Taxidermy Job?
 

When I get out of school(way to long away)I plan on being a taxidermist but I have questions
1)What school,&what state
2)How good of pay is it
3)Will I have to have a job in the summer/winter...everyone is trying to tell me not to be a taxidermist cause they say you can only work 3 months out of the year..true or not?

Here is the deal son. Start out tinkering while young (now I suppose) and get a feel for it to see if it is something you would like to do. Get some videos, books ect ect ect..... The pay can be good and I know full timers making 50 - 75k or more a year. Here is the catch, they have been in the biz a long time in order to reach that clientele level. Work must be very good to outstanding to compete with the mounts that some guys are getting $600+ for. You will have a job all year long given you have enough mounts with goes back to the latter. As a matter of fact if you get good enough, professional enough and run it right you will have enough work till your blue in the face. Remember some large studio's get work allot of work in the summer too because the hunting seasons on the other side of the planet are opposite of ours. Mount a 10 animal African safari and depending on the mount\type life size\shoulder mount you can make what some guys take a year to make. Also by the time you get your hides back from the tannery in 2-4 months you will be swamped all the time. You are basically working on last years kills the following season (again if you are busy) You will be skinning and mounting all winter long! For your last question about schools, there are many and many good ones. Some go straight to schools and others (like me) max there skills out and feel a professional (competition judge or advanced class) will hone your skills. Some schools have actual reference there (live animals) so you can study anatomy.

Any more questions? LOL

How long did it take you to get where you are today?....exactly where are you after that much time like are you at the point where you said"Year around work"....what school did you go to?.....I have alot of questions it is something I would like to do but without a studio how do I start you said "Start out tinkering while young (now I suppose)"what do I need equipment whise and what do I do afterwards(after the equipment?

I am just going in full time this year (along with another side biz) it took my 5 years to get where I am at. Could have done it faster if I would have dove into it. There was actually a time where i turned work away! No school, did the learn from video thing then joined my state taxidermy association, entered taxi competitions, worked some contest, networked out through hunting clubs, posted flyer's in sporting goods stores ect ect ect.....You don't need much for equip just to start out but talk to people in the know so you don't buy what you don't need. I made all my mounting stands, paint booth, got used freezers and equip.

If you need pointers let me know. BTW where are area of the country are you from?

I started out on my own and do it as a hobby.

I have been doing taxidermy for 6years now and have more than enough to keep me busy as I want to be.

I learned from talking to another taxidermist and helped him on and off for about a year or so. Watched videos and read ALOT ALOT....

First critter I mounted was a grey squirrel I killed.
MAKES EXCELLENT BEGINNER FIRST

cheap, easily accessible for another if you screw up

I am just south of Little Rock

Go to http://www.taxidermy.net Any questions you have they have an answer for you check out the beginning section first. Also subscribe to some of the trade magazines and order all of the catalogs from the books, they are all free. You will learn a lot of the beginning stuff. Good Luck

Yeah I asked someone about it last night and saw taxidermy.net they said it was helpful they told me to click on Van Dykes to buy the equipment etc. their I had my eye on this...http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/cat...&setPerPage=12

is it way to early for me to buy it...do i need the videos and magazines first?or do i need to buy it now?

Oh and I am from NW Arkansas...i have a question on the mounting although I am a ways away from that...lets say you buy a squirel kit and you shoot a squirel and your gonna mount it....what happens if the squirel you shots fur isnt big enough or is to big for the kit how do you fit it?also how do you put a fur on a squirel kit that has a 22 bullet in the head?

sorry one last question

rgswildlife "they are all free"

where are the free ones I have no problemo buying them but it wouldnt hurt to find a free one either ;)

answer
 

When you subscribe to the trade magazines (they are not cheap) all the catalogs are listed as ads in the contents. They have phone numbers you can call or address you can write too for there catalogs. The best trade magazine is Breakthrough there web address is http://www.breakthroughmagazine.com (985-345-7266) there superscription price is $32 a year for four issues. It is well worth it. They also have a lot of DVD's for sale. Vandyke was just bought out by Mckenzie Taxidermy Supply (1-800-279-7985)
Don't buy any kits, order a form that will match the animal you have in hand (don't shoot any thing you want to mount in the head.)Start with the catalogs and read everything about taxidermy you can find. Start slow and always practice, practice and practice some more. When You get good on say a squirrel then try a fox or a bird. Why pay up to $10,000.00 for a school when you have a lot of time to learn, and then the only thing you will lose, if it is not for you, will be some great times you spent working with nature. On http://www.taxidermy.net/ you could spend years reading all the info they have. Like I said start slow and learn. I hope this will get you started. Check out my web page in my signature below as I have a lot of info that might help. Good Luck

???????????

Have the animal in hand before you order the form.:poke:

oh ok sry i didnt see that