Field care
Great shot, now let's make the best trophy out of it!
Every hunter knows the thrill of a perfect shot; that moment when instinct, patience, and skill come together. But once the bird is down, the story isn’t over. In fact, what you do in the next few minutes often determines whether your trophy can be preserved at its finest.
Field care is about respect: respect for the game, for the hunt, and for the memory you want to display for years to come. Birds are delicate, and their feathers can only tell the full story if they’re protected from the start. Blood, mud, heat, and rough handling can leave permanent marks. With just a little care in the field, you set the stage for a mount worthy of your pursuit.
Handling birds intended for taxidermy should be very different from handling those harvested solely for sport or the table. Treat your trophy gently. Instead of grabbing or carrying it by the neck or tail, or hanging it on a lanyard with the rest of your bag, hold it by the feet and keep it separate from the other birds. Even if that special bird is only mildly shot, the blood and fluids from others in the same brace can ruin its plumage. In the case of turkeys, reach the bird as quickly as possible after the shot and pick it up by the legs so it does not damage its plumage against the ground during the final struggle and flopping.
Protect the bird from its own body fluids, which can stain feathers and damage their fine structure. By tucking a small piece of paper towel into the mouth and down the throat, even using a simple field stick if nothing else is available, you can prevent major problems later. Wrapping the entire head in dry paper towel and covering it with a small plastic bag also helps contain fluids.
Once feathers become clogged with coagulated blood or crop fluids and are frozen in that condition, the microscopic damage to the feather barbs is irreversible. No matter how carefully and thoroughly we wash them afterward, they will never be the same. Clean feathers simply keep their fine structure intact and wash better, resulting in a smoother, more elegant finish in the final mount.
And while retrieving dogs are invaluable companions, it’s worth remembering that not all have a soft bite. Some may leave only light marks, but others can cause severe damage, leaving holes that require hours of repair, if they can be repaired at all.
IMPORTANT: Birds intended for taxidermy should never be dispatched with a finisher. The wound it creates not only requires extra repair but also causes blood and brain matter to leak, clogging feathers around a sensitive area such as the head.
The same applies to breasted birds. Cuts made in the field are rarely clean, leaving jagged openings, cut feathers, and clotted fluids, all of which directly reduce mount quality. Please do not sacrifice a special trophy for a few ounces of meat. Feather damage aside, taxidermists also rely on the original carcass for precise measurements in order to order or carve a form that fits accurately. For this reason, we strongly encourage hunters to leave the bird intact, avoid breasting, and certainly avoid skinning it.
When it comes to the feet, remember that in the field we cannot know whether the originals will ultimately be used or replaced during the taxidermy process. The safest approach is to treat them as if they will be preserved. Wrap them thoroughly with damp paper towel to prevent freezer burn.
Cast feet are becoming increasingly popular among taxidermists because of their realism and durability, showing every scale, wrinkle, and natural detail while eliminating shrinkage and vulnerability to insects. However, there are situations where using the original feet is preferable, either because they bear unique features such as scars or deformities that the client wishes to keep, or because they naturally conform to the shape of an irregular base.
Once tagged and carefully wrapped, your bird should be compact, secure, and cooled quickly to slow bacterial activity. Heat is the hidden enemy: keep it away from sunlight, body warmth, and car engines. Place it in a cooler with ice as soon as possible so it stays cool until it can be frozen. Just as important, do not allow the head, neck, legs, or wings to stick out; once frozen solid, these extended parts are highly vulnerable to breakage, sometimes beyond repair. The bird should be sealed in several layers of plastic to avoid dehydration and hence freezer burn, ideally two or three plastic bags, with as much air pressed out as possible from each one.
These details may seem small in the excitement of the hunt, but they are what separate a mount that looks “good enough” from one that stands as a true legacy piece. At Aix Taxidermy, our craft begins with what you bring us. Careful field preparation ensures your story is preserved in its finest form.
Download migratory bird tag
Download short version
