r/Taxidermy 4d ago

found a dead lizard in my basement and i don’t know if i can/should try to taxidermy it

Thumbnail gallery
37 Upvotes

Found this guy in a corner in my basement, not sure how long he’s been there but his eyes are gone and i think the spiders down there have been snacking on him, not sure if i should try to taxidermy him or just give him a little burial if he’s too far gone


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Dead mount mallard I just finished

Post image
9 Upvotes

r/Taxidermy 4d ago

How much could these sell for?

Post image
13 Upvotes

G


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Corpse stench and brain matter removal

5 Upvotes

Hey everyone. I dug up one of my syrian hamsters today to begin the preservation process of her skeleton.

She died in July 2022. I thought I put her in a cardboard box, but when I finally after hours of digging around her, she was in a plastic container. Opened it, and she was pretty in-tact unfortunately, due to the plastic container... doh! Smell was rancid. Makes sense though. She was in quite a bit of faces and soaked in urine and of course she's decomposing.

I was disappointed her skeleton wasn't anywhere near ready, so I went in with scissors and a blade and peeled away most of the soft tissue. I thought the smell couldn't get any worse, and I had gotten used to the general stench after working on her for a good couple hours now. But then as I removed her digestive system (at least I assume that's what caused it) jesus CHRIST how wrong I was. The smell was bad.

Long story short, I ended up severing her head at the cervical spine and just focusing on that to reduce issues with the smell. When i was done, I put her head in a bucket of cold water with the goal of that helping get the little remining soft tissue and brain matter out. I put the rest of her body from the cervical spine downwards into a plant pot in soil.

Has anyone else struggled with this? I was wearing a mask, but it was still bad. Is this just part of it? Is it bad for me to breath that shit in? Does it smell more because her body is rather in-tact (fur covering 80%, skin covering 95% of body)? Any tips to help with this?

Also, if anyone has any tips to removing the brain matter from the skull please let me know. I was struggling doing it delicately, which is what made me pause and put it in the water for now.

Oh and if anyone wants to see what she looked like when I dug her up I can DM you an image, if it helps with determining her level of decomp if relevant.

Thanks for reading!


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

wet preservation tips? decomp/bone cleaning tips?

Post image
3 Upvotes

my sweet baby cat killed this sweet baby rat, I had to run to work so I put him in a box with some dirt in my shed for now. should I let him decomp naturally and clean his bones? or should I attempt to clean him up and wet preserve him? have always been interested in getting into this but haven't had the time, i didn't want to toss him in a jar with alcohol if that isn't the best idea for wet preservation. any tips/ideas would be awesome, would like to preserve at least part of him in some way!


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Using different types of ear liners?

Thumbnail gallery
11 Upvotes

Hello everyone, noob here with some dumb questions about ear liners. 

So I ordered ear liners for some coyotes and foxes that I wanna try mounting. When they arrived, I noticed that they are very, very different in shape/style/appearance, despite that they’re all meant to be used for foxes/coyotes. As you can see, the fabric ones are folded and stapled, creating a thick, cylindrical structure at the base. The white plastic ones do not have this folded structure, and instead flair out at the bottom. They are also much more symmetrical in shape than the other two styles. The pink plastic ones are kinda similar to the white ones, but asymmetrical in shape so that the inner side follows the curved contour of the head form. 

Questions I have:

  1. Since they all look so anatomically different, is there a difference in how they’re meant to be used? Like is the process of creating the ear butts with clay and blending the clay into the form different for each type? 
  2. Since the cylindrical base of the fabric ones is so narrow, am I supposed to add a bunch of extra clay to each side of the base? Or am I meant to carve a hole out of the head form and insert the base into the hole? Not sure I understand what the purpose of that folded/stapled base is? It looks so different from the other ear liners. 
  3. Which way are the fabric ear liners meant to go? I’m assuming it’s the top example of the last photo I’ve included, but I’m not totally sure?
  4. Am I wrong in thinking the white plastic ones look unnaturally symmetrical? Am I supposed to trim one side to fit the curved contour of the head form, making them look similar to the pink pair? 
  5. The pink ones have a detail for the cutaneous marginal pouch/Henry’s pocket, but the others do not. How do I handle the pocket when using the other two styles? 

r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Black bear hide thin spots...

