I have been doing taxidermy as a parttime business now for about two years. I am licensed and I feel my work is good. My question is a gentlemen brought a black bear he shot in maine for a lifesizemount. It was froze when I received it. We talked over the positions of the mount and base. He told me the bear was about 100# live weight he got. Well he came to pick the bear up and he started carrying on that this is not his bear. His bear was taller than him, took 5 people to drag it out, his bear was that big he couldn't put his arms around it when it was hanging.
He got back the bear he brought, no question about it. He is not complaining about the quaility of work, just the bear is to small and can't be his. He said he wants his deposit back, to be paid for the bear skin that supposedly isn't his, also he is going to talk to a lawyer. Like I said there is no question that this is his bear, I even told him that he told me when he brought it, it was only 100# live weight. What do I do, tried talking to him, most of the time he won't let you get a word in edgewise. Any suggestions, please.
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Yeah the animals we get in are always suppose to grow, don't you know that. That bass that was 5 pounds has to be 10 when the customer comes and pick it up. The deers neck grew from 16 inch to 20. Yeah we all have those customers. They can be a pain in the neck (or some place else for that matter). Anytime you get an animal like that in where the customer claims it is big right of the start and you know it isn't, take a photo of it while the customer is holding it. Take measurements and write them down. Show them to the customer. I always do. When a customer complains about the neck being smaller than it was I break out the measurement tape and voila they see for themselves that the measurements are exactly what they were on the dead deer. Don't let the guy have that bear unless he pays for it in Cash only. This way he can't put a stop payment on the check. Right now the customer is in breach of contract (please tell me you had a written contract). Hopefully it won't come to a courthearing but be prepared for one. People like that will try anything they can to get their animal back without having to pay for it. Just don't give in to the guys threats if he makes them. I bet he has some photos of the bear after it was killed. Ask to see them, they will show the bear wasn't all that big. Plus if the bear was only 100 lbs, that is a little one to begin with. Find out who the other 4 people were that supposedly helped him drag that bear out. I bet they have a different story to tell (if they actually exist).
I had the same thing happen with a Maine bear. The customer kept telling me how BIG it was , i would take out the tanned skin and measurer it every time he called about his life size mount. Then i would check the measurements i took when i took it in, same size, small/medium. I would get this sick feeling in my stomach each time.
So i never mounted it , he asked for his bear back if i couldn't do it. That was fine with me , i gave it to him. He knew it was his bear because of the location of all the bullet holes, so that wasn't a problem. It was like the world was taken off my back.
I meet him at a Safari dinner a year later and he tells me he got his bear back from another taxidermist and the guy ruined it , shrunk it to half the size and did a lousy job. I sad thats too bad. As i walked away i looked up and said " thank you god".
I think the problem is the water the bears drink in Maine, plus the bear outfitters blow a lot of smoke up the hunters butt so they get a better tip.
My x customer was a lawyer.
I haven't had the pleasure of dealing with this kind of customer yet but I try to cover my @$$. For example, When possible I take a few basic measurements in front of the customer with a flexible tape, I take a couple of photo's noting identifiable marks such as a chest blaze, notched ear, snout color, etc. I record all measurements. I've seen other taxidermists takes pictures of the client with the animal which is probably a good policy. Stick to your guns. By the way, how many bear did you do last year. Being a taxidermist for only a couple of years I'd bet you didn't do that many bear. It may be easier to prove that this is in fact your client's bear. Good luck!