Taxidermy,costs,and the here after

[kujuak]

I got my best mule deer last November and thought about getting a shoulder mount. I haven't gotten anything worthy of mounting fora few years/I am old enough that I can remember 10 cent candy bars so I always have to temper my opinions on what "costs way too much". But the cost for a deer shoulder mount was more than I paid for my life size grizzly. I got a Euro mount instead and thought about all my trophies. What are the older guys thinking about the eventual; dispersion/disposal of your trophies???
Caveat....
My taxidermist was a sculptor and has animals in some big name museums so I have been spoiled and cannot suffer poor quality taxidermy work.

 

[JD338]

My wife shot a buck last year that we decided to get mounted. I was shocked at what the cost was. It really jumped up from 2020 when she shot a dandy that was mounted.
I’ll let the kids worry about the mounts when we are gone

JD338

 

[Blkram]

My mounts/flatskins/etc. will go to my daughter, for what she wants in her home.
The rest will donated to my First Nations community to put on the walls in the various public buildings for ceremony, cultural and educational purposes.

 

[jimbires]

my son , and grandson have no interest in hunting , and I can probably say little to none for the outdoors . I doubt there will be much thought put into where my stuff goes . as the saying goes ; " one mans junk , is another mans treasure "

I live in a small ranch house . I have nothing traditionally mounted . I only have euro mounts of my better whitetail heads . nothing hanging up now , at one time I did . now the heads are just stacked on shelves . I doubt I do any more of it .

 

[GregoryB.]

I have never cared for them a lot and couldn’t justify the cost when I was a young family man. Had a wood duck and 1 whitetail done. Tossed the duck after it got damaged moving. The Kids don’t care for them so mine can be tossed in the trash after the antlers get cut off and given to the dogs for chew toys. Nowadays antlers get cut off during processing and handed straight to the dogs no matter the size with a little fresh blood for flavor.

 

[TackDriver284]

I sold all my shoulder mounts to some lady in Florida about 15 years ago, total about 18 mounts plus skull mounts. She wanted to buy them for her husband as a surprise because he was building a new hunting lodge so she drove by herself with a U Haul trailer to my house non stop from Florida and she bought them all and threw in an additional 500 bucks. My walls have been clean of animal mounts ever since " until" i bagged that bull nilgai last year. My hunting guide dropped off the cape at a taxidermist. A week later I went by the taxidermist and was appalled by the high cost to mount it. I decided to do it, and its my only bull nilgai mount I will ever do. So damn expensive.

 

[Blkram]

Taxidermy costs have risen quite a bit since I had my first good mule deer done almost 30 years ago!
but some of those skilled hands can do some amazingly beautiful work!
I am getting more European mounts done today, as also like this presentation...but I am really out of room in my smaller house too.

I also like the flat skins of the animals with more distinctive colours and patterns. Great to look at, touch and feel. But I know at some point, probably after retirement in another 8 years or so, I will be transforming some of these skins into some type of garments, or other artwork.
Patrick's leather work has me inspired to get more creative!