Originally Posted by ccsbflo

I'm no hunter, I'm an antique/vintage dealer,

So, you don't know how old the bear is. I've shot more than my share of bear and I know for a fact a skin that small is either a cub or a yearling.


having trouble selling the bear elsewhere because they actually are not allowed to be hunted in many places, which I'm sure you know.

Actually the black bear is the second most popular animal hunted in the USA. With the exception of the plains states they occur just about everywhere and I'm betting at least 35-40 states and all of Canada have bear hunting season.

Regardless, I know you wont find a bear less than that. Atleast not the average online shopper. I looked for hours and didn't find anything less than 1600 or so. And I know a full rug is worth a lot more than a pelt, considering the well preserved head, teeth, claws etc. Bear heads I've seen for sale alone run a few hundred dollars. And claws atleast 150. Just a pelt around the price I'm looking for but that's just a pelt.

Want to bet. Took me less than 2 minutes to find 3 for a lot less than you're asking. Maybe you need a better search engine.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Taxi...-/171707045511

http://boise.craigslist.org/search/sss?query=bear%20rug

https://for-sale.yakaz.com/black-bear-rug

And while antique may mean nothing to you it means a lot to many people. There are a lot of people who would but that sort of thing antique for the novelty of it but would never buy it new. Bear rugs were a really iconic thing and owning an old is a lot different for many people than buying a new one would be.

Not when it comes to taxidermy. The techniques from the 1930's are nowhere near as good as they are now. Since the black bear is readily available a rug now will be much better quality and will be better tanned than one that is 80 years old.