fish
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- Neverwrap in newspaper. The newspaper print can bleed through and stain the skin.
- Never gut the fish or remove the gills.
- Never let the fish start to dry out or sit out in the warm temperatures.
- Never let a fish caught through the ice jump around on the ice. The fins and skin can freeze and crack, and effect the look of the finished product
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BIRDS
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- Let the bird cool. Put a wad of cotton or tissue into the mouth and throat of the bird to keep blood and fluids from getting on the feathers.
- Keep the feathers as clean as possible. Clean off any existing blood.
- When in the field, slide the bird into an old nylon stocking. This keeps the feathers from getting roughed up.
- Wrap the feet of the bird in wet paper towels, especially ducks and geese. This keeps the feet from getting dried out.
- If the bird has long tail feathers, use stiff cardboard to support and help protect them from damage.
- Wrap the bird in an air tight bag and freeze.
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Trophy Field Care Guide
by McKenzie Taxidermy Supply
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Field Dressing
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A note of caution: Because of the various diseases that wild game can 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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Trophy Field Care Guide
by McKenzie Taxidermy Supply
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This article has been formatted for easy printing. Just use your browser's Print function and the page breaks will fall in the proper places.
(IE4, the equivalent Netscape, and later versions)
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Field Dressing
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A note of caution: Because of the various diseases that wild game can transmit to humans, always use extreme caution when handling the carcass. Use rubber or latex gloves and thoroughly wash your hands
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With the 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.
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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.
Note: Start the incision below the caping line.
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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 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.
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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 wind pipe, cut them off as far up as possible and pull them down through the chest.
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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.
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Caping, 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 cannot be "fixed" by the taxidermist.
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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.
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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.
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Skinning Life-Size Big Game
There are two 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.
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The Flat Incision
The flat incision is used for rug mounts and for a variety of poses. 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.
Note:
If you can't take your hide immediately to a taxidermist, freeze it to your taxidermist's specifications.
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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 from the carcass as with a shoulder mount explained later. Only use this method with approval and detailed instructions from your taxidermist. Use this method only when the skin can be frozen quickly after skinning.
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Caping for a Shoulder Mount
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With a sharp knife, slit the hide circling the body behind the shoulder at approximately the midway 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 and joining the body cut behind the legs.
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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.
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Note:
When field dressing a trophy to be 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.
Avoid dragging the deer out of the woods with a rope. Place it on a sled, a rickshaw, or a four-wheeler. The rope, rocks, or a broken branch from a deadfall can easily damage the fur or puncture the hide. If you do need to drag it our with a rope, attach the rope to the base of the antlers and drag your trophy carefully.
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Small Mammals
Animals, coyote sized or smaller, should not be skinned unless by a professional. Don't gut the animal. Small mammals, especially carnivores, will spoil quickly because of their thin hide and bacteria. If you can't take the small game animal immediately to a taxidermist, as soon as the carcass cools completely, put it in a plastic bag and freeze it. With the epidemic of rabies evident in many areas of the country, take every safety measure necessary when handling your game.
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Birds
Do not gut the bird. Rinse any blood from the feathers with water. Take the bird immediately to your taxidermist or freeze it. Put the bird into a plastic bag for freezing, being careful not to damage the feathers, including the tail. If the bird's tail feathers do not fit in the bag, do not bend them. Let the tail stick out of the bag and tie the bag loosely.
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Fish
Do not gut your fish.
If you cannot take your fish immediately to a taxidermist, wrap it in a very wet towel and put it in a plastic bag, making sure all the fins are flat against the fish's body (to prevent breakage) and freeze it. A fish frozen in this manner can safely be kept in the freezer for months.
Note: A fish will lose its coloration shortly after being caught. A good color photograph immediately after the catch may enable the taxidermist to duplicate the natural color tones of that particular fish.
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Tips
- Always have appropriate tags with your trophies when you take them to your taxidermist.
- Do not cut off the ears for attachment.
- Songbirds, Eagles, Hawks and Owls are protected by Federal Law and can not be mounted unless with special Federal permit.
- For situations where you are hunting with no available taxidermist or freezer, ask your taxidermist about techniques to skin out the entire cape (including the head) and salting the hide. This is the only method in remote locations that can preserve your hide for later mounting.
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This document is copyrighted by McKenzie Sports Products, Inc. and is intended to help hunters avoid common mistakes in the field.
Printing of more than one copy at a time without written permission is prohibited. |
McKenzie©2009
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