My current pet is a pure-bread himalayan cat. Very beautiful, very expensive. From the time DH gave her to me for my birthday, 16 years ago, I always said I was going to have her stuffed when that time came. I was really only kidding though.

Now, what I DID do, though, last winter, was commission a wonderful pet artist to do a beautiful oil painting of our cat for my husband for his birthday. Most expensive birthday present he's ever gotten--LOL--by the time the painting was done and framed it was in the $1500 range, several times what we paid for the cat herself--but worth EVERY penny. But it's beautiful, so precisely done that it looks like a photograph (but better), and will be a wonderful keepsake to have when our little girl is no longer with us.

We do have a relative who is a taxidermist--he refuses to do pets. Too many problems with those jobs, he's found. Well, with the owners.

My Aunt had her pomeranian taxi'd - creepy sitting on the fireplace hearth!

Nope wouldn't do it, as much as I love them. I think your relative is smart Azzalea. I would think that the customer is disappointed when they see it, the life is gone and that cannot be replaced.

No thanks.

No. Even in death he'd probably continue to shed.

Vannie, so funny. No, never.

NO WAY!!

No. I couldn't do it. We have a beautiful, sweet greyhound and it will just be heartbreaking when she passes.

Nope. I couldn't handle that.

We do have a portrait of Woofman Jack that hubby's nephew painted, it is just gorgeous, capturing my boy when he was in his prime and looking oh-so-regal. That was the best gift ever.

No. That would bother me, to have the taxidermied remains there, looking like my pet did, but not alive.

We do have our deceased pets cremated. The ashes come back in small cedar boxes. That feels better, to us.

No, I'd be crying all day long, every day! I'd love to be able to clone her, though :)

no I wouldn't...but several years ago I bought a Sheltie figurine...about 12-15 inches high...I had someone (Leslee-Oh) from this board paint her to look like my Allie girl...she did a fabulous job and it looks just like her...Allie was still alive when Leslee painted her and I'm sooo glad I had her do it cause now that Allie is gone, I have a beautiful statue of my girl!

here's the doggie..
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and here's the statue Leslee painted...
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Allie had blue eyes so I replaced the brown with blue in the statue and now the statue holds Allie's last collar.

No, I couldn't do it.

I wouldn't do it. I think it would hurt too much to have it in the house lacking life.

Linda

No way!!! I dont even like deer heads on a wall. I think its stupid and barbaric...and even worse are those idiotic deer feet made into coat or hat racks. men who have to show off their trophys are the eqivalent of little boys seeing who can wee the farthest.Before you think Im a man basher, my hubby totally agrees.He says its no big deal ,a guy has a scope on a rifle,the deer doesnt have a fair chance,,,,whats so macho about that???

Oh, thankyou, Coroline 1947. I was thinking the very same thing, but have been somewhat afraid to post my opinions, because there are some on this site who practically jump down the throat of people who post about something they don't agree with. I wouldn't have any of my pets preserved that way. I thing a picture or portrait would be nice and I did paint a ceramic figurine replicating our departed Max, a border collie mix, who I so still miss. As for stuffed hunting kills, there is a restaurant near us that has all kind of stuffed killed animals all over. We went there once to eat and decided I just didn't like eating there. Dottie

Ugh. No thankyou.

But we do have them cremated, and I have 3 boxes of ashes along with each cat's favorite toy and a clip of fur on top of each.

I find it comforting to be able to bring them home.

But never, ever would I want them stuffed so I could look into those lifeless eyes. Nope, they wouldn't be the special souls I remember.

Nope. We have our departed pets buried on our property. When we want to visit with them we go up on the hill, have a seat, and commisserate.

No, I'd never have any of my animals 'stuffed'. I wonder too what would become of it once I was gone? It'd be sold on eBay to some college kids who would dress it up for holidays? No thanks. (Actually, I don't think eBay allows the sale of taxidermied animals.)

Even though my DH has become a hunter the past couple years, he is not going to mount the head of anything and bring it home. He knows better.

I don't like eating in those restaurants either, Dottie.

