You've just taken your best buck ever and you are so excited you can hardly think straight. While you should be on cloud 9 after taking such a buck, you need to think clearly if you plan to have him mounted.
When field-dressing your buck, do not cut up through the brisket like you normally would. Keep your incision back as far as possible and reach up into the body cavity and pull the entrails back through the opening.
When skinning your buck, pick an area well back past the front shoulder as your cutoff point on the hide. The middle of the rib cage is a good choice and should give your taxidermist enough hide to work with.
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