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Hypothetical question.....imagine you have hunted a species unimportable to the US. It winds up being stored for a period of years by your taxidermist. There is never a mention of costs for this on your invoice and when you pay your deposit. Three years later when you are building a home in the country (solving their storage problem) you get an email from them saying "we are tired of storing these animals for US hunters so are now charging $35 per month for the service....YOU OWE US 1200 EXTRA dollars for the last three years' storage"! WTF??!?!?!??!??!?!  John | ||
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Sounds like you are being ripped off! For $35 a month per trophy I'll happily store some for you? ;-) I can imagine the taxidermist getting tired of indefinitely hanging on to trophies for which there is no indication that they can enter the US, but billing you after the fact doesn't seem kosher. Frans | |||
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DONE! You pay the shipping on a pair of 5x5x5 crates across Canada and we're in business!  Seriously, I can understand storage being a tiresome aspect of the business too. But remember that we are talking about hides and skulls here as well and NOT finished mounts so storage is less of an issue. As for billing retroactively, it's a bit like the bedouin here saying that camel rides are $5 at the pyramids but then demanding another $10 if you want them to make the camel kneel so you can get off the bloody thing when it's over. JMHO, John | |||
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if this is the exact email then you need to email them back and tell them that the "rent" starts the day the email was sent, per THEIR writing. It does read, "so are NOW charging $35/month...." Now means Now, not retroactive. Sounds like a newly enstated "business" policy, thus, rent began when they decided to "change policy." If you agree to the terms, which it sounds like you must, tell them an amicable agreement on your part is to pay storage fees from the initiation of the new policy they suddenly decided to use. However, and sadly so, you failed to ask the right questions at the beginning of the arrangement. This is not a new scenario in the history of taxidermists. Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my guns | |||
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Hey, John welcome to my world. The SOB in Alberta still has my muskox and caribou and he will no longer return my atemps to contact him. As least I didn't send him any money. I hope the SOB is happy with them. ______________________ | |||
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What type of critter would a guy not be able to import into the US? One more reason why I think taxidermists (99%) are no good P.O.S. MG | |||
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Your screwed. What are you going to do sue him? I'd bad mouth the hell out of them on every board on the internet. Complain to SCI. Good luck. | |||
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Madgoat... Certain types of bison... John, PM sent Mike Never under estimate the internet community's ability to reply to your post with their personal rant about their tangentially related, single occurrence issue.  What I have learned on AR, since 2001: 1. The proper answer to: Where is the best place in town to get a steak dinner? is…You should go to Mel's Diner and get the fried chicken. 2. Big game animals can tell the difference between .015 of an inch in diameter, 15 grains of bullet weight, and 150 fps. 3. There is a difference in the performance of two identical projectiles launched at the same velocity if they came from different cartridges. 4. While a double rifle is the perfect DGR, every 375HH bolt gun needs to be modified to carry at least 5 down. 5. While a floor plate and detachable box magazine both use a mechanical latch, only the floor plate latch is reliable. Disregard the fact that every modern military rifle uses a detachable box magazine. 6. The Remington 700 is unreliable regardless of the fact it is the basis of the USMC M40 sniper rifle for 40+ years with no changes to the receiver or extractor and is the choice of more military and law enforcement sniper units than any other rifle. 7. PF actions are not suitable for a DGR and it is irrelevant that the M1, M14, M16, & AK47 which were designed for hunting men that can shoot back are all PF actions. 8. 95 deg F in Africa is different than 95 deg F in TX or CA and that is why you must worry about ammunition temperature in Africa (even though most safaris take place in winter) but not in TX or in CA. 9. The size of a ding in a gun's finish doesn't matter, what matters is whether it’s a safe ding or not. 10. 1 in a row is a trend, 2 in a row is statistically significant, and 3 in a row is an irrefutable fact. 11. Never buy a WSM or RCM cartridge for a safari rifle or your go to rifle in the USA because if they lose your ammo you can't find replacement ammo but don't worry 280 Rem, 338-06, 35 Whelen, and all Weatherby cartridges abound in Africa and back country stores. 12. A well hit animal can run 75 yds. in the open and suddenly drop with no initial blood trail, but the one I shot from 200 yds. away that ran 10 yds. and disappeared into a thicket and was not found was lost because the bullet penciled thru. I am 100% certain of this even though I have no physical evidence. 13. A 300 Win Mag is a 500 yard elk cartridge but a 308 Win is not a 300 yard elk cartridge even though the same bullet is travelling at the same velocity at those respective distances. | |||
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Well I sure am glad that I am in the 1% of taxidermists that MG likes.haha I would never back-charge a guy for anything. BUT, I would notify the customer, give him 30 days to move the items or charge a fee to store them. Retroactive charges are plain wrong, but so is expecting a business to provide a service with no reimbursement. I hope you can set him straight and then get your animals moved. | |||
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JTG, Has the taxidermist mounted the buff for you? Were you going to have him do that before they sent it to you in Egypt, or were you wanting them to send the cape, skull, horns, backskins to you so you could have them done in Egypt? If you were wanting him to just send them your way, he does deserve some type of reimbursement for storing the stuff, especially if he was led to believe he would get the business of the taxidermy work. Storing stuff for free, or not letting him do the taxi work and just charge for the shipping isn't right. He's not running a non-profit organization there. He's got bills for renting or leasing the space his building sets on (or is paying taxes), has electric bills, etc... 3 years is a long time to get nothing for it. Not sure why hunters would leave the taxi work at the shop if they can't import the animals to their home country. If you do, you should be charged for storage until things are sorted out, or at the very least the taxi gets to do the work for where the animals are donated or sold. | |||
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This retroactive shit won't hold up,but it could cost thousands taking it to court. You signed into a contract with this guy and it it didn't include the $35 a day,you aren't responsible for it. The day of notification of this fee is the start date. Hell if the $35 a day deal was retroactive.You'd be better off letting someone else buy your mount from the taxidermist,if he sells all unclaimed work and buy it back. | |||
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John, Is this a local tacidermist? If it is, let me know and I will have a talk with him. If you need a safe place to store your bison, I am sure the Hidden Valley School would be happy to hang it up HIGH in thier vaulted ceiling. Hidden valley is the school that I have been doing most of the bison hunts for. That storage fee is bull shit. Daryl | |||
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All, Thanks for the empathy! I agree that indefinite and free storage is not something to be expected on my part. However, the minute storage became an issue for them, they should have said something....not three years later. None of us thought it would take so long for importation to be legalized. To answer another question, I have always intended to have the mounting done there so they knew they were never going to get stiffed out of making a bit of money on that end of the deal. I would NEVER have anything mounted in Egypt and shipping here would exceed the price of taxidermy anyway. This is what's ironic about the situation, I am building a house in Canada at this point so I am probably the only American that they are storing animals for who is actually working and spending big bucks to get the animals out of thier freezer! Daryl, They are local but I don't want to talk smack about them publicly. I'm sure you can figure out who we are talking about without any effort at all. Really, they have been kind to hold on to it this long and for this reason alone I can't be TOO pissed off..but that DOES NOT mean I am paying $1200. I like your school idea! Not a bad idea if I weren't putting that place together on the lake! Your guy ever get back to you on the cost of his notched logs? Thanks, John | |||
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U.S. hunters cannot import Pacific Walrus, Atlantic Walrus, Wood Bison or Polar Bear if taken from certain populations. There may be others but these are the most obvious.
Both of your statements make the assumption that I was pulling the rug out from under them. I was not. In fact, they know I am building a place nearby in Canada and therefore they will CERTAINLY be doing the taxidermy work for me. I have seen Egyptian taxidermy and it ain't pretty! Further, I agree that storage should be paid for but not retroactively at an arbitrarily determined price. My annoyed response last night was based on the random nature of the decision. Why $35 per month? Why not $100 or $200 or $300..."Mr. Smith, even though there was no mention of it before, we have decided you owe us $500 per month retroactively for the last five years for storing your Caribou...please sign over your truck title or sacrifice your capes"?!?!?! Businesses in a contactual arrangement can't just arbitrarily decide (thus breaking the initial contract) that you owe them money and how much that should be. As for hunters being willing to leave unimportable capes at the taxidermist...understand that, when I lived in the US, it was widely speculated that this species was to be importable within the year. Didn't happen. So, if you can't bring the bull to the hunter, bring the hunter to the bull! I'd be lying through my teeth if I said that the rarity of this species and wanting to DO RIGHT by the animals I hunted didn't play a role in my decision to build a cabin up there. That's what got my ire up last night...the apparent willingness to use capes and horns as a bargaining chip when they should be thought of as so much more. Anyway, all is well now! The taxidermist did the right thing and I am doing the right thing paying for all my tanning up front (something they usually build more into the total finished mounting price that is paid on delivery). I got no problem with a business needing to maintain cash-flow and I'll keep sending my work to these guys. Best, John | |||
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Contacted a lawyer north of 60 and had a nice conversation with JudgeG last nigtht about this after sending a nasty (maybe too nasty) email to the taxidermist. Maybe it was an overreaction on my part but I was having nightmares about my capes being held hostage! Anyway, I got a VERY nice email today from the taxidermist essentially saying "Yup, you are right that we shouldn't and won't retroactively charge you but try to understand our frustration with these critters piling up". I think they just got worried (probably rightly) that the deposits they were getting (not just from me but everyone) weren't even covering their tanning costs and many clients may never have the things mounted if they don't become importable. I can see how this would be a cashflow problem for them. At any rate, we straightened it out and all is well. The cabin is hopefully going in this summer and will be just big enough to fit two big shaggy critters on the wall (with a bit of room left over for the fiancee and I).  Best, John | |||
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This is a great idea I am going to charge my taxidermist for mounts not done yet that were delivered to him in the spring of 02! | |||
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Jagter, Exactly....just a change of policy! I got an email last night from someone who read this and he suggested, "pay them in full when you pick everything up but cancel the check...justify it on the basis of a 'policy change'".  I would never do this but I thought the suggestion made a great point. Seriously, we got it all straightened out and all parties are content. Best, John | |||
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John, I didn't mean to assume anything bad on your part (note that I wrote "IF"). I certainly didn't mean to accuse of doing that, but given the frustration the taxis are probably feeling from what you wrote as too many hunters leaving their hides, capes, horns with the taxi and not collecting them, I was trying to play "devil's advocate", I guess. I can understand your dismay at the arbitrary sum, but can also understand the taxi's frustration. Hope it works out for the best for both of you. | |||
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I know you weren't accusing me and it would take a real jerk to do as you suggest. I obviously understand their frustration as well. It would suck to have these relatively small deposits for years hoping to make a buck on the mounting that never happens AND THEN have to essentially pay to store the things. If life were fair, the taxidermist would make the outfitter store the capes and all as he is the one making the bucks on the deal in the short run. Failing that, I think charging for storage is fine...just not randomly deciding what is "fair" for you and them imposing that upon a customer FOR THE LAST THREE YEARS?!?! Best, John | |||
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