I took in a mountain goat the other day. The guy that brought it in picked it up from the old local taxidermist who bailed out on everyone and stopped doing their mounts. Its been three years since hes seen it. He got the form, eyes, ear liners and cape back. He brought it over to me to finish for him. The frozen cape is covered in mold. Have never seen this before. Problem? thanks Todd
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Todd, mold is mold is mold.It needs three things, 1. something to grow on 2. moisture 3.warm air, given that, it had to be moldy Before it was frozen.Not knowing what kind of care it got before being frozen,makes it hard to even guess.Did it just sit around green before being frozen? was it salted,dried ,rehydrated,tanned and then sit around?only the owner and original taxi know for sure.To answer your question,Problem? I'de bet money the outcome probably wont be great.
It sounds like the guy soaked it up and let it sit out and mold.It is possible for it to mold,even if it weren't soaked,if it laid in a damp room long enough.I would thaw it out and see if the hair is tight.Then I would check to see how well the skin is holding up by doing the normal side to side stretching like you might do getting a cape ready to mount.Goats don't have a real long shelf life,but this one could still be OK.What you are checking for is to see if it wants to tear.The most tender places would be eyes,ears,nose,lips etc..Even minor tearing is not the end of the world.If you can get it on the form and mounted,once it is dry,it will be fine.If it wants to tear very easily,trash the project.After checking it out and if it seems OK,you can knock down the mold by rinsing it in a bucket of denatured alcohol.Be aware that you are handling a flammable liquid-outdoors would be best if that doesn't kill it,acetone will.Let it air out awhile and then keep it frozen until you can work on it.Chances are probably better than 50/50 that it will be OK.It's really worth the effort.Pull it off and you might have a customer for life.Thaw the skin and check it out before you make any plans.
What about stop rot? is this something it might work on?
her up with the denatured alcohol and give it a shot. The owner is pretty upset, but not at me. Wants to see what happens. Thanks for the advice