Open Water Taxidermy

11/04/2024

10/17/2024

I re-opened the apparel store. Some items are limited, Go check it out!

Great casual apparel to wear anytime during the year! Checkout some of the new styles! Please review sizing as these are custom items and not eligible for returns. We recommend sizing up for the hoodies.

10/01/2024

Just wanted to make an educational post on wood ducks.

I’ve been receiving a lot of phone calls since duck opened about wood ducks for taxidermy. To the normal hunter, the bird may look nice and feathered out, but early season wood ducks tend to always have pin feathers.

Some of the biggest things to look for when deciding if your wood duck is appropriate to mount.

#1- Their crown (hood size). Mature wood ducks have a good size crown, the longer it extends down the back of his neck shows the maturity of the bird. If the crown is short, that usually indicates the bird is a new born or going through his 2nd year of life.

#2- Their side pockets. The black and white feathers you see when they are standing, is one of the biggest take aways for a wood ducks. The time of the year plays a huge part in whether those feathers are fully feathered or not. Mature wood ducks sometimes have those feathers fully grown, but once again, the time of the year plays a big role with how fast they grow. When examining your wood duck, a mature bird should have between 7-9 black and white bars. Anything less normally means it’s not ready to be mounted. I added some pictures of what a blood feather (pin feather) looks like when they are not grown out, compared to a fully grown feather.

#3 Their orange/ gold tersels. On the last picture, I circled where to find these feathers. It is located near its tail fan. The longer those feathers are, shows that bird is mature. If they are half the length or does not have them at all, indicates that bird is was still maturing and needed more time.

I hope this helps some of you. Share this with your friends. If you have any questions regarding a wood duck you shot, and still aren’t sure. You can reach out to me via DMs or by phone.

Here’s a mature wood duck I recently put together.
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09/24/2024

Some birds over the last few weeks

08/05/2024

Just a reminder to everyone, I have moved locations. Please reach out for the new address if you are picking up/dropping off/shipping. Google and Apple Maps are giving me a hard time to switch my location.

The my new shop is pushing out some stud birds as of lately!

07/10/2024

Just wanted to let everyone know I’ll be moving locations. I’m now located in Brandon, SD. If you’re shipping birds/picking up/dropping off, please contact me about the new address as I’m updating the website and Apple Maps.

I’ll be taking the rest of this week to move and then I’ll be back to mounting birds. I hope everyone had a happy and safe 4th of July!

06/18/2024

Some nice quality birds lately!

05/28/2024

Some old some new

05/14/2024

Just wanted to give a little appreciation post/update.

Business has been flourishing lately, and I wanted to express my gratitude to my parents and wife for their unwavering support and encouragement. Without them, I wouldn't be where we are today. I started doing taxidermy as a hobby in my mothers kitchen (I don’t think she was to fond of me using her sink🤣). I ended up quitting my main job I went to school for and now have a successful business. It’s crazy what a YouTube video and some help from friends can do for you.

I have recently purchased a new freezer to accommodate our growing clientele, and I encourage everyone to take advantage of this opportunity to get their birds in. With the cost of material’s increasing, bird prices have slightly increased. You can find the new prices on my website.

I also want to thank everyone who’s had bird done by me or waiting on it to be finished. We are still up to date on quoted turnaround times. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.

04/08/2024

The Minnestoa Show was a last minute decision to attend and I’m glad I did. I walked away with..
-Best of category small waterfowl Pro
-Best of category large waterfowl Pro
-Best overall entry in Professional (with the Eurasian Wigeon)
-Competitors award
-2nd overall commercial

03/19/2024

02/26/2024

01/24/2024

We are currently full on freezer space. I appreciate everyone who’s reached out and brought birds in. I will be reopening the freezers in May, if you’d like to get on a waiting list please DM me. Thank you!

01/16/2024

Snow X Ross (blue phase) I was able to take last spring. When my dog brought the bird to me, I could tell something was off about it. After measuring the bill and bird, both measurements were larger than your typical BPR. I plan to put him on a cornfield theme pedestal. Can’t wait to get this sucker all finished up!

12/25/2023

Merry Christmas to all! I hope everyone is having a safe and happy hunting season this year. I’m definitely chalking up this season as a huge success.

I appreciate all the patience and continued support as you wait for your birds to be finished. I am still accepting birds at this time, but with freezer space running very limited, so don’t wait!

Good luck to all the lucky hunters with a season still running and happy holiday!

11/13/2023

☀️Good Monday Morning.

With the cost of Taxidermy supplies and shipping both continuing to be adversely affected by hyperinflation across the US, I recently conducted a price check for the '23/'24 Season on DUCK mounts only. 

The 3 universal variables in Taxidermy that will never change are, "How long?" How much?" and "How good?" With that said, the numbers I collected represent a 👁️ completely random, nonscientific, sampling of prices across the country. I did concentrate on researching well-established shops that turn out quality work. These numbers are not final nor conclusive. Highest price I found was $625 in Illinois ($775 in Iowa has been reported/verified since first posting) and lowest price was $350 in Florida (1 established FL Taxidermist self-reported $475 after posting)

🇺🇸 It appears the Average Median Price for a quality commercial Duck Mount in the US is currently $425 - $450.

Additionally, there are a few shops that offer an "express service" that can increase the price of a Duck Mount to twice the retail cost. Other shifts that are evident in the industry are seen in notices found on some of the websites and include:

* "Limited Availability"
* "Not taking birds until caught up."
* "Call for pricing".
* Found some "Turn Around Times" up to 4 years with 18-24 month common.

Click on the Pic to Check Out the numbers below~> ⭐️Again, these were published & self-reported prices on a single waterfowl mount from vetted, established, commercial shops producing quality work as of November '23.

11/07/2023

A few cool ones all finished up!

10/24/2023

🤤