Kentucky Taxidermist Association Winter Newsletter 2009 Presidents Message Hello fellow members, Wow rifle season is upon us again. Time to sharpen those knifes, and double check those freezers. I hope everyone has gotten off to a good deer season so far. We had a great meeting at Georgetown. Our Vice President allowed us to have the meeting at his shop. The food was great and the seminar was enlightening to say the least. Damon Kustes, one of our Board Members, Mounted a duck. Man did he make it look easy. He shared a lot of tips and techniques that applied to all areas of bird taxidermy. We also had a great guy to show up named Allen Johnson owner of A.J. Woodworks. He had some really nice solid wood panels, Very reasonably priced. If you would like to check him out on the web, his website is www.anjwoodworks.com. If you missed the meeting, you missed out on a good time, fellowship, learning and Allen's Door prizes. I won a really nice solid Oak Skull Pedestal. We talked about having T-shirts made with the KTA logo on it to be included with your membership, everyone get to work on the new logo and we will decide at the March meeting what new Logo to put on the shirts. At next years Convention we all decided to have a share a tip seminar on Friday night at 8pm, instead of Karaoke. This will consist of each member that wants to share a method that helps them in there shop, tip, or trick. That member will take 10 or 15 minutes to share that tip. The karaoke was not getting any participation, and we all figured we are there to spend time with our peers and learn something. A great idea was brought up about making a poster of all the awards and what it takes to be eligible for these awards. A lot of the new people didn't understand how some of the awards worked... I will make the poster personally and post it at the registration desk. It is very important that you pick up a copy of the bylaws and competition rules at the registration desk when you register. This will answer a lot of questions you may have. You can view the bylaws and competition rules on our website, www.kytaxidermy.com Our election results for board members are as follows, Gerry Whethington-- Columbia Kentucky Shane Adams-- Carlisle Ky Jamie Elkins-- Clay City Ky Damon Kustes-- Louisville Ky Bill Elstun-- Walton Ky R.B. Griffin-- Morgantown Ky. Mathew Maddox--Lexington Ky.. Ben Maddox-- Lexington Ky. These are a great group of guys that I am sure will do all they can to support the growth of the KTA. I hope to see a great turn out at our next meeting in March. There will be door prizes given out. $25 and $50 gift certificates from Dixieland Supply Company. As well as a good seminar. We will also be taking nominations for President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. After the meeting Ballots will be sent out and the offices will be appointed at the general meeting of the 2010 convention. Every member is a great asset to the KTA, make a commitment to becoming more involved. If anyone ever needs anything my Phone number is 1-(606)-668-9392 Thanks again, Tony Johnson President-KTA 1-(606)-668-9392 1-(606)-362-9447—cell _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Vice Presidents message: Hello to all Kentucky Taxidermist Association Members. We had a very productive meeting in Georgetown although our attendance was down. I know it was a very busy time of the year. I hope we can continue building the KTA by staying involved. Please feel free to attend any meeting we have and bring your ideas. Everybody’s help is needed and appreciated. I am very excited to announce we have confirmed the Crown Plaza at the Campbell House for our convention next August 6-8. I personally went to the Campbell House yesterday and saw the exact set up we will have. Our display room will be almost three times the size it was last year with high ceilings for tall mounts. We also have tripled the space for our vendors. Judges are in the process of confirming and we will post them on the website as soon as we get them committed to our Convention. We will be looking at the schedule for the convention to see if we need to make any changes. If anyone has any suggestions please email me at Rhino223@aol.com. I will be looking at other States to see if I can get some ideas. Our Competition will stay the same, we are just looking to see if we can maybe work in another seminar or put in some family time. So if you have any suggestions at all please let me know.There are a few changes in the bylaws, but it is more wording than anything. As soon as the changes are completed, we will have them on the website. The changes were voted on at the October meeting. How would you like to get a free registration for the 2010 KTA Convention? As taxidermist, we have to have some creativity. Here is your chance to use your creativity and possibly get a free registration. The KTA is sponsoring a contest for a new Logo. This will be the logo we use for our awards and hopefully the website and any printed material we may need. So start thinking about it and try to put something together to be voted on at the March meeting. We would like to have several designs to choose from. I believe the only stipulation is you must be a member of the Kentucky Taxidermist Association. I want to say thanks to all of you for being members of the Kentucky Taxidermist Association. The bigger we are the stronger we are. If I can help you in any way, please contact me at the above email or at my shop at (502) 867-9997. I hope everybody’s freezers are filling up and you get all the work you want. I hope to see you at the March meeting Wade C. Calvert Vice President (502) 867-9997 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ KTA Logo Design Contest Submit a new logo for the organization, if yours is the winner you will receive free convention registration for 2010 Submit by email to ktaxidermy101@yahoo.com or by USPO to 5010 Prosperity Lane Hopkinsville, KY 42728 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ The next get together will be March 6 Gerry Wethington's Shop 16934 Knifely Rd Columbia Ky 606 787 9916 (near Liberty Ky). There will be “Free” drawings for (one) $50 and (two) $25 Dixieland Taxidermy Supply Gift Certificates for attendees at the meeting Gerry will be giving a seminar. With Gerry’s talent we know it will be worth your time to attend. Board meeting @11am General meeting @ noon KTA will supply drinks and meat. Please bring a dish. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ If there is special activity you would like to see at the next convention send your suggestion to ktaxidermy101@yahoo.com _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ KTA Certification Program The KTA Certification program is intended to reward those taxidermist who have entered their artwork in state competition and achieved (11) points or more. Only those points received in competitions sanctioned by and conducted by the KTA will qualify. All judging must be done according to the NTA point system. All points earned in KTA’s 1983 state competition will be given ¼ credits per point value. All points earned in the 1984 KTA State competition will be awarded ½ point value. All points earned in the 1985 state competition and all future competitions will be given full point value. There will be a certificate of certification awarded for each category earned at the professional or Masters Division Level.. These categories will be the same as the NTA categories. All (11) points must be achieved by the individual taxidermist. Two or more taxidermist cannot combine points in a category for certification. