I have never skinned or tanned any thing in my life. I just today harvested a Bobcat. My intentions are to do these things as a hobby. I have purchased the videos and text books for beginners from WASCO. How ever I think some advice from the pros will be more helpful.
Not expecting to harvest one of these things on my first trip out, I now have a cat and no game plan.
So far I have cleaned it up as far as wiping off most all blood and excrement, on the out side, wraped it in news paper and and tripple bagged it in plastic and put it into the freezer.
I want to do a full body mount. I have to take this thing out of the freezer before Feb 4th to be checked in and tagged by a conservation officer, so it is going to start thawing out. I figure this will be a good time to skin the animal and process the hide.
What is the best tanning methoid to use?
Do I need to start the body mount right away after skinning , or can I prep the hide and do the mount later?
What tools do you recommend for doing cats?
I forgot to mention cats and coyotes are the only thing I`m interested in doing.
One other thing, brother this thing really stinks, is this the norm for these animals? Wife has already said "NOT IN THE HOUSE"
Any advice will be appreciated, and I thank you in advance.
Ed
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Cats stink untill they are taken care of. I think you are biting off more then you can chew by trying a bob cat for a first project. First of all they slip easy. If you have never fleshed and turned anything then you will more then likely slip the hair doing so. The heat from your hands will slip it fast you need to be very proficiant at fleshing and turning to do small mammals. I would recommend trying to find a taxidermist who would skin and flesh it for you. Then you could send it out for tanning or do it in house, your choice.
Good Luck and don't get discuraged taxidermy is a great thing to learn. Jack F
i'm also a beginner, about 3 years experience. i skinned ,fleshed,salted, pickled,tanned,andmounted,a bobcat. lifesize. it was my second. the first was a large doe. i had no problems with slipping at all. just be very carefull, they're real,real thin. bob m.
I am a beginner too and I tan my skins with Krowtan. Easy to do for a beginner. Also don't defrost the cat completly just so the limbs can move. It will help with slippage. You can dry the skin first after salting it , tan it later or tan it right away.I find the second method better 2 jobs in one.
I think you need to invest in some good videos first for technics and tools required specially mounting a large animal like this. We are not talking squirrel here!
Good luck.
I always hear people say they have trouble with bobcats slipping but I`ve only lost one cat out of 175 bobcat mounts in the last 4 years..
I think a bobcat is a great first critter to do. For one the have small ears, short tails, and are fairly easy all around...stick with McKenzies forms...Do a dorsal incision to start off with..invert the legs clear to the last digit on each toe. It`s not required to make any cut but the one down the back(don`t cut down the legs). Put a small slit 1/2 inch long on the end of the tail so fluids/salt can run through the tail...
salt it over night and hang to dry...I usually hang mine in a heated room overnight...Next day I rehydrate if good and stiff...put in the pickle(safety acid) for 3 days...on the 2nd day I flesh and degrease with dawn then put it back in the pickle..Day 3 I neutralize it then rinse very well...Then I dry it with a towel and apply liqua tan..then it goes in the fridge over night...Next day I tumble and thin the facial area as thin as I can around the eye lids/nose/ lips, and around each whisker...I cut a slit on the back of the foot pads so when I put it on the manikin the legwire will pass through the foot...plus you`ll need to get in there anyhow so you can put apoxie in for the toes..
Prep the manikin---make your relief cuts under the legs--I use bondo on my ears with epoxie around the base of the ear so they stick to the manikin after I install the head..-set your eyes,..Cut the head off the manikin and do your facial work first...tuck the lips first, then the eyes, and then set the nose...somewhat place the ears where ya want them..
Slide the manikin down into your skin...bondo the head back on the manikin..start sewing...fill the toe areas with epoxie and walla..
www.travistaxidermy.net check out a few of the cats on my website for different ideas on some poses...click on small mammals..also you can click on my male lion and see some of the steps I just talked about...especially prepping the skin after tanning...In my opinion it`s one of the most important steps in Taxidermy....good luck
Sorry that should read I make a slit around the front of the foot pad..