Aging out...what to do with trophies

[AlaskaHunter]

This is another reason I prefer euro mounts. Much easier to give away. I have two daughters but the one in Maryland probably will never want any of that stuff. My daughter here will probably never be able to afford a home big enough for my trophies. If her taxidermy business ever gets off the ground sufficient to warrant a shop, maybe some of it can be displayed there. I have capes for two kudu and sable tanned and ready to go. Those mounts would be for her business showroom. For now they are staying as euro mounts.

My hunting partner is also a pretty good amateur taxidermist he grew up learning from a pro.
Me not so much...the best I can do is a couple lag bolts.

 

[lpcoutdoors]

My hunting partner is now in his 80s and planning on selling his house
and downsizing. He had his house designed for trophies.

He has a North American grand slam of sheep that he hopes to donate to the University.
Other than that he has lots of heads including a Marco Polo sheep, a Boone & Crocket moose,
musk ox, bison, elk, caribou, African game, Australian game, etc.

Any tips on selling/donating all those heads/hides/skulls?

Donating them to an org that could dedicate the money, as a marketing push, to habitat restoration and or R3 programs would be awesome!

 

[Outdoor Writer]

I'm in the same situation. I'll be 81 in Nov. & not in good health. I have two rooms crammed with game & fish mounts & rugs from the U.S., Canada, Africa, New Zealand & Mexico. I doubt my kids will want them.

 

[PrairieHunter]

This thread reminds me of a lot of antiques. What people in older generations find valuable may lose much of that value to future generations.

The reality is some peoples kids, grandkids, etc will want the mounts, but many won't. It's hard to figure out what to do with some of that stuff as folks get older, shipping gets more expensive, some people going towards smaller homes or renting, not everyone liking dead animals on the wall, etc..

 

[OntarioHunter]

I'm in the same situation. I'll be 81 in Nov. & not in good health. I have two rooms crammed with game & fish mounts & rugs from the U.S., Canada, Africa, New Zealand & Mexico. I doubt my kids will want them.

Since you are a writer, I suggest typing out the stories for the best of the lot. Word processors make it easy to scan and strategically insert old photos, maps, sketches, punched tags, etc. I think you'll find those trophies will be easier to hand down if they have some colorful provenance attached.

Edit: Please feel free to share them with us. The stories with images I mean. It would be a welcome change from the barrage of childish gifs that seem to proliferate exponentially here.

 

[AlaskaHunter]

This thread reminds me of a lot of antiques. What people in older generations find valuable may lose much of that value to future generations.

The reality is some peoples kids, grandkids, etc will want the mounts, but many won't. It's hard to figure out what to do with some of that stuff as folks get older, shipping gets more expensive, some people going towards smaller homes or renting, not everyone liking dead animals on the wall, etc..

Yes for example a bull moose takes up lots of wall space!
It will be interesting to see how the house sells...it was specifically designed for a huge 2-story trophy room.
I think that would appeal to an artist that has lots of work to hang on 20 foot walls.

 

[Tradewind]

My neighbor has a trophy room that would rival any Cabelas. He "stored" a several mounts at a local hunting club
that is now closing. So he is putting them up for auction. I have spent a lot of time listening to the stories related
to each one that make them unique to him. I told him that will be lost on whomever gets it. he should at least write
a short story for each of the big game animals: time , date, place, circumstances. etc.

 

[Outdoor Writer]

Since you are a writer, I suggest typing out the stories for the best of the lot. Word processors make it easy to scan and strategically insert old photos, maps, sketches, punched tags, etc. I think you'll find those trophies will be easier to hand down if they have some colorful provenance attached.

Edit: Please feel free to share them with us. The stories with images I mean. It would be a welcome change from the barrage of childish gifs that seem to proliferate exponentially here.

I've already written many articles, including published ones that go back to some of my critters from the 1960s. I doubt they do anything to make my kids want to deal with them after I'm gone.

 

[OntarioHunter]

I've already written many articles, including published ones that go back to some of my critters from the 1960s. I doubt they do anything to make my kids want to deal with them after I'm gone.

Should be plenty of adult education opportunities available. Never too late for them to learn how to read and write.

 

[LopeHunter]

This thread reminds me of a lot of antiques. What people in older generations find valuable may lose much of that value to future generations.

The reality is some peoples kids, grandkids, etc will want the mounts, but many won't. It's hard to figure out what to do with some of that stuff as folks get older, shipping gets more expensive, some people going towards smaller homes or renting, not everyone liking dead animals on the wall, etc..

I am 61 with one living parent and one living aunt. That is it and then my generation are the patriarchs/matriarchs for our family. Many of us have kids and grandkids. Most of my possessions are investments so rather easy to unwind and distribute as we pass. We do have furniture that has been in the family 200 years, paintings, wildlife mounts, items we bought as traveled abroad such as pottery or carvings and whale tooth scrimshaw plus jewelry. Only the jewelry is of interest to the younger females. All the rest is mostly, and I understand this, "We already have too much stuff as we are preparing to downsize as the last kid heads to college", unwanted by males and females.

