Pet owners who can't let go turn to freeze-drying
mysticweed
Posts: 3,710
i don't know about this
sounds creepy to me
i get maudlin just looking a pictures of pets that have died
don't think i could look at my frozen pet everyday
there is much more to this article it you want to check the site
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46604872/ns ... 1ExZvES0n1
Mike McCullough never intended to start freeze-drying beloved pets for grieving owners. But more than a decade ago, a friend of a friend asked the Fort Loudon, Pa., taxidermist to save his beloved dog from the grave or cremation by preserving the animal instead. McCullough agreed.
Then he talked to a Wall Street Journal reporter about the process. It made the front page. Requests from bereaved owners started rolling in. Today, McCullough's taxidermy shop, Mac's Taxidermy, is one of a handful of places around the country that will preserve not only hunting trophies, but also the hunting dog.
"It's a whole different game for us," McCullough told LiveScience. "You have to be a counselor, you know what I mean? It's tough."
Preserving pets
McCullough and other taxidermists like him use a special process to keep Fido or Fluffy looking lifelike even in death. Traditional taxidermy involves skinning an animal and stretching its hide over a three-dimensional mold. That won't cut it for the family pet, as the animal's features end up looking generic, nothing like the unique creature that owners knew and loved.
Instead, pet preservationists use freeze-dry chambers, which lower air pressure to the point that ice turns directly into gas without going through the liquid phase. Many taxidermists use freeze-dryers to preserve small animals or fish. Taxidermist Cathy Huntley, owner of Freeze Dry By Cathy in Newaygo, Mich., first got her freeze-dryer to preserve flowers before branching into turkey heads and eventually pets.
The freeze-drying technique leaves animals looking much as they did in life, though the process isn't entirely noninvasive: Taxidermists must first remove internal organs and fat, which don't freeze-dry well. Artificial fillers then plump up the dehydrated animals. Even for closed-eye poses — the sort recommended by most taxidermists — false eyes must be inserted in the sockets to prevent a sunken look. For owners who want their pets to look awake, some taxidermists offer custom-made glass eyes, painted from photos of the pet during life.
The process costs hundreds of dollars for even the smallest animals, and thousands for a larger dog, such as a Golden retriever. In part, that's because it takes skill to prepare and pose an animal properly, Huntley told LiveScience. But freeze-drying machines themselves are incredibly expensive, running in the tens of thousands of dollars. The machines also require lots of electricity to run. At several hundred dollars a month in power bills, costs add up quickly. And freeze-drying isn't a fast process: It might take six months to prepare a 10-pound cat, said Anthony Eddy, owner of Anthony Eddy's Wildlife Studio in Slater, Mo. For an 80- or 90-pound dog, freeze-drying might take a year.
sounds creepy to me
i get maudlin just looking a pictures of pets that have died
don't think i could look at my frozen pet everyday
there is much more to this article it you want to check the site
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46604872/ns ... 1ExZvES0n1
Mike McCullough never intended to start freeze-drying beloved pets for grieving owners. But more than a decade ago, a friend of a friend asked the Fort Loudon, Pa., taxidermist to save his beloved dog from the grave or cremation by preserving the animal instead. McCullough agreed.
Then he talked to a Wall Street Journal reporter about the process. It made the front page. Requests from bereaved owners started rolling in. Today, McCullough's taxidermy shop, Mac's Taxidermy, is one of a handful of places around the country that will preserve not only hunting trophies, but also the hunting dog.
"It's a whole different game for us," McCullough told LiveScience. "You have to be a counselor, you know what I mean? It's tough."
Preserving pets
McCullough and other taxidermists like him use a special process to keep Fido or Fluffy looking lifelike even in death. Traditional taxidermy involves skinning an animal and stretching its hide over a three-dimensional mold. That won't cut it for the family pet, as the animal's features end up looking generic, nothing like the unique creature that owners knew and loved.
Instead, pet preservationists use freeze-dry chambers, which lower air pressure to the point that ice turns directly into gas without going through the liquid phase. Many taxidermists use freeze-dryers to preserve small animals or fish. Taxidermist Cathy Huntley, owner of Freeze Dry By Cathy in Newaygo, Mich., first got her freeze-dryer to preserve flowers before branching into turkey heads and eventually pets.
The freeze-drying technique leaves animals looking much as they did in life, though the process isn't entirely noninvasive: Taxidermists must first remove internal organs and fat, which don't freeze-dry well. Artificial fillers then plump up the dehydrated animals. Even for closed-eye poses — the sort recommended by most taxidermists — false eyes must be inserted in the sockets to prevent a sunken look. For owners who want their pets to look awake, some taxidermists offer custom-made glass eyes, painted from photos of the pet during life.
The process costs hundreds of dollars for even the smallest animals, and thousands for a larger dog, such as a Golden retriever. In part, that's because it takes skill to prepare and pose an animal properly, Huntley told LiveScience. But freeze-drying machines themselves are incredibly expensive, running in the tens of thousands of dollars. The machines also require lots of electricity to run. At several hundred dollars a month in power bills, costs add up quickly. And freeze-drying isn't a fast process: It might take six months to prepare a 10-pound cat, said Anthony Eddy, owner of Anthony Eddy's Wildlife Studio in Slater, Mo. For an 80- or 90-pound dog, freeze-drying might take a year.
fuck 'em if they can't take a joke
"what a long, strange trip it's been"
"what a long, strange trip it's been"
Post edited by Unknown User on
0
Comments
- Christopher McCandless
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=184612#p4282919
kidding...i know a few people like that.... but when the cat's time is up...he's getting a proper burial in the back yard.
They also are in a little statue that looks exactly like he did.
this is what I will choose...
I buried my cat in the backyard at the house I grew up in...there is a nice Colorado Blue Spruce marking the spot.
- Christopher McCandless
Adelaide 1998
Adelaide 2003
Adelaide 2006 night 1
Adelaide 2006 night 2
Adelaide 2009
Melbourne 2009
Christchurch NZ 2009
Eddie Vedder, Adelaide 2011
PJ20 USA 2011 night 1
PJ20 USA 2011 night 2
Adelaide BIG DAY OUT 2014
I like my dogs as much is the next person, but that is just creepy. Would people freeze dry their spouse if they could?
was like a picture
of a sunny day
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
― Abraham Lincoln
I know how hard it is to lose a pet, two of my parents' cats (17 and 18 years old) died last year. They were more like friends than pets to me, but I didn't want to buy anything for them when they passed... they were gone, and there was nothing I could have done to help my family at that time.
So what I did was, I got my mom a kitten right before Christmas (a few months after the older cat had passed away). She is a rescue cat. The money I could have spent on something weird like in the article above, went to things that this tiny little living creature needed to survive, like for example medication. It just wouldn't have felt right to spend the money on something else.
Everyone loves her, and she's not a "new" cat... we'll never forget the first two. But now we can move on, and we get to watch her grow and become a member of our family, just like our other cats were.
*edit*
(Oh, by the way, I don't live with my parents anymore, but I was 9 years old when we got the first cat!
Watching reruns of my life
Adelaide 1998
Adelaide 2003
Adelaide 2006 night 1
Adelaide 2006 night 2
Adelaide 2009
Melbourne 2009
Christchurch NZ 2009
Eddie Vedder, Adelaide 2011
PJ20 USA 2011 night 1
PJ20 USA 2011 night 2
Adelaide BIG DAY OUT 2014
When my animals die, I chain them to my tractor or ATV and drag them in to the woods. The coyotes take over from there. In about couple weeks there is not a trace.