I’ve wanted to do a post about taxidermy for a while now, but I didn’t have a catchy story to go with it. I just see a lot of cool shit on the Internet and I want to share with you, so you can also appreciate the brilliance of others. This post has no point other than I love slightly damaged people with a penchant for playing with dead things.
My appreciation for taxidermy began years ago, when I discovered the Gopher Hole Museum in Torrington, Alberta. Until that point, taxidermy was limited to eery heads on a wall. I didn’t fully realize the potential for hilarity until I saw gophers packing miniature groceries or leading a congregation of other gophers in prayer.
I assume he’s doing push-ups to impress the lady gopher. (Photo from here)
Everyone knows gophers like Reddi-Whip. (Photo from here.)
Thanks to the Internet, no longer do the fans of bizarre taxidermy need to toil in obscurity. There are more of us than you think. Certainly one of the most renowned is The Bloggess. Her collection of whimsical taxidermy is to be admired and revered (you have to read the tale of Pony Danza. It may bring a tear to your eye). Meet Juanita Weasel, Ermione Granger, Copernicus the homicidal monkey, Jean-Louis, Jefferson Peabody, and the famous Hamlet Von Schnitzel. She even has a taxidermied pegasus.
The Bloggess’ store has a complete line of Juanita products.
Seriously, The Bloggess is my spirit animal.
Tanis Miller (Attack of the Redneck Mommy) is responsible for introducing me to the Mortuary Report. I can’t decide between Super Mouse or Expelliarmouse.
Do you believe in magic? (Photo: Mortuary Report.
Much to Tanner’s relief, this year has been dedicated to paying down debt, so I haven’t had a chance to dedicate a “hilarious taxidermy” budget. But even he admitted that this squirrel riding a rattlesnake would be totally worth it.
Yeehaw. (Photo from here.)
But by far, the BEST use of a dead animal has to be The Orvillecopter. After his cat was hit by a car, Dutch artist Bart Jansen turned the cat (aptly named ‘Orville’) into a remote-controlled “cat-icopter.” Seriously. You can’t make this shit up.
Obviously, we missed the boat when my cat died.
