Deer Shoulder Mount
Never drag the deer out of the woods by it's head or hang it by it's head
Never tie a deer to the roof of a vehicle for transport. This can dry out the ears and lips and make skinning very difficult.
Never leave a deer or deer hide in direct sunlight. Sunlight and heat are terrible enemies if you are trying to preserve a trophy mount.
Never hose off the hide if it becomes soiled. If the hide becomes soiled with blood or dirt use a wet paper towel to wipe off as much of the soiling as possible. The guts of a deer are full of bacteria and if this gets on your hide and is then exposed to direct sunlight or heat you have created the perfect situation for hair slippage on your trophy mount.
Never cut the throat, down the back, or the chest. These cuts will require extra stitching to repair and therefore more money.
Field Processing for Shoulder Mount
1) Use a sharp knife to cut a complete circle around the deer at about the middle of the rib cage behind the front legs (1st cut). Make the same circular cut around the front legs just above the knee. Now make 2 separate cuts behind the front legs to connect each smaller circular leg cut to the larger rib cage cut.
2) After completing your 3 cuts pull the skin forward to expose the head/neck junction. DO NOT CUT DOWN THE BACK OF THE NECK INTO THE BACK. There is no reason to cut the cape down the back of the neck when skinning a deer. KEEP THE CAPE WHOLE.
3) Move about 3 inches down from the head/neck junction and make a deep circular cut. Cut through all the tissue down to the spinal cord. After the cut is complete grab the head at the base of the antlers and twist the head till it snaps away from the neck.
Before rolling your hide up to freeze double check one more time for obvious signs of soiling. If the hide is soiled wipe down with a wet paper towel to remove as much soiling as possible. The roll up the hide and put it in the garbage bag to place in the freezer. If you choose to transport to us immediately make sure it is kept in a cool place out of direct sunlight.