Masai shield being eaten by bugs

[AES]

No FN clue what is going on but a Masai shield I have in the house is being eaten by unknown bugs. It’s really Just the portions that are hair. Shield is in study, but in main house, so no bugs (I thought)… literally had bug guys on property last week. No clue what’s up with this but sucks and really worried about spreading to other mounts. Should has been in the US for 2+ yrs so don’t think I brought anything with. Any advice or precedent solutions? As of now, I am thinking just put the shield in the pool. Lol.

 

[BourbonTrail]

Might be moths, ate my dad’s deer mount up. Probably needs fumigation to kill them.

@buck wild & @gizmo might have good suggestions.

 

[375Fox]

My taxidermist recommended mount medix to me. This is product they list for extermination.

Mount Medix | Palmerton PA

Mount Medix LLC was founded to provide high quality natural products to the taxidermy industry. Visit our website to learn about our products

www.mountmedix.com

 

[Ryan]

Your bug guy probably got everything on the outside of your home but there's some things that sneak indoors unnoticed. It's probably a type of dermestid beetle larva. They're often small enough to go unnotice depending on the species. Try the products mentioned above or these https://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/mobile/Search.aspx?k=Insect

I've heard of people up here in Alaska noticing problems and they just take the mount outdoors in winter to freeze the culprit. Give it a week or two and refreeze in case there's eggs that hatch again. So if you can fit it in a chest freezer you may try that.

 

[rookhawk]

Probably an American pest on an African hide. I’d call a taxidermist right away and ask what solution should be applied. My guess is if it is a Masai shield it probably is a raw hide, not tanned. (E.g. rawhide). I can guarantee that there is a topical solution you can put on rawhide to protect it from pests. Sorry I don’t have the name of that chemical but you need to find that answer ASAP, hence why I’d suggest you reach a quality taxidermist and ask what they do for uncured hides and taxidermy. (e.g. Birds are not tanned, those are raw hides under feathers, treated with borax and then dried with cedar shavings)

In the olden days they used to use arsenic (not recommended, deadly) but that’s why 100+ year old untanned taxidermy still lives on.

 

[TwoTracks]

My taxidermist recommended mount medix to me. This is product they list for extermination.

Mount Medix | Palmerton PA

Mount Medix LLC was founded to provide high quality natural products to the taxidermy industry. Visit our website to learn about our products

www.mountmedix.com

We have to use mount medix in our area. I buy the stuff by the gallon and spray all the mounts that have fur once a year.

It’s the same tiny moths that eat wool that attack and eat the hair follicles in taxidermy. The little SOBs ate a few of my small animal mounts before I figured it out. Ate some wool area rugs too. This may not be what’s eating your shield but it very well could be.

 

[AES]

 

[AES]

 

[AES]

 

[AES]

Wtf should I just put in pool?

 

[Rare Breed]

Probably an American pest on an African hide. I’d call a taxidermist right away and ask what solution should be applied. My guess is if it is a Masai shield it probably is a raw hide, not tanned. (E.g. rawhide). I can guarantee that there is a topical solution you can put on rawhide to protect it from pests. Sorry I don’t have the name of that chemical but you need to find that answer ASAP, hence why I’d suggest you reach a quality taxidermist and ask what they do for uncured hides and taxidermy. (e.g. Birds are not tanned, those are raw hides under feathers, treated with borax and then dried with cedar shavings)

In the olden days they used to use arsenic (not recommended, deadly) but that’s why 100+ year old untanned taxidermy still lives on.

Not American. My friends who bought beautiful African furniture had the same problem. You need to consult an expert then tent the shields after inserting the pesticides. Problem solved

 

[AES]

How tf do they even get there?

 

[buckmarkhunter]

I had those exact same moths on half my taxidermy. Those stupid things are hide moths, the moths don’t do any damage it’s the larve that eat the cuticle on hair. They are hard to get rid of, call an exterminator and have him take care of it.

I wrapped my stuff I could in a bag and put it in the deep freezer for a couple weeks. There are sprays and such but exterminator has better chemicals. The company moth prevention has traps that have a female scent, get a handful of those and put them around your house. This way you can keep track of how it’s going.

 

[Vintageguy]

I bet a borax and water solution in a tub would cure that without any side dangers. I do bird taxidermy and all I do is wash, scrape the excess fat away and apply straight borax. No problems, an untreated and dried pheasant cape does the same thing.

 

[AES]

I have little kids. Can’t go super hammer. Etc. this is bumming me out. Any reason not to do pool??

 

[AES]

Freezer has game meat …

 

[John Wasmuth]

Try seven dust. It kills a large spectrum of pests and won’t destroy the shield.

 

[AES]

I just took it outside, and based on an old comedy sprayed everything with windex. Fuck, this is not going well.

 

[John Wasmuth]

Wetting down rawhide might be a bad idea. It’s not tanned just dried stretched hide. Moisture promotes bacteria growth and it can cause it to lose its shape.

 

[Just Gina]

I just took it outside, and based on an old comedy sprayed everything with windex. Fuck, this is not going well.

I am curious to hear if the windex helps…seriously. I know regular windex will kill gnat swarms outside. I cannot recall other bugs I’ve heard it being successful on but have heard it is on some, so let me know please if this works.