Thinking about no or limited taxidermy

[PHOENIX PHIL]

The shoulder mounted Trophy of an Asiatic buffalo mounted in Australia by one or more of the more experienced and capable taxidermists in this country will set you back + or - $3000 A.U.D, or only slightly less than the average Trophy fee for the animal itself (not including the cost of shipping home).

When I first started guiding just on ten years ago EVERY hunter took a shoulder cape for a wall mount.

Now we find ourselves caping out only about 60% of Trophy bulls taken as a lot of hunters prefer to take a second bull OR put the money saved from not getting a shoulder mount in to a return trip.

A professionaly prepared, properly cleaned and peroxided/bleached full skull, either mounted on a wooden plaque or not presents an impressive Trophy "mount" of any species.

These days, for me personally, the hunt is the Trophy and I take a well prepared "Euro" of the animal out of respect.

Unless the buff has a lot of graying or lost a fair amount of hair on his face, I think the Euro mounts look better. I haven't seen a buffalo face yet that is particularly appealing versus a Kudu, Nyala or Gemsbok. What makes a buff impressive in my eyes are the horns. A Euro mount in my mind emphasizes the horns and naturally directs one's eyes to them via the contrast of the dark horns against the white skull. I feel the same way about blue and especially black wildebeest.

I must admit I've seen some nice Cape Buff shoulder mounts, but those mostly were of an old gray bull or the taxidermist put "mud" on the face that created that contrast.

 

[enysse]

I don't think a black wildebeest is pretty at all but the blue wildebeest looks nice on the wall. His cape has contrasting colors!

 

[RickB]

Something I saw today on the pursuit channel, if anyone is familure with the "fatheads" for sports. You can now give them a picture and have it turned into a removable sticker for your wall. Various sizes. Looked neat. May not fit everyone's taste but another thought. When I go back, it will be euro mounts and skins. I may not even do those. I am more interested in going back. I like euro mounts. And it is a lot less money.

 

[Stretch]

I am on the same page. I also am looking at very limited or no taxidermy. This will allow me to have more available trophy fee money, which in turn allows me to shoot more animals. Can't imagine an outfitter that has a problem with that. After hunting for the past 30+ years I am no longer interested in mounting animals. A few skull mounts here and there, but mainly memories and photo's. I plan on having an African themed wall, complete with framed photo's of the animals, scenery and people that shared my experience. There are some nice Africa themed photo frames and wallpaper borders that can accent your room display.
You can see some here:
http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/yhst-20540593605955_2238_243164322
African wallpaper borders - TheFind

 

[Red Leg]

Another thought. Extensive taxidermy seems to trap some folks into a form of "collectoritis." A couple of friends have wonderful trophy rooms, but will not hunt an animal a second time because they have already invested in the mount for one in their collection. I can't imagine going to Southern Africa and not always having another kudu on my want list. I have also taken several gemsbok - not to line my walls with oryx mounts - but because they are fun to hunt and wonderful on the grill. Photography and euro-mounts can free you from the tyranny of taxidermy.

 

[Wolverine67]

dip and pack the skull only. you can finish them yourself as euromounts.

 

[BRICKBURN]

A South African reindeer.
View attachment 15351

 

[Nyati]

Due to a lack of available space, I only have euro mounts.

This year I plan on hunting smaller animals such as duiker, steenbok, jackal, baboon, hyena, and they will go to the shelves of my bookcase.

 

[Grady]

Options

All, Great info. As a newbie to both Africa Hunting.com and an South African Safari (July 2013) I was looking for your thoughts on getting all my planned animal (Kudu, Springbok, Gemsbok, Impala, Warthog) shipped back as Euro Mounts with the capes (dip and ship) for tanning in the states and possible shoulder mounts of selected animal at a later date. I share some of the same problems as other have mentioned above; limited wall space, limited floor space, competition with existing mounts (Moose, Red Stag, Caribou, Bear rugs x2, and a wife:nonono. Does anyone know of any issues with this approach?

 

[BRICKBURN]

All, Great info. As a newbie to both Africa Hunting.com and an South African Safari (July 2013) I was looking for your thoughts on getting all my planned animal (Kudu, Springbok, Gemsbok, Impala, Warthog) shipped back as Euro Mounts with the capes (dip and ship) for tanning in the states and possible shoulder mounts of selected animal at a later date. I share some of the same problems as other have mentioned above; limited wall space, limited floor space, competition with existing mounts (Moose, Red Stag, Caribou, Bear rugs x2, and a wife:nonono. Does anyone know of any issues with this approach?

Shouldn't be any.