11/17/2025
Today makes 28 years as a professional taxidermist for me. I have enjoyed this work far more than anything else I have ever done to scratch out a living. I did my very first taxidermy as a teenager around 1970 and loved it as a hobby off and on over those early years. I did some awful looking mounts but being a kid that had never even been in a taxidermy shop the poor quality was right in line with who I was. I will say thank you to all that have brought work to me over the years, I was often flattered that people would trust me with specimens that meant a lot to them. My work improved greatly over the last 28 years and I have never stopped trying to get a little better at what I do. My passion became life size mammals and these few pictures show a few of the mounts I've done. Among these pictures are a couple of images of an opossum. Not many people want a 'possum but it is a very interesting critter to work with.... difficult too. For this one I sculpted the open mouth using the actual teeth. It remains one of my favorite projects that I ever worked on. ****For my future I am declining most work now. I am very selective about what I take in because I just don't want to do the 6 and 7 days a week thing anymore. Many 10 and 12 hour days that were the norm are something I will not miss. Jobs that I am taking are smaller jobs like skull cleaning, antler mounts, most tanning projects such as flat deer skins, fur bearers for "wall hangers". I accept just a few life size projects such as black bears, coyotes, bobcats etc.
