Frequently Asked Questions
How can I prepare my specimen for drop off?
A beautiful trophy starts in the field. After field dressing, turn the animal over and allow blood to drain out of the cavity. Excess blood can lead to possible hide slipping and affect the final result of your mount. Try to utilize an ATV, vehicle, cart or plastic sled to transport your kill out of the field. Make sure your buck is properly caped. A butcher, or taxidermist would be happy to help you with this. If possible rinse all excess dirt and blood from your specimen. If unable to go straight to the taxidermist, make sure the cape and antlers are stored in a heavy walled garbage bag with as much air as possible pressed out of the bag to prevent freezer burn. Doubling up the bag will also help to prevent freezer burn. Securely tied both bags.
Things NOT to do
Do Not cut the throat to allow it to “bleed out”. This can ruin a mount and a still heart is not pumping blood anyways.
Do Not tie a rope around the neck to drag the deer. This causes a rope burn and will damage specimens hair.
Do Not drag the animal across rough gravel or paved roads. This causes bald spots in the hide that will be very difficult to repair.
Also all specimens must come with proper DNR tags. Whitetail must be reported to the DNR within 72 hours of kill. Please have harvest reporting number ready when dropping off your specimen.
How do I properly care for my mount?
Carefully. At Revival Taxidermy we take the utmost care to deliver you a quality showpiece. Here are some tips to keep your trophy beautiful for the long haul.
Avoid touching your mounts. Fur and hair are delicate and excessive touching can lead to thinning, breakage and disruption of natural hair patterns. Also, hands contain oils that can overtime discolor and attract dust.
Dust with a clean damp rag (not soaked) using only water or water and a mild dish soap. Do NOT use furniture polish, these can discolor and will lead to the excess attraction of dust. Wipe gently in the direction of the hair or fur to avoid breakage.
You may also use a blow dryer, set at low heat, held at arms length to gently blow dust off fur and hair. Not only will this rid some of the dust but will fluff furry mounts.
Avoid placing mounts close to windows. Excessive UV light will lead to fading and discoloring of overtime and may also make hides brittle.
Avoid areas where smoke may damage the mount. Not only will this lead to drying out of leather but will also potentially discolor and lead to trapping odors. This includes fireplace, cigars, cigarettes, and other.
Eyes are made of glass. A Q-tip with a small amount of water or window cleaner on the cotton swab will bring to sparkle right back.
Antlers and horns may be wiped gently with a damp rag for dusting.
For cleaning of habitats, foliage and driftwoods. Gentle dusting and use of compressed air if necessary should prevent excess dust build up.
We hope these tips are helpful. For further questions please contact us directly.