Skinning and specimen care

 Please Note: Time is VERY important once you have harvested an animal you intend to mount. In short, it is NOT good to leave a whole deer hang or sit in the back of a truck, or to let a whole small mammal sit out for long periods of time, especially in a warmer temperature and moist conditions. With a deer, get it caped as soon as possible and bring the skin to me, or freeze immediately until there is time for a visit to my shop. Small mammal; bring the animal to me as soon as possible after death, or freeze immediately, but do NOT gut or skin - leave it whole to ensure it gets skinned correctly for a lifesize mount or rug.

Caping for a shoulder mount:

If you've taken your deer to a processor to be butchered, they will know how to properly cape it for you. If you are doing the processing at home, please use this picture for reference if you need help with caping. Once hung from a gambrel by the back legs, the deer can be skinned normally until you reach the shoulder area in the diagram below. I do not recommend cutting the cape off at the shoulder. Please bring the whole skin to me instead. It is easier for me to cut off the excess back skin than to work with a cape that has been cut too short in front of the shoulders. Take extra care skinning around the brisket and forelegs; make an incision around each leg just before the knee joint and tube skin them out. Continue skinning down the neck as far as possible, then cut into the neck muscle all around the base of the head. There is no need for a saw as the neck bone can be twisted right off and freed from the carcass.