Tarantula Taxidermy/Preservation? L4 Services.

Bemottled

Arachnosquire
Joined
Dec 5, 2015
Messages
114
Hello, guys. Been awhile since I've been around, and wish I was coming back under better terms..

Awhile ago one of my boyfriend and Is Ts passed away. A handsome Aphonopelma seemanni named Sock.
We've both agreed it would be lovely to get him preserved in some manner. I've seen different forms/ways to do this floating around in the Arachnoboards facebook group; from preservation via taxidermy, to wet specimens to resin casting. We'd prefer a taxidermy-esque method of preserving him. I thought I could do it, (I used to dabble in taxidermy) but once I pulled him out to thaw I realized I couldn't, which is what brings me here.

Do you guys know (or have) any kind of mail-in service for tarantula taxidermy? There are definitely a few individuals here that are skilled with it, but I've never been certain on if they do mail-in or not.
A few things to note about him that might effect this;
  • The cats got to him. His abdomen isn't in great condition. We were planning on having him peeking out of a den/some flowers in order to hide this. We don't expect miracle work.
  • He's been frozen for a couple months. *I know this effects the ability to preserve the specimen* and if an experienced arthropod taxidermist on here knows that this makes our preferred preservation method impossible, please let me know.
  • We're both willing to pay shipping (We are in the midwest US) and of course the cost of labor. A quote of some sort before-hand would be welcome, though.
I'd also take any detailed guides you have on DIY(on any sort of preservation method), but it really is my last resort.

People have already run us (and the cat) through the mill on how he died. (Cats managed to open his cage, nothing to do with handling or anything stupid.) Please keep your responses civil in direct reply to the question.
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
17,851
There is an AB member that takes mail-ins. Don't recall name, you'd have to search for that person via some thread and creative search terms.
 

Bemottled

Arachnosquire
Joined
Dec 5, 2015
Messages
114
There is an AB member that takes mail-ins. Don't recall name, you'd have to search for that person via some thread and creative search terms.
I'll do some more digging and see if I can find anything new. Haven't had much luck so far :/
 

EulersK

Arachnonomicon
Staff member
Joined
Feb 22, 2013
Messages
3,292
Look into preserving it in resin. Note that the tarantula will absolutely darken in color a bit due to the exothermic reaction of resin hardening, but this is already a relatively dark species.

I'd practice casting resin a few times on wild caught bugs before you leap into doing it on her. You only get one shot, of course.
 

Rittdk01

Arachnoknight
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Messages
258
My two cats almost got my pinktoe Muffin last year. they got the top off and for some reason didn't kill her. I realized then that it wouldn't b safe to display my tarantulas above my fire place. they now have their own bedroom. I hope u can preserve your little buddy. maybe get another and have a locking lid or something.
 

Bemottled

Arachnosquire
Joined
Dec 5, 2015
Messages
114
Look into preserving it in resin. Note that the tarantula will absolutely darken in color a bit due to the exothermic reaction of resin hardening, but this is already a relatively dark species.

I'd practice casting resin a few times on wild caught bugs before you leap into doing it on her. You only get one shot, of course.
We looked at/considered this. It is our second choice, but we'd like to look into taxidermy if at all possible. It looks more natural.

On an unrelated note, I'd love to get into resin casting insects!

My two cats almost got my pinktoe Muffin last year. they got the top off and for some reason didn't kill her. I realized then that it wouldn't b safe to display my tarantulas above my fire place. they now have their own bedroom. I hope u can preserve your little buddy. maybe get another and have a locking lid or something.
The cats never showed any interest in the Ts before, so it came as a surprise. We weren't lax about it, of course; the lid in question had locks on it. (the swivel kind... kind of like brackets?) Anyways, the cats got their claws in, or the T pushed them out of place, maybe both. Didn't end well. We weren't at all expecting them to have the interest or patience to mess with the lid, given they didn't even look at the cages before.

I am glad Muffin was okay!
 
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