Shipping Your Turkey
Courtesy of NWTF
Photos by Matt Lindler
Story by Jason Gilbertson
Preparing your Turkey for the Taxidermist
Printed Version
Part One: Deep Freeze Transportation
National award-winning wild turkey taxidermist Cally Morris of Hazel Creek
Taxidermy visited the NWTF's national headquarters the other day. We were lucky
enough to convince him to demonstrate how he prepares birds in the field for a trip
to the taxidermy shop. Morris' Green Castle, Mo., business takes in 900 to 1,000
turkeys each year, shipped by turkey hunters from all over North America.
Part one of this two-part series applies to hunters who have taken a turkey and will
have access to a cooling unit before the turkey is shipped.
To get your wild turkey ready for the freezer before shipping, follow these simple
tips:
Bringing the bird from the field:
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Take care of the bird from the second you shoot it.
Treat the turkey delicately, like a piece of glass. Grab the turkey by the legs
or handle the body, don't grab it by the head or drag it on the ground. Keep
the feathers from getting bent or dirty. Also, when transporting the turkey,
lay it on its belly, not its back.
When you get to camp and you're ready to package the gobbler for
shipping, lay it on its back and be careful to keep blood from dripping on the
feathers. If blood does get on the feathers in the field, you can wash them
off in a creek or back at camp.
Preparing the bird for freezing and transport:
If the head is bleeding, stick paper
towels in the turkey's mouth.
Roll the head in paper towels. Fold
towels over the head and tape
them closed.
Tuck the head inside the wing.
Fold the wings tight against the
turkey's body.
Pre-cut a piece of cardboard to
place over the tailfeathers and
feet. Do not tie the feet and
feathers together for any reason
inside the cardboard. (This is one
of the most important steps . . .
kinked tailfeathers are difficult to
repair.)
Put the turkey headfirst inside a
large plastic garbage bag. Roll the
bag over in a tear-drop shape,
handling the turkey by only its legs
or main body. Tape the bag.
Fit the cardboard around the
tailfeathers and feet. Tape or
staple the cardboard into position.
Lay the turkey in the freezer on its
side. In 36 to 48 hours, the turkey
will be frozen solid and ready to
ship.
Take the turkey out of the freezer
and wrap it in bubble wrap.
Set the turkey headfirst in a box.
You want the turkey to fit tight in
the box to prevent a lot of moving
around.You can usually find a box
at a local grocery store, Wal-Mart
or moving company. If there are
old labels on the box, tear them
off, or mark them with a black
marker, so they do not confuse the
shipping route.
Shipping Tips
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Always ship your turkey to the taxidermist on a Monday if possible, and
never on a Thursday. If you send it out in the later part of the week, there's a
chance it could get misdirected and sit in a terminal over the weekend,
thawing out and ruining your prize. A wild turkey will take about two days to
dethaw.
Depending on where you ship the turkey, expect to pay $15 to $20 in
packing supplies and $35 to $45 for shipping costs.
Be sure you have the taxidermist's proper address. Never ship to a P.O.
box. Ship only to a street address.
Include in the box with your turkey: Your name, address and phone number,
and be ready to discuss the pose of your wild turkey mount.
Shipping Your Turkey Heads for Freeze Dry Service
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Cut head off and freeze as quickly as possible.
Freeze heads in a small amount of water in a Ziploc bag.
Mark either the Ziploc bag (with a permanent marker) or the head with the
customer name and pose.
Place heads in a trash bag and triple bag or ship in a disposable water tight
container.
Put in a box and insulate with newspapers. It is very important to make sure
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your package does not leak as it thaws.
Ship your head Next Day Air UPS.
Please enclose a packing list with your heads (you may use the shipment
form located on this site.) Include on it, your name, address, phone #, and
complete list of heads and positions.
*If your heads are sent to us fresh and frozen, the quality of your heads will be
noticeably better.
*If we receive your heads brown and thawed, you are going to lose a lot of detail
and quality, and possibly epidermis slippage.
*If leaking during shipment there is a good possibility that the shipping company
will throw your package away to prevent damage to other customer’s packages.
Using the Turkey Head Shipment Form
At the top of the form make sure to include your name, address, and phone
number.
Beside the “Payment” box, list how many heads you are sending in for freeze
drying and how many extra heads you have for sale\credit (if any). The
“Replacement Heads O.S.” section is for office use and does not need filled in on
your part. Then mark whether or not you want us to paint your heads.
Below, list the heads that you are sending in for freeze drying only. List each head
on its own line and include name, pose and whether there will be a turn in the
snood, neck, or both.
Return Shipment of Turkey
Your turkey will be shipped back via UPS for an affordable shipping and
handling fee. Call for details.
Floor Mounts
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Open up the top.
Remove the screws and support rods (support rods pull straight out) from
the turkey.
Unscrew the tail and take out of the box.
Unscrew the turkey from the bottom of the box.
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Take the turkey out of the box.
Re-attach the tail by pushing the wires into the holes on the back of the
turkey. Push the tail against the manikin and super glue or hot melt glue the
loose skin to the tail.
Limb Mounts
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Follow the instructions through step #5 (above).
Take the limb out of the 2nd box and hang on the wall.
Take the nuts off the bottom of the leg rods, hold turkey by the legs and
insert rods in the limb. Tighten the nuts up on rods.
Follow step #6 (above).
If your turkey head gets scratched during shipment, please call and we will send
you some paint to touch up the turkey head. If you have any questions, please give
us a call.