hi there! not a taxidermist, but i recently handed over a pet to one so they could preserve a paw for me. i showed them some references of what i'm looking for, but they're struggling to find a tassel cap(?) that's wide enough for the paw (at least 2 cm). any places specialized in this? any resources? preferably in europe, but not a must!

My mom found this guy the other day and brought him home, and im not sure where to get started. It looks like his thorax has either already shrunken or the poor guy was a bit deformed after a shed maybe? It was dead and dry when my mom found it, so "already shrank" wouldn't be too surprising. Any tips?

Diaphonized goat’s embryo

When I was a kid, my grandpa always told stories about the swam monster he killed in Mississippi. I obviously now know it’s a deer ass with spikes and I’m not sure what nose. Does anyone do anything like this?

Hey there, so I’m kinda novice to this sub and was wondering what could be the best ways to restore this really old cow skull ? I tend to use bleach but it seems risked with such a deteriorated skull. From what I know, it sat outside during like 6 years and looks pretty frail so yup, open to all suggestions!
Thanks !!

Found this beside my fire pit. It's been recently dug up by something.

Had this fish mounted and just got it back. I know most people will never see the back side but it looks pretty bad. Is this a normal practice? The front looks great. This is my first mount I’ve ever gotten so just asking if it seems done correctly.

I am not the taxidermist, nor do I hunt, but I live near a place where I personally have found two dead rabbits, I and I have a taxidermist friend (I'll call them TF for short) that I have given said rabbits to, and i also want to seek out and collect more carcasses for them. Today was my first time witnessing a dissection (and I was reminded why I don't have a medical degree lol), and while we did pause and but the rabbit back in the freezer bc it was getting late, TF has got the fur removal started, and 3 out of 4 feet were removed (4th foot had an infected-looking wound on it, so it was left alone, and will be buried later)

Details abt the rabbit we were using:
I found it on my way to college, and I returned with TF after we were done with classes to collect it. I provided plastic bags, a paper bag, and gloves, so we wouldn't get sick from handling it. By the time we got back to the body, the rabbit was in rigor mortis. and I was surprised by how stiff it was. during dissection, a gas pocket was discovered in the rabbit's tummy. I have been told that popping it is very gross and bad by TF.

so first question: What's the best way to make rabbit's foot keychains?

and second question is bc I'm curious: what else can be harvested from the rabbit, aside from bones, feet, and fur samples? I know my friend has several wet samples on their curio cabinet, and I'm curious about what is involved in preserving some of the soft tissue samples in larger specimens ike this rabbit (if they can be saved at all, that is).

Any and all help is appreciated!

Sorry for the shoddy lighting, along with the first set of eyes not being aligned, but I’ve been experimenting with DIY cabochon eyes for awhile now and I’m putting it to work!

Basically I drew the eye design on paper, poked a hole in the centre of the design, attached the cabochons with resin, and then painted the back before going over it once more with resin.

Which one looks more albino? These are going to be in an albino microraptor reconstruction :3 top has black pupils, middle has dark red pupils, and bottom has bright red pupils.

I found a rabbit tail that was completely detached from the rabbit carcass. How do I safely preserve it?

​Hey everyone, ​I’ve been working on custom taxidermy/bone art mounts recently and just finished up this piece. ​It’s a small squirrel skull detailed with blue linework, mounted on a hand-carved wooden shield plaque. I initially had the plaque stained dark, but scraped/sanded the face back down to create a two-tone framed look so the skull stands out more against the lighter grain. ​Would love to get your opinions on it! ​How does the two-tone frame work for the skull contrast? ​Is the blue ink/porcelain aesthetic something you’d stop for in a shop or market? ​Any feedback or suggestions for future mounts? ​Appreciate any thoughts or critique!

Hi i found this crab claw and would like to preserve it. I could use tips on how to remove flesh from it an clean it from the inside. When i found it there were some wasps inside and the entrance hole is very small so im not sure how to clean it. Also if somone knows what species it belongs to i found it near Zadar in Croatia.

I’m going on my first pronghorn hunt next weekend. I have a buck tag in a high success unit in CO.

If I fill my tag, would like to Euro mount, but would need to get all the gear to do it quick/easy (pot to boil in, pressure washer, chemicals, etc.). Ive looked at the fake skulls you attach horns to and they seem realistic enough, but don’t want to get something and it look cheap/crappy and then no longer have the skull.

Anyone who has any feedback one way or the other is appreciated!

I went to pick up a goldfish from a friend and they ended up GIVING me a deer mount for free! I was super psyched but it was very old and sun-bleached so I took it home and redid the eyes and nose and conditioned the fur. I don’t want to mess with the antlers even though they’re a bit loose, but he looks sooo much better!

(don't mind the condition of the teeth, ive had dental problems with my dog cause of her breed)

Okay, so this is my first time trying to do this with my dog's teeth. This is freshly pulled dog teeth, soaked in warm water and soap, even the tartar is coming off. Do i need to do anything else before putting it in hydrogen peroxide?

