I'd be pissed.
Bet that guy would never have called and gotten away with it, if the customer didnt initiate the contact.
Some kind of compensation is in order.
And, a refund of money for services not rendered is not enough.
Costs to get a new cape/usable hide are in order.
Business insurance if any could handle this.
Just like any other business liability.

X2

I am sure he offered to get cape, thts about all he can do

He shoulda called and notified, but the cape is gone and the fox is ruined, but callin the warden, the cops, and suing, REALLY?

What makes you sure he offered to get a cape?

Even if he did so, the cape is not the point. You've mentioned replacement capes several times and even offered one up. Obviously, you wouldn't be concerned with the cape.

This is an ethics question. The guy was deceptive. If he was as straight up as you seem to wish he were, he would have contacted them the day he discovered the mechanical mishap instead of dodging phone calls.

Is this a legal matter? No. Is the guy a chicken*&^$? Yes. The solution is to put the word out and give the guy a lesson in customer service.

Not gonna argue that. I am just trying to offer a solution to a bad situation, I agree he should have notified and bad business.

Agreed the guy should have been on the phone with all his customers as soon as this happened to inform them. But to me the bigger question is how does a guy in the taxidermy business have his freezer go out and not know it before the contents are ruined? A freezer is probably his most important piece of equipment. I know there are alarms on some and if Im in business where I have to rely on freezers and can guarantee you they would have alarms on them. I have lost my freezer before in the dead of summer in my garage and the contents were still fine 4 days later. I would be pissed if this happened to my fox or deer cape. I wouldnt want a replacement. Sorry this happened to you and your husband.

Most taxis have more than one freezer so its understandable he might not open certin freezers for a long period of time depending on which freezer his next project is in.

Freezer alarms are good idea, and my taxi has 8 freezers plus a stand up, and if it was in standup doesn't take long for capes to ruin, leave a door open on a standup for an 1hour ad crap is melted in bottom and lower shelf

With some of the attitudes on here, it's no wonder why some of the taxidermist would have processed the animals, knowing they were bad then when the customer shows up they have a tanned pos and a story of how the animals were mishandled before they arrived at the shop.
There's bad business people and bad customers, an honest man will do the right thing no matter which side of the situation they're on.Someone looking to come out on top in a deal well--keep reading. I would suggest to everyone go find you a taxidermist now, well ahead of the season even if you've never considered having an animal mounted, find out what to expect during the process, then you will have an understanding of what is expected from each party. You will have a relationship started and hopefully will be satisfactory and rewarding experience for both of you. That's why we all hunt isn't it?

I have no issues with my taxidermist, and if his freezer goes out get me a cape and roll on, hell I see people bring in green capes and waterhead deer from hangin upside down And letting their faces fill water, cut armpits, cut off briskets, hacked up capes from skinning, he is right pick your taxidermist and they can also assist you in how to take care your animal for the mount, little off topic, but alot of the jacked up capes come from guys on forum. Now back to topic

We always stress to everyone that calls us to come on out for a visit prior to their hunt and let us talk to them and show them our work. This way the client knows what to expect quality wise as well as how we run our business. It also gives us a chance to go over proper field care and other helpful tips. Surprisingly very few people take us up on that. Convenience factor should not be the deciding factor in chosing a taxidermist and neither should be a low price or super fast turn a round time. Do your homework, that's all I can say.

yeah the same exact thing happened to a rare duck i shot.. i actually forgot about the mount and remembered a few seasons later since i stopped hunting for a couple years and the guy told me his freezer went out also and he lost over 50 animals..

It sucks but like everyone is saying it can happen to anyone..

sorry for your lose!!

Im glad im not a taxidermist. It wouldn't be worth my time for the BS they go through. Get another cape and shoot another gray fox, they are a dime a dozen. If that guy goes bankrupt because he lost a year's worth of work it won't matter anyway.

'


Really

speaking of gray foxes i got two in my freezer im thinking of eating.

what about the case of fire,burglary, flood, where nothing could have been salvaged? would ya'll wanna sue him then?

I'm not defending the guy, but things happen. I understand the emotion that goes into these trophies, but at least he was gonna try and make things right (albeit not saying anything is not going about it the right way)by finding new capes.

new capes are around $60, your husband can get a new cape. I have a buck that I couldnt afford to have mounted when I was 18 getting mounted this year from a cull buck cape.

As far as legalities go, every taxidermist has paperwork that renders them not liable for accidents such as the above mentioned.

Exactly!

That sucks

All i said is the taxi at the least owes that guy a new cape.
The hunter shouldn't have to find one on his own and pay for it.
The taxi should man up and get a new one for the guy.


Who said the taxi had a liability release? Did miss that somewhere.

WOW

All this fuss over a little ten point and a gray fox...He should have called, sure, but it was just an accident.

I think you should make jerky or can them and put them with your SHTF supplies.