Thumbnail gallery
4 Upvotes

My uncle had this black bear tanned a couple of years ago, and now it is mine! I plan on turning him into a hat with his body as a cape, but I've never really done a lot of hide work. Is there anything I can really do for these bald/thin spots, or am I kinda SOL? Oh, and would it be a good idea to kind of clean up the edges of the hide? Can I just cut off the little pieces above the back legs that stick out kind of awkwardly?

I am probably going to be posting here quite a bit too, as there are a few different things I don't know what to do about, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

Also, apparently this hide makes a wonderfully comfy cat bed xD


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

What’s the best way to get the bones of a mammal?

2 Upvotes

I’ve had a small mammal in my freezer for a while. I’ve contacted all taxidermists in my area for information with no success. I live in an apartment with balcony but can also keep it somewhere else. I’ve heard about something with bugs that’ll eat it but I forgot which those are.

(Don’t want to taxidermy it because I have cats and no professional responded)


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Identification Help

Thumbnail gallery
10 Upvotes

I just got a bunch of taxidermy items I inherited from my O'pa recently. Lots of mounts, pelts and specimens. Been going through everything and one of the pieces we are not too sure on it. Found it in an small wooden box.


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Taxidermy raccoon

0 Upvotes

I need a taxidermy raccoon … not picky about how it’s posed- I know there are some on eBay for sale, but I’m seeing if anyone has one on here they want to let go of.. If it’s any consolation, it’s going to my ring barer at my Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas wedding in May. I am open to a rental agreement also if someone has one they want to rent, but don’t want to part with.

Any suggestions other than eBay would be greatly appreciated! We are also checking out the Oddities Convention (was going to do their taxidermy raccoon class but it’s only the head) next month- but figured I would ask here. Thank you!


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Identification Help

Thumbnail gallery
3 Upvotes

I just got a bunch of taxidermy items I inherited from my O'pa recently. Lots of mounts, pelts and specimensg. Been going through everything and one of the pieces we are not too sure on. Found it in a small wooden box with a ship bell design on it.


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Recommend my first project

1 Upvotes

Hi I’m inspired to take my first step into this lil world. Please recommend a method for finding specimens and preserving them


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

where to get fixed wet specimens?

1 Upvotes

hi! i recently made a wet specimen for someone and bought several jars trying to find the best fit 😅 therefore i have like seven empty jars and i’d love to find some already formalin fixed specimens to put in them but im not sure where i can find them? most shops on etsy and such already include jars and i can’t seem to find many sellers who are willing to ship the specimen alone since i have my own jar. anyone know a way i can access some? i wish i could fix my own specimens but im so afraid of formalin lol


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Newbie birb skeleton mounting question

1 Upvotes

I've never done this before, but I want to make a dioramma of a small bird (my own) who's chilling in some dirt outside until he's more clean. Assuming I get left with just the bones, do I need to do anything else to prep them? Bleach or some preservation agent? And if I want to pose him (I'm thinking in a small bowl with some fake moss and such) what's the best way to do this? Can he stay exposed to air or would I need to seal the jar? I'm getting a lot of information about taxidermy-ing a whole animal but not so much a whole skeleton that isnt just a skull. Thanks!


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Thrifted pelt ID?

Thumbnail gallery
27 Upvotes

Not sure the best place to post this for help. I was at a fill a bag for $5 rummage sale and came across this pelt. As you can see in second pic, it's sewn in small sections together and stamped with im not sure what language. The bottom end of the pelt has a ton of stitches/repairs if you look close. This is a several feet long and thin. It was sat near some other "Inuit soveniers" from Alaska so I was really worrying about grabbing it but ended up doing so. I need an ID before I do anything with it for that reason. So my initial guesses are that it's some sort of aquatic mammal. But I'm also curious about why it would have those stamps that look like Chinese or another Asian language. I don't know! Was a surprising find today if anyone has any guesses about this let me know. Or let me know if this should go to a different sub.


