Taxidermy Question

Drake · Feb 16, 2005

Just got my 04 buck back and it is scared to heck, I know it wasnt like this when I took it in what would cause this?
was the scares under the fur, was it the tanner, it's pretty bad towards the back of the cape, anyone have any idea's?
thanks

cleaner · Feb 16, 2005

LAST EDITED ON Feb-16-05 AT 07:00PM (MST)[p]Is your taxi REALLY ugly?
scared.....scarred?

I'm no taxidermist, but mine told me that sometimes when a critter has a tick in 'em, when the cape is tanned it can cause hair slippage on that spot, leaving what looks like a scar. He also said this is fairly rare...

My '03 whitey has a small "scar" on the front of his shoulder, I told him to leave it alone since it was natural.

Otherwise, i don't know. Maybe you couldn't see the scars under his fur.

neariz · Feb 16, 2005

My guess is the cape partially spoiled. This can pretty much happen anytime before it gets salted. Only cure for this is prevention thru immediate skinning, fleshing, and salting....or immediate skinning and freezing.

Once the cape starts to spoil, REALLY difficult to keep the hair in place. During the tanning process for the cape...all the spoiled areas will loose the hair.

Occassionally a really aggressive shaving during the tanning process may take off the hair roots, and hair drop...but not often.

If its the taxidermist's problem, ask him to re-cape the mount. Not too difficult. Might be tough if a shady businessman.

Otherwise, get a new cape from a friend, take it to a better shop.

Oats · Feb 16, 2005

How long is it safe to keep a cape frozen?

jims · Feb 16, 2005

I would have to agree that a lot of problems with hair can be due to improper care in the field. Dragging animals, rope burns while tied to a pack or pack frame, not getting skinned and cooled off, putting cape in plastic while still wet, etc. Not saying this is what happened to your cape but you may want to think back to what happened between when you shot your buck and you delivered it to the taxidermist.

You also may want to check your photos and see if the cape you received is the same one that you delivered to the taxidermist. I had a taxidermist once make the mistake of giving me the wrong cape...most will tatoo or make a mark on your cape so you get your same cape.

Hoosierbuck · Feb 16, 2005

There is no set length of time, but it depends on the conditions. It can't be freeze dried, which happens fairly quickly on some limited scale if not wrapped in airtight circumstances. My guy wants it frozen fast in a plastic bag with a damp rag wrapped around the ears to prevent said freezer burn. I don't know how long it would keep in those conditions, but a week would probably be ok.
HB

Drake · Feb 16, 2005

shot him at 6:20 am he was in the back of the truck till 4:00 pm had to drive 350 miles across desert 103 deg, had tons of ice packed inside of him and on his hind quarters and fronts but none on his neck. he was in perfect shape and photo's are clear same cape.

jims · Feb 16, 2005

Sounds like a long, hot drive! 10 hours in 103 temps doesn't sound good even though you somehow had ice packs. If you do it again I'd learn how to cape your buck and have it skinned ASAP so it cools down faster. That sounds very likely where your problem came from? Did you remove the windpipe from the neck? This is often where a lot of heat spoils meat and could also easily screw up a cape.

The worse thing you can do is add moisture (from melting ice or water) to a hide/meat during hot weather. Microbes go ballistic under these conditions and you'll have yourself a smelly mess!

If you are making a long, hot drive I would suggest bringing along several giant coolers. I usually bone some of the larger areas such as the rib-cage/loins, etc to get rid of the bulk so they can easily fit into coolers. If you use ice make sure the ice is on the bottom of the cooler and there is a barrier and/or drain is open so your cape and meat doesn't get wet as it melts. You can wrap your coolers with thick blankets and/or sleeping bags to make them stay cool even longer. I'm not sure if this is what you are searching for, but hopefully it will help?

nmtaxi · Feb 16, 2005

Sounds like acid rot from in improperly tanned cape (but I'd have to see pictures to be sure). If a cape isn't properly neutralized, and acid will break down the skin. This happened to a few capes I sent to a tannery (the last time I sent anything to a tannery). It will look like a series of scars, and can tear very easily.
If it was how the hide was cared for in the field, you would have slippage, which is caused by bacteria, and the epidermis comes off taking big patches of fur with it. The scars just sound more like acid rot to me.

boneaddict · Feb 16, 2005

I think we would have to see pictures of what it looks like to make an educated "guess". Those temps in the back of a truck is pretty suspicious, especially wet, but everything mentioned except the freezer part is a possibility. Anything over a year the way I pack mine, and freezer burn starts to set in. I've tanned capes up to two years and they have worked fine.

Lv2hnt · Feb 17, 2005

Good points already made by others. FWIW, let me add my .02:

CAPE OUT YOUR BUCK ASAP! You need to cool off the hide immediately in warm weather --- you're inviting hair slippage if you delay (bacteria grows like wildfire at the fatty roots of a hide's hair). This would be my immediate guess as to a possible cause for your cape's scarred appearance, though you can't rule out acid rot.

A few more thoughts:

a) Treat your caped out hide like prime steak (can you say C-O-L-D?); C-O-L-D and wet is MUCH better than dry and air temperature, as long as it's KEPT cold!

b) If you don't actually cape out the skull in the field, drop the attached hide in a medium-sized ice chest (with ice in and around the hide), letting the head and rack stick out the top of the chest; you can cover the head with an old pillow case or sheet, then wrap with a sleeping bag and tie shut.

c) DON'T wrap in airtight plastic during transportation home; you want air circulation!

d) NEVER transport your animal directly on the bed of your truck (exhaust heat radiated to the vehicle's bed will COOK your trophy)! A wood pallet is great to have along; if not available, use some smaller logs/branches to get the carcass OFF the truck's bed. Again, wrap in a sleeping bag (out of the sun!).

e) If you do decide to put your cape in the freezer, DON'T put it in while still warm (spread it out and cool it down a bit first). Make sure the head is on the INSIDE when you wrap up your cape (this will help protect the ears and eyelids from freezer burn), then put in a heavy plastic bag and tape up tightly.

This isn't new info; learned over the years from personal experience and others' input --- hope it helps ...

Lv2hnt

buckslayer89 · Feb 17, 2005

this usally never happens to us.(when the cape goes bad) because we live in canada and when we drive home its -25 degrees C witch is like 0 degrees F i think anways. But ya its probably from the heat.. the hair just kinda falls out after the tanning.. because of the heat

scadamso · Feb 17, 2005

Some times it is very difficult to see the scars from buck fights. I know you said that you know they were not there, but you never know. I have seen some prety heafty scars that were no the easiest to find. Also, if during skinning, the back side of the hide was cut too close, it will cause the fur to be pulled out the other side during brushing since the fur is not rooted well any more.

Hope all works out well for you.

Packout · Feb 18, 2005

It really could be a number of things, some of which are already covered. When you say scaring, then I don't think of it as patches (which are usually areas slipped due to heat/bacteria), but lines. If the tan was not proper then the Epidermis will split, causing a separation of hair and appear to be a scar. The buck may have had an old scar which, when the hide was shaved, came to life. Or the guy shaving your hide kept running the hair into the shaving wheel. A few pictures would be needed to help you out some more.

In any case, a decent taxidermist would have fixed the problem areas or told the customer about the problems before mounting the buck. If you are in Utah, I can give you my name or the names of 5-6 other taxidermists who will do it right.