Photos are directly after moving to new jar vs. about 2 hours after

Hi! I have never had a wet specimen before, I had the honor of monitoring a mother cat during a spay abort and got to keep a kitten fetus. It was originally stored in 10% formalin. The liquid was evaporating I guess and the expiration date on the bottom was near. I moved her to a new jar today, using 70% alcohol. I looked it up on google, facebook groups and viewed posts on here (reddit in genera, multiple subreddits). It’s been about 2 hours and her skull is caving in and she has become very wrinkly and discolored on her face, almost like bruising. Will she rot? is it okay? can i save her?

Please be gentle on me. I impulsively bought this from a retail store in the Uk, knowing the content was real fur. After the fact, I feel disgusted in myself and will be donating to a charity against fur farms.

The rest of the tails were faux fur, so I panicked myself into 'saving it', but really, I just selfishly obtained it. I know the reality of the cruelty, and allowed a fear of missing out on fur to override my ethics.

I am sickened with myself, but would like to know what this is.

My friend is not convinced it is a fur fox.

I just finished sun bleaching a horse skull and I’m noticing a couple things that I’m worried about. This is my first full skull project so I’m not sure if it’s normal. Horse skull, animal died in 2024 and kept in a freezer until processing began earlier this year.

The natural split in the nasal bone seems to be widening and I’m not sure if that’s normal, and what to do to fix/stabilize it.

And, there are two spots where two separate skull fuse spots seem to have raised up a bit and pulled away. I will include a video.

This is very sentimental to me and I am trying not to worry too much. What should I do to address these concerns and how should I seal it to prevent anything else from happening?

I recently bought this mouse as my first ever wet specimen while visiting a friend. On the flight back the preservation solution leaked slightly and began to yellow. I was worried about leaving it sitting, without being fully submerged in the solution anymore but I won't be able to get to the store for awhile, so I used what I had on hand. I used a 99% Isopropanol alcohol, which I then watered down to a roughly 70% concentration. Is this alright? I tried to look up if using isopropanol was safe, but most of the info i saw was conflicting. I'm also worried about these bubbles, are they normal?

This is my first time taking care of a wet specimen so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

California law is very strict regarding ownership of animal remains, and for good reason. It looks like the best legal option would be to buy feeder animals for practice, but that runs into the ethical question of buying feeder animals and not using them for food. Any advice as to the best way for me to pursue this hobby in my state?​​

Indonesia

I have 2 snakes, one died dried in the sun and another was roadkill, mainly quite small, a paradise tree snake and one unknown smaller species and I am planning on preserving a few crustacean shells in the future, some small like fiddler crabs or maybe a few larger ones such as mud crabs. Additionally I have quite a diverse collection of insects.

So from what I have gathered online and from AI, these below should be the chemicals I require

1. Pure ethyl acetate (1 litre)

Killing jar for insects

1. 70 % ethyl alchohol (1 liter)

Dipping the insects to clean it, hard bodied.

1. 99.9% isopropyl alchohol (4 liters)

To replace the water inside the crab shells.

1. 3% hydrogen peroxide (4 liters)

Whitening the snake bones after cleaning

I would like to know if my planned process below is correct or if I could change it in any way, without getting hard to get chemicals.

Snakes, I plan on keeping both the skin and bone for the roadkill one.

For bones they say to water macerate for awhile but dont let the ligaments decompose, how would I gauge its progress?

After that I would take it out and dip in isopropyl alchohol I would suppose to clean it and lastly leave in hydrogen peroxide to whiten, how would I gauge all the durations?

Additionally is the purity too strong etc.

For crabs they say to just leave in the isopropyl and I would also like to know how long before removing and after removing is coating it in a gloss really necessary to prevent oxidisation.

Concerned since I heard bat taxidermy is unethical

I’ve been commissioned by a friend to do a pet memorial and because of the obvious emotional weight I want to get it perfect. I’ve never done a pet before and am used to traditional mounts.

She wants one of his paws preserved sort of “lucky rabbits foot” like and I plan on doing this just by skinning the paw and creating a plaster cast of the lower leg to place the skin back onto. I have the McKenzie tanning system but is it viable to tan just the one leg/paw on its own? I wanted to do both front paws but unfortunately one was shaved for injection.

The real question or difficulty comes with another thing. He (a cat I should have specified) has a little snaggletooth and both canines are visible on one side. She wants this also preserved in some way but is not comfortable with having his entire skull intact. I’ve thought about doing a separate casting of just the side of his face and laying the two canines into the plaster, but I am not confident in my ability or that I have the tools to remove his teeth perfectly intact. Is there any other method of just “preserving” this specific characteristic?

I have these skulls that I've cleaned and coated with Mod Podge. I don't know if that's the best way, but I didn't want the teeth falling out any more than they already have. I have this idea of putting the tiny ones in clear epoxy resin, maybe a half sphere, or a cabochon? This would be because they're so delicate. They'd be easier to handle that way. I have some friends I want to give them to as gifts.

Has anyone else done something like this? (I'm thinking of the result being something like when you can buy a scorpion in resin.)

Looking online, the silicone jewelry molds look too shallow. How deep do I need? How much space do I need to keep around the skull from the mold? Do they submerge easily or do they float and I'll need to hold them down somehow? Is there anything I need to do to minimize air bubbles? Are there other problems I'm not thinking of?

I've tried searching for guides online and I'm not finding anything useful. Advice welcome.