No, I think that is kind of creepy. It is the personality of the animal I love, not the form. We live way out in the country and I have my previous dogs buried at the end of the property with markers. I visit them often.
Clare

No way but I did have my Buster cat cremated and his little box with his ashes sits on the window sill where I can see it every day.

No I wouldn't have my pets stuffed. Small ones get buried in the yard and large ones get cremated with their ashes returned to us.

Never!
It would be too painful to see them like that.Part of loving them is how they interact with you..running,playing,cuddling.
It would just remind me every day of what used to be.

Good point Vannie.

I could never have my pets stuffed.
The best taxidermist in the world could not make my dogs/cats look 'alive again'. I would probably find it really depressing too.

That's why I have oodles of pictures of my animals. I remember them as alive and vibrant....

Lori

Never, ever in a million years.

I am one of those unfortunate wives whose husband Rules the Roost and there is his stuffed prized deer head on my fireplace, also a bobcat and a turkey. If I outlive him they will be the first to go, I hate it but can do nothing about it at this time.

I can barely kill a small roach. :o)

H-e-l-l, no!! When my cats or dogs pass on, I bury them, and
when I find a new one that needs a home, I adopt it.

I don't like to look at stuffed animals....taxidermy of any kind. My friend was in the market to buy a house and the realtor found one that seemed to be just what she was looking for. She said when they opened the door and she could see into the den and saw all the heads mounted...she said, "That's
enough. I don't even want to go inside."

I had a friend whose family were big hunters and also they raised/butchered cattle. The first time I walked into her living room I nearly had a heart attack. Stuffed animals EVERYWHERE. At least 10 animal heads on the wall alone, not even including the bear rug and the cow skin throw over the couch. Everywhere I went, all those animals looked at me. Freaked me out! I had to stop going there.

My grandparents have two stuffed, mounted squirrels in their basement, including an albino squirrel (so pure white) with red eyes! When I was a kid we had to sleep on the pull out bed in the basement and those squirrels always scared me.

So, LOL, no I would never have any "stuffed" animal in my house.

Nope. I was even taken back when the vet asked if I wanted the ashes of our cat when we had her put to sleep a couple years ago. I had never heard of that.

I'm happy with just pictures, thank you very much. The paintings and figurines are sweet, too. DD has a stuffed cat TOY that looks just like our cat. Which is easy, the cat is entirely black. But I think it would be a comfort to her if our cat died.

I love the looks on kids faces the first time they see a mounted bear head or other large animal. There's an honest reaction for you! Yeah, it's creepy!

Absolutely no stuffed animals, pets or otherwise, in my house, ever. But I do find comfort in the plain white plastic box tucked out of the way high up on a bookshelf -- the ashes of our wonderful dog Annie. Someday we'll spread them under her favorite 'barking tree' ... but not yet.

Love the idea of having pictures painted, etc.

Stuffed wild animals don't bother me. It was common where I grew up. A stuffed pet is another thing. For one thing, wild animals are usually killed in their prime while they still look good. I've never had a pet die that still looked good at death.

I could never taxidermy one of the pets. But I wish it would have occured to me to have my beloved Shadow cremated. I buried him in the back yard, in a spot he used to love to lay for a snooze in the afternoon shade. Put up a "headstone" with his collar and tags on it. Removed the "headstone" 2 mos. later when we had to sell the house for a job relo. I brought the stone and the collar when we moved and have them in the new yard. I wish I'd had him cremated.

No stuffed pets for me. Sitting there looking at you? Too creepy for me.
I did have my last cat cremated.
Funny comment Vannie.
I don't appreciate trophy heads either.

Nope, could not do it, would not do it, SHOULD NOT DO IT!

But how often do we see it in the movies? And I think we all laugh, and they do it, because it is something we wouldn't normally do to our pets! (*was it in "Hope Floats" with Sandra Bullock where her mother had all the stuffed cats?)

Me too I love them alive..

No, not the pet...although DH has mentioned that when he 'goes' he wants to be stuffed with the tv remote in his hand and set on the couch, so I never will forget him!
(Eww)