Specimen Selection & Proper Freezing | How to Prepare Birds for Taxidermy

The quality of your mount starts in the field and is THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE TAXIDERMY PROCESS!!!

While broken bones can often be repaired, issues like pin feathers, wrung necks, or birds dispatched with “the finisher” cannot be fixed. This page will guide you on proper specimen selection and preservation to ensure the best possible mount.

Pin Feathers

Pin Feathers rarely stay on the bird during the taxidermy process, carefully examine your bird to be sure it is a prime specimen. A few pin feathers are ok as long as they are not part of the larger feather groups.

"The Finisher" /Wrung Necks

I will not accept any birds dispatched with this tool, while it is a very helpful tool, I do not consider birds mountable after it has been used. Also avoiding wringing necks! Both of these dispatch methods cause unrepairable damage!

Preservation

Before you freeze your bird, follow these simple steps to make your birds quality last much longer:

Bring your bird to me right away so I can do the work, if you can't, go to the 2nd step.
Wrap the head and feet with paper towels, saturate with water, assuring to cover all featherless skin.
Tuck the head under a wing (for birds with longer necks) or fold the neck against the body.
Bag the bird, any bag will work. DO NOT VACUUM SEAL
Freeze

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