Many people ask me, "What happens to our trophies?" So I thought I would put a page on here about that. After all it's a side of a safari that there is so little talk of, but the trophies are the memories of the whole thing and while I am not an "inches man" I always try and get a good representation for people and in the case of a serious collector where we are looking for a few animals of exceptional quality, the measurements become all important.

Skinning
In every camp that you hunt there will be a skinner or team of skinners. These people are often invisible until you come back with something, but are ready to work at any time of day or night with astonishing speed and accuracy when it comes to caping, skinning and primary trophy handling. They often work late into the night as you sit by the fire with your drink chatting about the days hunt. These people are some of the most important people in the field and you certainly depend on them for your animals to arrive intact to your home! Once you have collected an animal, it should be skinned as soon as possible. As long as it is skinned within a few hours, and the weather is not terribly hot, it is fine.

Salting
In the case of elephant, buffalo, hippo, etc. where it may take a long time to recover, I always cut a few branches and cover the animal in leaves. Direct sun on a carcass for any length of time is not good. The skin is then soaked in brine for about 4 to 5 hours then placed on a layer of coarse salt and covered with at least 3 inches of the same. Be sure to pack extra into the nose, mouth, and around the lips etc. The salt will draw out the moisture quickly, and in the case of an elephant skin, it will literally draw several litres of water.

Drying & Treating
After a period of about three to six days the skins are removed from the salt and placed on racks in the shade to complete the drying process, a day or so before they get totally hard, they are folded into manageable sizes and that's how they will stay until they arrive at your taxidermist. Having been fully dried, they are transported to the "dip and pack agent’ who will treat them with insecticide and get all the necessary veterinary and export permits. These vary from country to country and in the case of elephant, leopard, croc and a few others, a cites (convention for the international trade in endangered species) permit will be issued.

Shipping
The trophies are then shipped to the taxidermist who will be preparing them for your trophy room! In the case of skulls, they are first skinned, and then placed in very hot, but not boiling water; (boiling water can crack teeth). The horn itself is not submerged. Having been "cooked" for several hours the skinners will then remove all the meat, brain and cartilage fromthe bone . In the case of horns, like kudu, where the sheath can be removed, this is done and the bone is core-cut to minimize weight for shipping. In some animals like buffalo, the nose is cut off for the same reason. The skulls then accompany the rest of the shipment.

Useful tips and things tocheck with your PH.

• 1. Check that all your trophies are correctly tagged with your name and contact information. It is always a good idea to bring your own tags. Always bring three times what you think you will use, (a buffalo cape and backskin with the feet for bookends will use 7 tags) Make sure that they are laminated and that you bring some plastic cable ties to attach them to the trophies as wire or string often perishes in the salt.

• 2. Check that all lips nose and eyes are correctly turned.

• 3. Make sure that you specify in detail what you want from each animal, ie capes, skull only etc. etc. Be sure to receive a list of what has been kept for you to avoid confusion later.

How to find a good taxidermist:
A taxidermist is an artist, someone who will bring your trophies back to life, someone with a feel for the animal and preferably someone who has seen them and hunted the them personally. It is well worth the research to find that person. I highly recommend The Wildlife Gallery Custom Taxidermy Studio in Blanchard, Michigan.. Their work is simply excellent, I have visited their studio several times and have seen truly exceptional work there.

Visit the The Wildlife Gallery's website. They are one of the finest taxidermisty studios I know:
www.TheWildlifeGallery.com