Caping Your Trophy for a Shoulder mount

LoriMikkelsen — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 03:55:00 +0000

Even before you begin caping your trophy, it is important to remember that everything that you do in the field affects the final mount you will receive back from your taxidermist. Several things to keep in mind are to avoid dragging your trophy long distances and against the hair. Field dress immediately upon kill and stop your incision where the ribs meets the breast bone. Avoid making any cuts up into the sternum/breast bone. Deliver to your taxidermist immediately. Remember the fresher the specimen, the better the mount.

First step in caping a Trophy

The first step in caping an animal is to make a ring around the mid-section. This should be located where you stopped your field dressing incision, where the ribcage meets the sternum/breastbone.

Position the blade of the knife toward the meat.

Carefully skin down over the shoulders towards the front leg. Position the knife blade towards the carcass while pulling the hide away from the body. This will prevent accidental cuts in the cape. Note a warm specimen will cape more easily than one that has been allowed to get cold.

Avoid cutting into the armpit area.

Before beginning this next step, remove the lower portion of the leg at the knee joint. Then make an incision up the back side of the leg, where the white and the brown hair meet, stopping a couple inches short of the elbow.

Remove the hide from the front leg

After skinning down over the shoulder continue skinning down the shank/forearm of the leg eventually being able to pull the leg through the tubed hide.

Tubing the second leg will come easier than the first.

Still tubing the second leg…

If the leg has been tubed out properly it should look like this and there should be no cuts into the brisket or into the armpit region.

Proper leg tubing prevents any cuts up into the brisket and/or armpit.

When removing the neck off of your trophy make sure to leave approximately 6″ of neck meat. This will allow enough meat for your taxidermist to get proper carcass measurements to ensure an accurate fitting form.

Leave 6" of neck meat with your cape

This shows a poperly caped whitetail

For more information on Caping your trophy go to:

http://www.inyourbackyardiowa.com/videos_hunting_taxidermy.html

Dan’s 2011 Late Season Bowkill

LoriMikkelsen — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:53:57 +0000

After not being able to hunt a whole lot during the early bow season, I was fortunate enough to harvest this 140 inch 9pt. buck on January 7, 2012 during the late bow season

Merry Christmas

LoriMikkelsen — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 18:56:38 +0000

We at Dan’s Wildlife Creations would like to thank everyone that has graciously supported us over the last year. We hope that you have a Very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year. May you stay safe and keep the true meaning of the season close to your heart.

Lake-Link Photo

Dan's Wildlife Creations — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 23:00:29 +0000

As seen on www.lake-link.com/

Chris Olson

LoriMikkelsen — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:48:28 +0000

Congratulations Chris!!!

Tyler Mikkelsen

LoriMikkelsen — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 17:44:30 +0000