We have a mount at our deer camp that has some damage, I think, do to changes in temperature and moisture fluctuations. The hide is pulling away inside the ears. Can this be reattached? Looks like the moisture dried out and it pulled away from what ever the ears were glued to?

Following this, as I have a really old on that this has happened to.

Wipe it down with vinegar like we do sausage.

Many, many years ago I worked as a taxidermist and made repairs to damaged mounts on occasion. It is one of those "you get what you pay for" situations. The inner ears are difficult because of the thin hide, thin hair, and if it is old, the leather may be brittle and tear easy. Actually, replacing the entire ear with a new one from a donor cape is the best way so the old and new hide will come together down where the hair is thick and can hide stiches. Obviously, that will cost some money. You could try to wet the inner ear hide and spread it back out to the edges. Paper clip the hide in position with some strips of cardboard, and let it dry. If you arrange the hairs carefully at the edges, you may be able to make it look OK. You might need to dab a bit of glue along the inside edges to get it to stay tight together. You might need to trim the ear liner a bit as well if the hide won't stretch all the way or seems like it will tear if you pull too far. If you end up with torn, missing sections after attempting a repair, there is a method I have seen, but have not tried, which is to use some spray flock of the right color to fill in the spots that are bald. It isn't going to look good up close but might be OK from a distance. If the mount is important, take it to a taxidermist and have it done right.

I ended up taking it to Erik's Taxidermy in Boyd, TX. He will be replacing the mount. I do not like the form that was used on the original. I hear he does exceptional work so we will see.