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Unaligned News For The Dog Show Fancy
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Unaligned News For The Dog Show Fancy
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Taxidermy - Still Life Pets
by
Ms. Jade, TheDogPress
Legislative Reporter Freeze-drying is not just for coffee at Anthony Eddy’s Wildlife Studio which offers traditional taxidermy services for dogs, cats, birds, lizards, etc.
Months rolled by and then the unthinkable occurred. Dana chewed up a pair of sandals. She tried to throw them back up, only to choke on it. Despite heroic efforts to revive her, she died in my arms. I was over two thousand miles away from the pet cemetery where her mother was buried and at a complete loss about what do with her (and without her). I’ll spare you a graphic description of my personal meltdown but when coherent thoughts finally began to bubble up to the surface of my consciousness, I suddenly remembered that “Sgt. Stubby” the famous “pit bull” war hero and original “bulldog” of Yale University had been preserved and was in the collection of the Smithsonian Museum.
It’s hard to say how I’ll cope
when confronted with the “finished product”. I plan to pick Dana
up in person. There’s no answer yet for the other somewhat
obvious question of what to do with her after that. I couldn’t
just place her at the foot of my bed or in the passenger seat of
my motor home as if it never happened (even though some people
might find comfort in that). And how will her “children” react?
This whole experience has really driven home the point that some
things in life are just plain unimaginable until you get there.
Anthony Eddy’s Wildlife Studio is located at 315 North Main St., Slater, Missouri 65349 For more information, they can be reached at (660) 529-3470 or aewsfrzdry@yahoo.com For their website, www.pet-animalpreservation.com
Handy links to
Ms Jade's columns:
________________________
Backyard Breeder 5/2006
I Vote on Behalf of My Dog
6/2006 "Chicken Soup" - Leaves a bad taste 8/2006 Best Friends History Exposed!- Part One 10/2006 Best Friends Part Two... 11/2006 T'was the Night Before X-mas 12/2006 Still Life Pets 5/2007 Pass The Ammunition 7/2007 Dog Bite Stats 9/2007
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One
of only a very few taxidermy studios in the US that offer this
modern, high tech alternative to burial, cremation or donating
your deceased pet to the local veterinary school. AEWS,
located in Slater, Missouri, has been a leader in this field
since 1986 and is the largest facility of its kind in North
America, with ten large (36’ x 66’) North Star freeze-dryers and
a compassionate staff. 
The
first (and somewhat obvious) question is why?? OK, aside
from the obvious answer of “why not?” I can only honestly say
this is a story I never, ever imagined myself writing. When it’s
my turn to “cross over” I just want the county to dispose of my
temporary shell however they see fit. No funeral, no memorial,
no muss, no fuss and no expense. When I am finally reunited with
the beautiful American Pit Bull Terriers that have graced my
life, the continued existence of this amazing breed is the
legacy I hope to leave behind. It has become my life’s work. 
A
wise person once said that the only bad thing about dogs is that
their lives are too short. However, to the serious breeder, dogs
live on through their offspring. Maybe it’s why we persevere
through all the hardships of breeding dogs. In a way, we are
chasing immortality. As humans, we can rationalize death and
find a way to make our peace with the circle of life, but from
the day we accept a dog into our life, we must prepare for the
day that they will leave it.
Dana
was the first champion I ever bred (daughter of the first
champion I ever exhibited, “Jade’s Chocolate Demon” and Fenton’s
“Catfish”), my first dual registry titled dog, the foundation of
my breeding program and the center of my universe. I had given
no small consideration as to how I would someday pay homage to
her contribution to my life when she was gone. 
As
an artist with a respectable amount of talent it was only
natural for me to want to sculpt her likeness, with the
knowledge that bronze can exist perpetually. When awarded the
first Eugenia Everett scholarship to study sculpture for a
semester at the Sedona Art Center in AZ I chose Dana as my
subject. The school (a blessed sanctuary of sanity in a town
full of lunatics) graciously allowed my “pit bull” to patiently
sit in the studio every day among the other sculptors while I
worked. At the conclusion of the semester the sculpture was not
ready to cast so I wrapped it up and carefully packed it away in
my storage unit, confident that I would have plenty of time to
finish. 
I
wondered what it would actually cost to do something like that
so to satisfy my curiosity I called a local taxidermist and
inquired. The nice man on the other end of the phone informed me
that everyone was “taking their pets to that place in Missouri”
to be freeze-dried. I remembered a TV news story years ago
about this seemingly bizarre service. At the time I thought,
well, probably the same thing you’re thinking right about now.
But it did seem to be the answer to my unfinished sculpture
dilemma. So after an hour of internet searching (key word “pet
preservation”), I finally found “that place in Missouri”,
Anthony Eddy’s Wildlife Studio. After a lot more than an hour of
soul searching, I decided to do it.
Why
freeze-dry? Well as opposed to traditional taxidermy, it’s
non-invasive and the pet retains its natural structure, physical
characteristics and natural expression. The process takes
several months and is not cheap. The size of the animal is a
factor in determining price. A “fluffy” pet is not as exacting
to pose as an athletic American Pit Bull Terrier like Dana where
every muscle is so obvious beneath a short, shiny coat. The
staff at AEWS works from your photographs and personal input to
make the result looks as authentic as possible. These photos
give testimony to the amazing results.
