What are some weird experiences or conversations you’ve had with people?
Recently, a friend introduced me to her friends as someone who kills animals for fun and collects their bones and skulls as a trophy. Honestly idk why she would say that about me right in front of strangers.
I felt very irritated about it and tried to defend bone collecting and my taxidermy work as someone who deeply respects life and animals and wants to honor them even after death.
When I tell people that I like to collect skulls and bones, they tell me I’m mentally ill for doing so. There’s many stigmas around this type of work.
Here is my collection post before some of these are gone forever :(
I left a job that was asking me to lie on financial aid and grant documents and i could not take it anymore and did not want to sign my name. Unfortunately it led to a big blowout and I went from a interim admissions director(?) to scooping ice cream part time for a job.
I'm not sure what to price certain things on but the very first pic (vintage deer skull mount redesigned by an incredible artist indomitus.taxidermy on instagram) is the only one that really hurts to let go. And my teeth molds. I love those unfortunately and they are married ( in my opinion!!!!) and i may only sell them as a set. Can anyone advise on what to price things at ? And again what sites im allowed to post certain things/where i should list on lol ?
I just made a post on here the other day about my deer skull I bought on eBay and bought it as degreased/non-whitened/cleaned and upon opening it stunk of death and rotten meat. I was told I was essentially ripped off as it’s NOT completely degreased which was in the seller’s description. It’s my first deer skull ever so I apologize in advance. I’ve soaked it in dawn as a degreasing method as suggested, and noticed this white tissue coming from the skull. The smell is just as bad if not WORSE. Is this normal part of degreasing or should I just stop degreasing and go to maceration? I didn’t want to macerate right away as I live in an apartment building which lacks a yard lol. Thanks again guys, you’ve been so helpful so far. ☺️
I bought a storage unit recently and found this in a box. Not what I was expecting to find at all. The unit was full of other weird stuff, but nothing like this. Lots of details have me thinking this is fake, but I wanted to make sure I don't need to turn this in or something. Could I get some help making sure it's fake?
New to the collection.It was full of grease cause it was cleaned by protease.Did some degreasing and whitening and now it looks great can add to my closet.:3
this is the skull of my late kitty Sonny, i loved him very much and wanted to keep a memento of him that was more representational than just cremains
I buried him in december (gets pretty close to freezing in winter where I'm at although we don't quite get snow) and dug him back up in May, half his skull still had flesh and fur on it so i rinsed off what i could with a garden hose and put him back in the dirt for 2 weeks, then maserated for 2 weeks until there was no smell (its around 100 degrees outside) and have been soaking it in soapy water for around another 2 weeks. My question is, does the skull still look like there are grease deposits on it and does it need additional degreasing? The camera on my phone heightened the contrast a bit so it's pretty chalky, whiter and more uniform in color than in the photos, and not shiny anywhere in real life except on the teeth. There are some chalky/bright white powdery deposits in the nooks and crannies and I'm not sure if that's an issue.
The lower mandible is broken and I'm not sure if that happened during or after his life, he did pass away after 6 months of throwing up everything he ate, developing scabs on his skin and getting really thin (yes I had taken him to the vet multiple times and oddly they never suggested an x-ray), we'd chalked it up to age or possibly lymphoma so I hope he wasn't just in pain from having a broken jaw :( alternately I might've just hit it and fractured it with my shovel when I was digging him up lol
This is my first attempt at cleaning a skull so I'm not exactly sure what to look for to make sure it's preserved for a good long while! thanks!
I found this bone off a beach in Wisconsin, I think it might be a kind of fish??? Its about hand length, like 4-4.5 inches, does anyone have any clue what it is???
More or less what the title says. I have found this dead bird laying behind a bus shelter that has been there a couple days. Not 100% certain on the ID as I am not an ornithologist but it looks very similar to the attached picture, which is a European Starling. The tips of the feathers on the breast are the same and the wings are also brown like the photo.
I have looked into the basics of harvesting dead animals and it seems to be that because it is dead on public land no one will really come after me UNLESS it is a protected species, and that I should really ask the local council as they technically own the land. I only want its head ultimately but I do not want to get in legal trouble for cutting the head off of a bird that apparently broke its neck flying into a bus shelter.
I had found a dead possum that had been picked on by vultures I presume, as its insides were exposed, and I took it in a garbage bag in a box. I forgot about it so it’s been sitting in my garden (I moved it there) in the black trash bag in the sun for a couple months. It’s still there and it siting like a lump. It’s been in an area where it gets full sun when it’s out. i don’t think the bag is sealed but it could be. I don’t smell anything either. I want my bones though so is there anything you guys recommend? I’m prepared for a horrible smell if I take it out of the bag. Maybe I could bury it in the bag or put soil in the bag? or do both? Idk I want to get the bones and I don’t want to put it off much longer.
So I have a couple deceased pet rats that I've sealed in wooden boxes and covered and sealed in tape and bags and they have been fine for over a year now but I think I used a different box or didn't seal 1 or 2 enough. 😔 My question is how do I safely go about opening the boxes and transferring the ones starting to smell into a pot with soil? I'm assuming there will be fumes not good to inhale. Also what would I be seeing so I could be prepared. They are wrapped in fleece so I'm assuming that would've soaked up fluids but I'm not sure. Please no hate I'm genuinely wanting to know how to do this safely
