Trophy turkey field care

Since season is right around the corner for some of the out-of-state hunters, I thought that I would post a quick note on field care of a bird you are going to get mntd. First of all, don't shoot your bird at 10 or even 20 yds if you have one of the newer guns that shoot a 90% plus pattern at 40 yds. The damage done will be irreparable. We can hide a lot of problems but we can't work miracles. Second, after the turkey is down don't do the old run up and step on his head trick. Believe it or not, a turkey does more damage to his plumage when he flies up to or down from the roost trees. Ever heard the wings hitting the branches? So just let him flop, won't hurt a thing. After the bird quits moving, pick him up by his legs only, not his neck. You can carry him over your shoulder or in one of the game bags made for this purpose. Just be sure that you don't leave him in the bag for to long. A birds body temp. is 102-104 so let him breathe a little to keep him cool. Never gut a bird you intend to mount. Also do not plan on eating the bird. If you cut the breast you will mess up the way the breast feather tracts lay and your taxidermist may charge extra to fix your mistake. Most, not all unfortunately, taxidermist use an incision that runs from one leg to the other across the belly. This prevents any incisions where they can be seen and also allows the slack skin that is necessary in the breast area to get the proper feather lay. when you get ready to freeze your bird, lay him flat in the freezer on his side and allow him to cool for a couple hours, then turn him over and allow the other side to do the same. After he has cooled for 3-4 hrs. you may slide him headfirst into a large plastic bag and roll as much air out without crushing the tail. Then slip this bag into a second large plastic bag and again squeeze out as much air as possible. Wrap with tape-freezer tape is the best- and be sure to label with the date and county of harvest. Taxidermists in Indiana are now required to keep track of the counties where clients trophies are harvested. Hopefully at this point you have already researched your taxidermist options and all you have to do now is get the bird to them as soon as possible. The longer you have the bird in the freezer the higher the chance for freezer-burn on the head and feet. Once these areas are damaged and dried out, they become irreparable and the quality will suffer in the finished piece. I would be glad to answer any questions you may have on this procedure so feel free to post them here if you like so others may benefit. Good hunting and here's hoping everyone gets to "jelly a head" or two.