I have harvested zero world records and have mounts I never measured. Those mounts are all special to me and I have got my money's worth. I know people that would never hang an animal mount in their home they or a family member had not harvested but I would hang a bighorn ram as I accept that my multi-decade unsuccessful quest to draw a tag is likely going to end without a tag. I would never pass off the bighorn mount as something I harvested. I would place it next to the bighorn ewe I harvested on a double mount pedestal. I find a heavy-horned ram a symbol of the West. So, I may pick a ram mount up at an estate sale for likely $200 or less. I have actually seen mounts of deer and elk placed at the curb and have picked up some nice mule deer Euros that I stored in the garage and may make into a chandelier after retire.

I had a bug problem a decade ago so switched to Euros since then and zero regrets but do admire some of the mounts I have seen at Cabelas though my home is not as big as Cabelas!

 

[Outdoor Writer]

Should be plenty of adult education opportunities available. Never too late for them to learn how to read and write.

All three of my kids are in their late 50s. They all have their own lives to contend with and don't need me to add any complications for them. An despite their lack of reading/writing skills, they al have successful careers.

 

[Outdoor Writer]

I am 61 with one living parent and one living aunt. That is it and then my generation are the patriarchs/matriarchs for our family. Many of us have kids and grandkids. Most of my possessions are investments so rather easy to unwind and distribute as we pass. We do have furniture that has been in the family 200 years, paintings, wildlife mounts, items we bought as traveled abroad such as pottery or carvings and whale tooth scrimshaw plus jewelry. Only the jewelry is of interest to the younger females. All the rest is mostly, and I understand this, "We already have too much stuff as we are preparing to downsize as the last kid heads to college", unwanted by males and females.

I have harvested zero world records and have mounts I never measured. Those mounts are all special to me and I have got my money's worth. I know people that would never hang an animal mount in their home they or a family member had not harvested but I would hang a bighorn ram as I accept that my multi-decade unsuccessful quest to draw a tag is likely going to end without a tag. I would never pass off the bighorn mount as something I harvested. I would place it next to the bighorn ewe I harvested on a double mount pedestal. I find a heavy-horned ram a symbol of the West. So, I may pick a ram mount up at an estate sale for likely $200 or less. I have actually seen mounts of deer and elk placed at the curb and have picked up some nice mule deer Euros that I stored in the garage and may make into a chandelier after retire.

I had a bug problem a decade ago so switched to Euros since then and zero regrets but do admire some of the mounts I have seen at Cabelas though my home is not as big as Cabelas!

Even aside from all my trophy mounts, my 'collections' over the last 60+ years of everything hunting/fishing/outdoor related are extensive. I had already started to sell off a bunch of stuff several months back. Most of it through sites like this one but also on eBay. I sold a few dozen books -- a smidgeon of a collection of a few hundred. Many were signed by the authors, such as Pat McManus & other noted folks. Those sales amounted to about $5K & I haven't yet put a dent in what I have amassed. I paused for a bit to catch my breath, but will likely start selling again soon.

 

[Dave N]

You've got a whole new crowd here!

 

[Outdoor Writer]

You've got a whole new crowd here!

You mean for selling goodies or releasing my old age frustrations?

 

[Dave N]

You mean for selling goodies or releasing my old age frustrations?

Well, BOTH!

 

[Outdoor Writer]

I do have a couple unique mounts....

This one was done by Chris Krueger from my design. I used a frame from a video clip as the basis. The piece swept all the possible awards, including Best of Show, at a taxidermy show in Phoenix.

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This might be the only life-size mount of a wallaby in the U.S. It was done by Marc Plunkett.

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[Addicting]

That is a beautiful bobcat mount.

 

[Outdoor Writer]

That is a beautiful bobcat mount.

Thanks. Chris did a super job. He put a square steel rod up from the base through the snake. The cat has a female socket in its mouth that fits the rod & makes the cat removable when necessary.

 

[Outdoor Writer]

That is a beautiful bobcat mount.

These are a few more mounts Chris did.

Scimitar oryx...

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Texas whitetails...

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Coues deer...

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[PrairieHunter]

Yes for example a bull moose takes up lots of wall space!
It will be interesting to see how the house sells...it was specifically designed for a huge 2-story trophy room.
I think that would appeal to an artist that has lots of work to hang on 20 foot walls.

Yea I had a similar conversation with my mom recently as she was trying to get my brother or I to take here blue danube dishes. Neither of us wanted them even though she said they are valuable. Trophies, antiques, etc are all on the chopping block for the next generations.

Yes, wall space would certainly have some use for an artist and others I suspect.