If I were to get a full body mount of a turkey, would I be able to eat the meat? If so, what steps should I do in order to preserve the turkey until I can get it to the shop? The shop is closed on the weekends.

Yes, you can eat the meat, prolly just the breast though. tell the taxidermist you want the meat or if you are you are good breast him out yourself, don't pluck or lose any feathers though. Put the turkey in a bag in the freezer.I mounted my own turkey on Monday. It was hard work on the first one but I learned alot.

Hey butch dont who have to get a turkey first? lol j/k. yea on the full body mount be sure you dont loose any feathers and ass long as its in the freezer it will keep for a couple days so just take it to the taxidermist on monday and he will take the meat out for you. at least thats what mine did.

The two birds Igot mounted I kept in the freezer wrapped as air tight as I could get it. I did get on both the birds the meat back but I ended upgiving it to my taxidermist for giving a deal on the cost of the mounts. My brother this year is having two full body mounts done and one is with my taxidermist and the other from a guy in southern PA. The guy in PA told him he doesn't give the meat back because of "health reasons". The guys afraidhis customers might get sick so he "supposedly" throws the meat away! I personally think the guy has a freezer full of turkey breast for all the turkeys he mounts.Then again the guy might have a good point about people getting sick if they or himdidn't freeze it right away.

I afraid that the turkey that you'll end up wanting to have mounted won't be able to be salvaged meat wise. Unless you know 100% of what your doing to remove the birds skin/cape, don't try it. You'll end up screwing up a nice mount if you do. My 2 cents on it.

My taxidermist is doing a "shoulder and fan mount" of my 2nd gobbler this year. We just finished off the skinned turkey he gave back to us.