Field-care-shipping

Oak Creek Taxidermy

Preserve your trophy for a lifetime

Shipping birds to my studio is both easy and cost effective.
Place your bird in double plastic bags and keep frozen until shipping.
When shipping to me, just place your plastic bagged bird into a small box of
loose
newspaper to both insulate and protect the bird during shipment.
Always ship out on Mondays or Tuesdays by UPS or FEDEX 2nd Day Air or
Next Day Air to
insure no weekend layovers. I will notify you by phone or email that your bird
has arrived.
Never use the Post Office.

All migratory birds such as ducks, geese, dove and woodcock must have the
hunters full
name, address and date of kill. This information must accompany your birds.

Learning how to properly take care of your birds after the hunt is easy if you follow a
few basic rules.

#1. After collecting the bird, the body heat needs to cool off, so place your bird in cool,
shady place for an hour.
#2. After the bird has cooled down, bend the head and neck over the body and place
in 3 sealed plastic bags.
#3. Place bird in a safe part of your freezer where no one can disturb it, or lay
something on top of your bird that may cause damage.

Place your bird in a pantyhose and in a plastic bag careufully going with feathers.
What needs to be protected in the birds is moisture.
Never place a warm bird behind your back in any field game jacket or bag. This will
only promote the bird to spoil and feather damage.
Never hold a bird by it's neck. Always carry the bird by it's feet. Holding the bird by it's
neck can cause feather loss too.

Caping for a Shoulder Mount
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.

Peel the skin forward up to the ears and jaw exposing the head/neck junction. Cut into the neck
approximately 5 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 me to work with in mounting. Remember, I can cut off excess
hide, but I can't add what I don't have.

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.