Robert Utne and Wild Images in Motion Taxidermy! Extremely Dishonest and Unreliable!!

[SNHunter]

Thank You. Can you remove your personal info from the invoice, please??? If not maybe @AfricaHunting.com or @BRICKBURN can...

yes

 

[SNHunter]

Thank You. Can you remove your personal info from the invoice, please??? If not maybe @AfricaHunting.com or @BRICKBURN can...

Invoice from new taxidermist to correct the poor work done by Robert Utne and Wild Images in Motion.

 

[Mekaniks]

The good thing about having taxidermy done in the States is that you do have some recourse, from notifying the BBB, small claims court, the internet (AH), to showing up at the front door to ask hard questions in person (my personal fav) ... In Africa that all gets a lot more difficult...

This situation sucks but I believe that you will be able to get some satisfaction if you persist, and likely will also save someone else some heartburn....

This taxidermist has done some large African game for folks around here, so I would not be surprised if his phone is not already ringing.....

 

[PARA45]

This truly sucks, and the fact that it was done in the US. On the bright side, you have options here, and you could probably take him to court and recoup some of the money lost.

I would recommend take a step back, take a deep breath, and be a bit more specific on everything that went wrong with this taxidermy. I know you are trying to warn us, but being specific would help out tremendously.

Now, don't believe that doing your taxidermy work in Africa will be much better. I had a terrible experience and lost thousands of Dollars on subpar work. The taxidermist (owner) in SA basically whipped his a$$ with anything I said. And, his recommendation was for me to ship the mounts on my dime, so he could fix them, and then I would have to pay the return to the US. Total BS. Here is a picture of my impala, so you can get an idea of what could happen and happened to me.

I went and visited this shop, but they obviously show you the part they want you to see. This shop was basically an assembly line, in and out and quickly as possible.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Yes, a lot can go wrong along the way. Very important to specify on your order completed at outfitter for African taxidermist that they MUST provide you with photos of finished work BEFORE the balance owing is paid to them and BEFORE the stuff is crated up. Always a good idea to provide them with photos of animals on the ground. That way 1) the taxidermist will know if something was mixed up when he picked up the trophies and 2) he's got no excuse for sending trophies to clients with wrong horns attached, etc.

If you didn't see what was put in the crate in Africa or what this guy saw when he opened the crate, it's really hard to say who was at fault. How would he have known the animal he received was not yours?

Are the "moldy hides" backskins or capes? Were they tanned over there (usually backskins are) or over here? If shipped dip & pack and then tanned here, then this guy is certainly to blame. If tanned over there, then the tanning was probably screwed up in Africa.

What really is inexcusable is a North American taxidermist who receives ruined capes or wrong horns and goes ahead and mounts them anyway. Same with African taxidermist. If he shows up at the lodge and finds capes are sour or hair slipped, he should not accept them. But they typically do and go ahead mounting the crap anyway.

I will add that you and PH should go to skinning shed every night and measure your trophies. Keep a list of measurements and attach a copy to your order form for taxidermist.

 

[SNHunter]

Yes, a lot can go wrong along the way. Very important to specify on your order completed at outfitter for African taxidermist that they MUST provide you with photos of finished work BEFORE the balance owing is paid to them and BEFORE the stuff is crated up. Always a good idea to provide them with photos of animals on the ground. That way 1) the taxidermist will know if something was mixed up when he picked up the trophies and 2) he's got no excuse for sending trophies to clients with wrong horns attached, etc.

If you didn't see what was put in the crate in Africa or what this guy saw when he opened the crate, it's really hard to say who was at fault. How would he have known the animal he received was not yours?

Are the "moldy hides" backskins or capes? Were they tanned over there (usually backskins are) or over here? If shipped dip & pack and then tanned here, then this guy is certainly to blame. If tanned over there, then the tanning was probably screwed up in Africa.

What really is inexcusable is a North American taxidermist who receives ruined capes or wrong horns and goes ahead and mounts them anyway. Same with African taxidermist. If he shows up at the lodge and finds capes are sour or hair slipped, he should not accept them. But they typically do and go ahead mounting the crap anyway.

I will add that you and PH should go to skinning shed every night and measure your trophies. Keep a list of measurements and attach a copy to your order form for taxidermist.

All of our capes were tanned in the States. We did inventory everything when it was delivered from Coppersmith to Robert Utne at Wild Images in Motion.

It is understanding now that he is having issues with the tanneries in the States. He has outstanding invoices that he cannot pay and they are refusing his business.

 

[Doug3006]

View attachment 688674

What the…….???

 

[Ontario Hunter]

All of our capes were tanned in the States. We did inventory everything when it was delivered from Coppersmith to Robert Utne at Wild Images in Motion.

It is understanding now that he is having issues with the tanneries in the States. He has outstanding invoices that he cannot pay and they are refusing his business.

Still unclear exactly what happened. Who is "we"? "Inventoried" is not the same as inspected. Did you open the crate and see your wildebeest before Utne started to work on it? Or did someone simply confirm a wildebeest horns/skull was in the box? How did this unfold that you have a finished wildebeest shoulder mount and a bunch of unfinished capes? I presume the capes were "wet tanned"? Were they frozen when you took possession of them from him? Did you pay for unfinished capes?

