Schooling ? Is it a Must?

[Casey W.]

Can a person with no background at all in Taxidermy learn what it takes to do Taxidermy for a living out of videos, Books and online classes or is it A MUST to go to a school? Has anyone learned with out a School or a Seasoned Taxidermist beside them?

[bill@hogheaven]

That is a good way to start. Follow up with your state assoc. enter competitions & have the best there is critique & help you along. Go to the seminars. If you get serious about it go for one on one training with the top guys in the field you are interested in.

[mr.T aka mr. friendly]

No a school is not a "must", my father in law only went to 8th grade, he turned out fine. Self taught taxidermist can make a living, but not without a one to three year learning curve, practice included. However, how are you going to know if what you taught yourself is right? Your States Taxidermy Association is a super good place to start. You can join right from scratch, go to a show and start learning. Taxidermy Schools are great, but they only give you a two or three mount head start on the self taught people. If you have the time and money, a school will give you a jump start, however, a school will not make you a taxidermist, it will just teach you the basics. Advanced classes come later.
And then again, if you got the get up and go, you can jump right into the business out of school, but there is still a world of learning to do.

[bill@hogheaven]

I know 2 guys that went to schools. Hard to believe how little they knew. One of them works part time for us & we had to teach him some VERY BASIC skills.

[Paul C]

Remember this--NO school, no matter how good, can teach talent.  You either have it or you don't .  I see so many people today think that if they go to school or to a class they will be able to produce top quality work and command the highest prices.  Not all men (and women) are created equal.  Some people have talent for some things while others don't and NO amount of schooling, training, videos or practice will change that.
On the other hand, if you have some degree of talent for taxidermy--no matter how rough--it won't take much schooling to bring that talent out and you will know fairly quickly if you are destined to be a taxidermist.  That is where extra schooling and training comes into play to develop that talent.
Good luck!
Paul

[monarch84]

Schooling is not a must, I wish I would of tried it on my own first.
Buy some videos, books, pamphlets, or just keep reading to find out if you like it or not
Good luck to you
                       Joe

[Bill Dishman]

schooling may not be a "must" but if you're certain that taxidermy is something your serious about persuing, then some proper training will put you many months ahead of someone trying to learn on thier own from books and videos. theres nothing that will take the place of seeing something done firsthand and some good old hands on experience with guidance from someone who knows what they're doing.

http://www.taxidermy-school.com/taxidermySchoolRecommendations.htm

[EJ]

Hey Badin,
               The NCTA show is Aug.16,17,18 in Salisbury. It would be a great place for you to start.

[Casey W.]

Thanks, EJ

  That Sure isnt far away! Were can I find info on it? Is there a website that as all the info for it on it. I just took Care of my NCTA membership. Are you in the area as well?

[EJ]

I'm in Asheboro. I live in between highway 64 and 49. I'm about 20mins. from Badin. The show will be at the Holiday Inn on Jake Alexander Blvd. If you just joined you should get a newsletter with more info. on the show.

[Casey W.]

Wow That isnt too far.. I droped you a IM on Yahoo.

[tanner]

Baadinlake welcome to the NCTA. Hope to see you at the show. Bring an open mind and the willingness to learn and meet new people, and you will fit right in.

[Becky P]

GO to the show, that is your best learning tool. I started out with books and videos and lot's of trial and error. I didn't attend a show 'til I had been doing taxidermy for about 9 years, BIG mistake, I should've went before I started then some of the bad habits would've never started either.

[zeb]

Do you have to be a member of NCTA to attend or can you just show up? I am interested in learning about taxidermy and don't know a thing about it.

[mr.T aka mr. friendly]

Zeb, You do have to be a member of an association to attend their shows and seminars. However, for the money you can't beat it. Join your States Association, don't be afraid, it is for everybody, not just for pros and masters, it's for beginners also. You will meet guys at your own skill level and make new friends.