On a crisp fall afternoon while leaving the Denver Zoo, my husband Jerry turned to me and announced “I want to go to Taxidermy School” Nervous but trying to keep the panic out of my voice I said, “Jerry we have a baby and a mortgage and you want to quit your job to become a taxidermist?” “Are you crazy?” “We are going to starve!”

I had never given any thought to taxidermy as anything other than dusty old heads in Grandpa’s dark musty basement. I had a lot to learn about taxidermy and the amazing strides being made to improve and advance an ancient craft.

I proudly say I took a deep breath and went on to encourage Jerry to pursue his passion to become a Master Taxidermist. In the almost 20-years we have been in this business I have been fortunate to see my husband along with many other visionary artists strengthen and positively enhance the world of taxidermy. Never have I regretted taking the step of faith, both in God and my husband to change from a career with great pay and full benefits, one which his entire family had been deeply involved in for generations, to a career we weren’t entirely sure we could feed our growing family on.

When a person is able to earn a living while surrounded by people and pursuits he is passionate about, then he is successful in more ways than simply financially. This business is one of artistic creativity as well as a comradeship among people of like interests. Days go fast when you are engrossed in tales of the hunt. While preserving beautiful memories for customers or friends, you get to help them relive some of the greatest days of their lives.

In this article I will address some issues, as well as share some experiences we have had along our taxidermy journey. Consider carefully your choice to enter into a career of taxidermy. It is not always easy and will take some degree of sacrifice initially, but it can be incredibly rewarding and satisfying to be in a business you and your whole family can participate in and be proud of.

Taxidermy as a business can keep you very busy all year or for a few weeks as a hobby. For example, many times men and women have come to our school to take our Gamehead course to mount the elk they harvested that year. After going home with the animals they mount in class, word spreads to the community and soon they have heads to work on for all of their friends. Another common scenario is a student taking an individual course such as the Fish course and coming back to take the rest of the program because they are asked to mount other animals or birds. Customers who find a good taxidermist usually want a full service professional to mount all of their trophies, but if you want to specialize in only one area, other taxidermists may send their clients to you for that species. A hobby can turn into a career quickly depending on how much work you want to take in or how many friends you have!

Start up costs can be minimal with the purchase of necessary tools and supplies for working in your garage or workshop. Expenses can also be elaborate with the construction of a new building, all of the bells and whistles, or somewhere in between. It is reasonable to start slowly with only what you need for your initial projects and build your business investment over time.

Tony learned about bears from the inside out!

In our case, Jerry completed his training and began working on customer mounts part time in our garage. After a year he was able to quit his job to work on taxidermy as a full time career. We didn’t have to advertise, Jerry just passed his card out to people and the word spread. We did have to make some initial sacrifices, both financially and in our time together, but soon I would find our kids sitting on Daddy’s workbench dressed only in their diapers, picking apart eyeballs and getting in-depth anatomy lessons!

Training for taxidermy comes in various forms such as books, videos, and taxidermy schools. There are pros and cons to each method, so careful thought needs to go into your choice. Several books and videos are on the market, but taxidermy is a craft in which hands-on training is best. Suppose you are trying to learn how to mount a fish from a book or video and your fish has a problem that is not addressed. Ruining a beautiful mount would frustrate many people into never trying something they may very well have been good at with proper training. Would you trust the engine of your car to someone who has only seen one fixed watching a video? Why would your customers trust their precious and expensive mounts to the same?

Daddy mounted Casey and Kelley’s first fish

If you choose to attend a taxidermy school, one thing to keep in mind, a taxidermist may be very talented and turn out amazing work, but have no ability to teach his skills to a student. Finding a good teacher who shows you everything he knows and who challenges you to stretch yourself is worth the effort to seek out. A teacher who shows you the basics while challenging you to solve problems on your own is a treasure. We find that students who are not afraid to try new things or who are self starters adapt well to this business. If you want taxidermy to be the source of your livelihood, then you need to have confidence in your own abilities. In your shop it is you and your customer with all of the problems as well as the victories. Your instructor won’t be in your shop to, so helping you to build confidence in your own abilities is very important to us.

Some taxidermy schools offer on-site housing while you stay. Students, exchange notes, hunting stories or go fishing on the weekends. We love to take our students hunting and fishing while they are here. It is great to share our beautiful state with them. Frequently we hear students say they don’t want to go home because they have grown so close to each other and our instructors. That is the kind of atmosphere to look for in a taxidermy school.

How your instructors teach is also a very important consideration. In our mind’s eye we may know what an apple looks like. If asked to, we will draw exactly what is in our mind’s eye.

The trick is to learn how to draw a specific apple while looking at it or a photo of it. Many teachers can show you a “paint by number” way to mount your animals or paint your fish, but showing students how to “see” animals from personal photos, reference photos or while taking a field trip to view live animals is where a good taxidermy teacher shines.

There are many schools out there who teach students using their own customer work, similarly to beauty schools. These schools may be teaching you good techniques, but do not allow you to take your mounts home. Make sure you know you will be able to take your mounts home to start your own showroom. How can your potential customers evaluate your work if you don’t have anything to show them?

How long a school has been in business, are they as good standing with their state school regulatory board? If the school has been in business for a time, the state board will also know them well and will require them to meet certain standards. In Colorado for instance our school is required to meet strict guidelines. This insures our customers that we are not just a fly by night school.

Is your school approved for Veterans Education Benefits? The Veterans Administration is also very strict about the schools they are willing to approve. The Veterans Administration is a great place to get funding if you are either a veteran or a family member of a veteran. Make sure you give them a call to see if you are eligible and to find out how the process works. We work with several veterans each year but the paperwork process can take a little time to get worked out.

Is your potential school able to work with vocational rehabilitation agencies? We train many men and women who have been disabled in other occupations. Taxidermy is well suited to people who have been hurt and who want to renew their lives. If you are in a situation such as this, please contact a voc/rehab counselor to help you with your benefits. Many times they will pay for your school tuition entirely as well as tools, supplies and housing.

Jenny wants to be just like Dad

Jerry and I have been so fortunate to have been in this business. We have met some of the most wonderful down to earth people from all over the world. We even had a student come to us from Taiwan who barely spoke English. He thought he was in Tax accounting school and we were all completely stunned that first day when he asked “What is Taxidermy?” After Jerry explained things, he decided to stay and we all loved every minute of his program. He had never been around animals in his whole life and it was an amazing time for us all to share his new experience.

Taxidermy has been a large part of my life for many years now. I went from wanting nothing “dead” hanging in my home to designing an entire home around the proud moments my family shares together from the hunting trips clear through to hanging their mounts in the house. Each child in our home has their own trophies in their bedroom and our teenage girls especially love to show new boyfriends the many animals they have shot! Daddy loves that the boys who come over to meet us know our girls can shoot straight and well!