Bobcat is ready for the buyer.

Cat looks really good. Nice put up.

Wytex, that looks beautiful. Put up looks great and fur is super clean and fluffed. I don't catch cats here. Wish I did.
Is it common to leave the bottom lip on?

Thank you.
I leave the bottom lip on just incase we decide not to sell it, I think they look better tanned with them on.
Haven't had anyone tell us to cut it off so on it stays. Not any more work.
Not sure what she'll bring, 38" is all I could stretch her but she's decently spotted.

How do ya'll keep the fur from bunching up in the crotch area on the board?

Pin it down.

Okay. Thanks. I've been a little concerned about it drying properly in our climate. There always seems to be a lot of extra in that area.

We are a dry climate and I still use a small fan blowing on the hide on the board, dries faster.
Use those pjns and make it look good, it will dry that way.
It may have some pleats but they will still dry.
Have a fan blow up the hide from the floor maybe.

A trick our trapping mentor taught us, I use a thin sprinkle of baby power, talc, all over the leather side before turning. Lightly rub it in the areas that may take longer to dry; armpits, face, ears and around the rear. Smells good and helps with the drying without using borax. Helps hide not stick to the board also.

Wytex,
I dry my cats head up, but I know it is common practice to dry them head down. I clean and fluff mine with alcohol and cornmeal after they are taken off the board though. Sometimes use a little borax, but I prefer the alcohol and cornmeal. I've washed them with different soaps over the years, from Dawn dish soap to Mane and Tail, to even human shampoo and conditioner, but the last few years I have been just rinsing all the blood and mud/dirt out with water, no soap. Many of the buyers say not to wash them, that the soap takes the natural oils out of the hair. I figured it was hype, and that the tanning process would remove anything that the soap would. And the cleaning I do on the hides afterwards to remove any grease would also (and unwashed hides always have more to remove, so more cleaning). But I had about forty cats flopped on the table and a buyer picked out the one cat I hadn't washed and said, "that one hasn't been washed, that's the way I like them." So since then I haven't been using soap on them. I had several top lot cats at NAFA over the years though, all washed with soap, so I'm still not convinced that it is detrimental. I take them off the board before cleaning the fur all up, and break the neck down, bending it back and forth and even running it over a rounded table edge if it is particularly stiff. The more limber the neck is the more the fur stands up on it and looks fuller.

Nice looking put up, and nice cat.

Forgot to say, I also leave the bottom lip/jaw on. In my opinion, it looks better and never had any complaints about it, been told it wasn't necessary before, but for the extra twenty seconds it takes to skin it out and pin it up on the board, I'll leave it on. I'll occasionally do some for the craft or taxidermy market with feet on and lips split also, obviously for that you want that bottom lip.

You could have probably got an extra inch with a pointed nose instead of that squared off nose, but 38" is comfortably into that extra large size anyways, so that little bit of extra length isn't a big deal.

I made a Bobcat Ruler (after watching this video)-