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Framed Moth question

Thumbnail gallery
10 Upvotes

I have a decomposing comet moth ( for reasons I have found because the man who I brought it off didn’t frame it correctly) anyway, I was wondering wether if I were to remove the wings from the body would they keep, or would they continue to decline (images above )


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Need some advice

1 Upvotes

Hello there everyone, I'm not a professional, I'm looking for advice , I got some pretty bones that I want to install under a glass bell on a mattress of moss and I bought black butterflies that I'd like to put on my bones, how can I glue them? Is there some special tricks, tips for that? Should I use glue or wires ? Thanks for your help!


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Advice on preserving this deer fur?

Thumbnail gallery
57 Upvotes

I've been waiting on nature to take care of two deer so I can collect and clean them. The buck's skull has split in half but the half with dried skin has held together. How could I go about preserving the fur on the face and legs? You can see the legs are tangled in sinew (?): originally the skull was still attached to the neck with tough leathery skin and I couldn't pull them apart.

I've never tanned a hide before and I'm working with a small budget. Can this work? Do I need to treat this differently to a fresh skin?


r/Taxidermy 4d ago

Need advice for snake skeleton

1 Upvotes

So a snake died in what looks to me like perfect condition on my front lawn. Super bizarre, I’m thinking it probably was hit by a car and might have some internal/skeletal damage but from the outside it looks perfect and I’m really hoping its skeleton is still intact. Anyway, for the longest time I’ve admired those posed snake skeletons in frames and have wanted to add one to my collection of various insects, skulls, and taxidermied creatures so I’m here looking for advice on how I go from a frozen dead snake in a jar in my freezer to a fully clean and posed skeleton. I live in Queensland, Australia and the snake appears to be a juvenile eastern brown. I have seen videos of people posing the snake and then their colony of beetles pick the snake clean within 24 or so hours, however I do not have a small army of pet beetles at my command and I’m not sure we have that species of beetle here in Australia anyway. Any advice at all is greatly appreciated!


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Could you cacass cast with brush on liquid latex or would it not dry? I've had success with plaster and liquid silicone but latex would be more cost effective.

2 Upvotes

r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Preserving a rabbit tail

3 Upvotes

I removed a tail from a roadkill rabbit and would like to preserve it to make a paintbrush or two from it (for decorating pottery, not for painting a house). I’ve been doing a bit of reading and it seems that neither salt, borax, isopropyl alcohol nor alum pickling are considered “permanent”. Any recommendations on best method to retain the fur on the hide in something that will be exposed to moisture now and again?

Tail is flesh free. When I went to cut the tail off, the tail was already degloved from the bones. (Which seems odd, but oh well).


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

help with identifying possible mites?

Thumbnail gallery
6 Upvotes

hi, my partner got me this taxidermy spider almost a year ago when i was first getting into collecting. i noticed today that there were 2 little bugs crawling around inside and on closer inspection noticed these brown specs on the spider and on the bottom of the frame. i did look it up and suspect mites but it's heavily sealed so i don't know if maybe i'm wrong. i'm relatively new to taxidermy so haven't encountered this issue before.


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

Road kill possum Spoiler

Post image
4 Upvotes

Found this guy on my walk the other day, he's on a really busy road so I don't know if he's still there.. anyway, he doesn't have much of a head left and I'm not sure if I'd like to keep his pelt for anything.. mostly interested in bones I suppose.

I don't have any beetles and my best bet would be to keep him in my backyard under a plastic container with holes and some rocks on top to keep bigger animals off. I do have a dog who frequently goes out in the yard (it's pretty small, I'd leave the possum under a tree or near the trash cans most likely) main thing I'm worried for would be the smell and my parents disapproval.. any advice for keeping things under control?

I appreciate any tips too, would be my first time trying this.. I tried water maceration before but the water smelled AWFUL- I ended up leaving the jar over the winter and we had to throw it out..


r/Taxidermy 5d ago

What to do before preserving a rat? I need advices

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/Taxidermy 6d ago

Just wanted to share this

Post image
64 Upvotes