Edit: I see you have explained the switched skulls. What an idiot! Can't read the labels.

 

[migrabill]

He still has more options than if he was this dis-satisfied with an African taxidermist. And as far as moldy hides - how do we know that's not on Africa - they obviously did the dip and pack. I think Africa sent the wrong horns to his taxidermist.

 

[Philip Glass]

This guy specializes in exotics and African game. He also was very involved with SCI until he apparently was booted from the MN chapter.

This is why it is good to contact your local SCI Chapter for references or at least the red flags that would be known by them. So sorry this happened.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

He still has more options than if he was this dis-satisfied with an African taxidermist. And as far as moldy hides - how do we know that's not on Africa - they obviously did the dip and pack. I think Africa sent the wrong horns to his taxidermist.

OP has his golden wildebeest skull with horns and it is labeled as such, presumably by African taxidermist. Utne obvioisly mounted the wrong horns on the golden wildebeest. Presumably the client's blue wildebeest horns. Moldy capes from Africa would not still be moldy after being tanned in Minnesota. They might be missing hair but tanning should have killed any African mold. Presumably the capes were "wet tanned" here. For taxidermy it's more preferable than dry tanned capes that have to be rehydrated. However, wet tanned capes must be frozen if not mounted immediately. Dry tanned capes can be sealed in a bag (to protect from moths) and stored on a shelf. If the capes are moldy it pretty much tells me Utne had them wet tanned here and then failed to store them properly in a freezer.

 

[buck wild]

View attachment 688703
Invoice from new taxidermist to correct the poor work done by Robert Utne and Wild Images in Motion.

Man, I hate to even wade into this one, but alas as a moth to a flame .

The Golden Wildbeeast mount didnt look too bad, actually. Clearly the wrong horns which maybe belonged to the OP's blue wildbeeast as someone suggested. I've gotten shipments from places with little info on the horns to ID which cape they belong to- such as multiple Springboks together. I do ask for pictures to try and sort that out.
As for wrinkles in the armpit, News Flash, they are there in the live animal. The anatomy of some of the taxidermy forms makes them more glaring on occasion, but "stretching them out" ie pull it further back is not the correct answer either.
The fact your new contracted taxi can regrow hair (If I could do that I'd be a billionaire - sorry old taxidermy joke). Blend with paint to try and camouflage the bare areas, yes, but that invoice shows on a kudu, which is known for its bare spots anyway. BTW, maybe I missed the pics of the kudu mount....

Getting the lips retucked is a POSSIBLY, depending on what type glue was used, and much much work the new taxi wants to get involved with.

So in the end $315 for a new paint job, which isn't going to address what you and they consider the actual major flaws....... lips, wrinkles, eyes etc

Of course none of this excuses the business practices you have encountered.

 

[buck wild]

This truly sucks, and the fact that it was done in the US. On the bright side, you have options here, and you could probably take him to court and recoup some of the money lost.

I would recommend take a step back, take a deep breath, and be a bit more specific on everything that went wrong with this taxidermy. I know you are trying to warn us, but being specific would help out tremendously.

Now, don't believe that doing your taxidermy work in Africa will be much better. I had a terrible experience and lost thousands of Dollars on subpar work. The taxidermist (owner) in SA basically whipped his a$$ with anything I said. And, his recommendation was for me to ship the mounts on my dime, so he could fix them, and then I would have to pay the return to the US. Total BS. Here is a picture of my impala, so you can get an idea of what could happen and happened to me.

View attachment 688704

I went and visited this shop, but they obviously show you the part they want you to see. This shop was basically an assembly line, in and out and quickly as possible.

@PARA45 For goodness' sakes, send me that mount already so I can fix it for you, and it doesn't have to appear on every bad taxi thread again

 

[SNHunter]

Man, I hate to even wade into this one, but alas as a moth to a flame .

The Golden Wildbeeast mount didnt look too bad, actually. Clearly the wrong horns which maybe belonged to the OP's blue wildbeeast as someone suggested. I've gotten shipments from places with little info on the horns to ID which cape they belong to- such as multiple Springboks together. I do ask for pictures to try and sort that out.
As for wrinkles in the armpit, News Flash, they are there in the live animal. The anatomy of some of the taxidermy forms makes them more glaring on occasion, but "stretching them out" ie pull it further back is not the correct answer either.
The fact your new contracted taxi can regrow hair (If I could do that I'd be a billionaire - sorry old taxidermy joke). Blend with paint to try and camouflage the bare areas, yes, but that invoice shows on a kudu, which is known for its bare spots anyway. BTW, maybe I missed the pics of the kudu mount....

Getting the lips retucked is a POSSIBLY, depending on what type glue was used, and much much work the new taxi wants to get involved with.

So in the end $315 for a new paint job, which isn't going to address what you and they consider the actual major flaws....... lips, wrinkles, eyes etc

Of course none of this excuses the business practices you have encountered.

Thank you for your input on this.