How to Cape a Deer Head

Caping is done before mounting the deer's head on a plaque.

After taking down a deer while hunting, you may decide that you'd like to have its head mounted on a plaque for display. However, the deer may be extremely heavy or simply too big for your vehicle, preventing you from taking the entire body down to the taxidermist. In such cases, you may find that you need to cape the head of the deer. Caping is the process of skinning the deer's upper torso so you can remove its head while leaving its neck hide intact.

Things You'll Need

• Hunting knife

Instructions

1. Cut into the hide of the deer at the base of its shoulders. Encircle the neck and upper torso of the deer with the knife down to a point just below its front legs. Excess hide can be cut away, but your taxidermist won't be able to effectively mount the head if there is too little skin.

2. Peel the skin back from the torso until you reach the base of the skull.

3. Cut into the flesh until you have exposed the deer's spine, then twist it to break the head off from the body.

4. Store the head in a refrigerator or other cool place until you can make a trip to the taxidermist. This should be done as quickly as possible. The longer the delay, the less likely the probability there will be of a successful mount.

References

• "Making the Most of Your Deer"; Dennis Walrod; 2004