arthritis and a bad back i am selling out, I sure hate this been doing it since 1992 part time and only 61, I have a hard time anymore skinning anything , I use to clean and repair mounts for Cabela's in Kansas city sure enjoyed it . getting older

I feel your pain. I did deer mounts on the side. Everything was done by hand, fleshing etc. Hands just can't do it anymore.

I hope You Stuffed enough away for a different hobby in retirement.

I have it coming on too.

Sorry to hear that Trapper-Ed.

Maybe shift gears and take on a student or maybe a few.

I hear all you guys. After years of mechanical work, my hands are covered with scars, solvents have ruined the skin requiring daily lotions. Opening and closing the hands is like a rusty strap hinge on a long abandoned outhouse!

I envy your talents. What was your favorite animal or fish to work with?

What changes did you see in your career? I remember when deer hides were "pickled" in oak barrels before mounting. Fish were skinned and then painted, no fiberglass models.

Understand completely and feel your pain.

I be 67 in 2 days and just went after hybrids for 2 days with my son and grandson..
getting around the boat was a big job for me. More than I thought it would be. Bad knee and back.

Going try keep trapping and doing what I can. But it is what it is..

Keep doing what you can as long as you can. We have to make do with what we have.

Good luck to us all

Start keeping bees . Sure helps with my arthritis.

How does beekeeping help with arthritis?

The idea is getting stung from time to time keeps it in check.

Sorry to hear Trapper-ED. Shoot me a pm. I'm in NM Missouri myself. Where are you located?

i tell everyone make all the plans you want , just be will to change them, good luck with what ever decide to do next

The bee venom from getting stung does something in your body and relives arthritis pain. The first time I herd about it it was a special on TV about bee sting therapy. People were paying to get stung. They were very specific about where they would sting them about like acupuncture.

I thought well they can sell people an anything. Fools will buy into anything
Several years later I started keeping bees. I all of a sudden my hands were hurting. It would go away then come back weeks later. What's going on? I finally figured it out. Arthritis I have came on gradually and I didn't notice it much untill it was gone then came back. It took me a while but I figured out after I got stung my hands didn't hurt for a while. When I have not been stung for a period of time they hurt again. Then I remembered that show I saw years back and thought hmmm guess there was something to it after all.

Bee venom kills breast cancer cells. They are working on making synthetic bee venom and how to get it into the location of the cancer.

It's interesting to read up on all the things bee venom can do. GOD gave us all we need to work with when he made the world. We just need fo figured out how to use it. God gave us big brains for figuring out that part.

Time marches on and it waits for no one .No disrespect to anyone; but the opposite of getting old is dying young I have a few years on you and it does not get easier. It sounds like you enjoyed your years as a taxidermist . When I was still working I liked my job so going to work was not the worst thing in the world.If you plan to keep working try to find something where you work with customers that will appreciate your efforts GOOD LUCK

Well Trapper Ed, welcome to the "Retired Taxidermist Association"! I shut the doors on my studio the first week of January 2017. I still do the occasional mount for my All Purpose Boy, but I gotta tell you......I do NOT miss working 6 days a week at it. I guess I got burned out more than I realized. My being diagnosed with "Furrier's Lung" (taxidermist version of Black Lung) was the reason I quit. Too many years sniffing hair particles. Now, except for taking care of my Bride, I'm living the life of the idle rich! Lol
Good Luck to you.