Taxidermy Explained

By Patrick Fitz-Gibbon


A profession which has been around for thousands of years, often referred to as "stuffing" an animal, which if a true professional taxidermist heard you say that, they would most likely take offence as the correct phrase that should be used is mounting. It can preserve animals in a way that is life like.

Taxidermy is an art form involving quite a few skills that can take many years to perfect. Normally somebody that practices it will need to perfect skills such as painting, drawing, woodworking, casting and molding and possess a lot of patience as it is a very slow process and one which cannot be rushed. Although the process is much more refined than it was many years ago, it is still something which only a true craftsman can carry out.
Taxidermy can be carried out on a wide assortment of animals, but is most commonly applied when hunters capture and kill something these folks desire to keep as a memento. Though many people are turning to taxidermy as a way to preserve their much loved pets.

If carried out correctly it can result in very life like results, that have been known to fool folks if they are entering someplace which shows a full size animal.

The process of Taxidermy

There are various different techniques that may be utilized. A lot involve skinning the animal and putting it on a mannequin mount.

The most traditional proceedure involves using the bones of animals to create a mannequin which is generally carved out of wood or wood wool. And after that the skin is tanned and treated and placed on the mount. Yet another approach entails molding plaster around the carcass.

A trend that is starting to be more and more popular is to freeze dry the animal, even so this is incredibly time consuming and expensive. If you have a large animal they might spend up to six months in a freeze dryer. This method is usually utilized on the smaller mammals like cats, mice and birds, though it might be utilized on some of the smaller types of dogs. It has been known that animals preserved in this way can later on be vulnerable to becoming eaten by bugs like carpet beetles.

Yet another method used in Taxidermy

A taxidermist can quite usually not use any of these methods, especially in the case of fish. It is relatively typical for fisherman which desires to keep a memento of their catch to take images and measurements before releasing the fish back into the water. The details will then allow a taxidermist to produce a sculpture out of fiberglass or resin. This is where
A trend that is starting to be more and more popular is to freeze dry the animal, even so this is incredibly time consuming and expensive. If you have a large animal they might spend up to six months in a freeze dryer. This method is usually utilized on the smaller mammals like cats, mice and birds, though it might be utilized on some of the smaller types of dogs. It has been known that animals preserved in this way can later on be vulnerable to becoming eaten by bugs like carpet beetles.

Yet another method used in Taxidermy

A taxidermist can quite usually not use any of these methods, especially in the case of fish. It is relatively typical for fisherman which desires to keep a memento of their catch to take images and measurements before releasing the fish back into the water. The details will then allow a taxidermist to produce a sculpture out of fiberglass or resin. This is where the skill of painting comes into play as the specialist will then delicately decorate the sculpture which will result in a replica of the fish.




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