I just got my black bear back from the tanner. It was harvested in the last week of May, 2003. How long do I have before the tanned hide has to be mounted or made into a rug? I am in the process of shopping around for best work/price.

Any suggestions on how to best store the tanned hide over the next few weeks. I have it sitting on top of a bench in my living room at present.

Howdy!

Most tanneries will say that their tanned hides have a "shelf life" of about one year. After that the taxidermist may not be able to get the hide to stretch and conform to the mannikins as well as if it were freshly tanned.

If you are only talking about a month or so before you get it to a taxidermist, I wouldn't worry about it. If it is going to be any longer, I would suggest wetting the hide in a soak up solution, sweating it in the fridge for a couple of days, and then freezing it in a plastic bag. Once properly frozen the shelf life is indefinite.

If you decide to do that, let me know and I'll give you instructions on what all that means and how to do it.

Good luck!

JDS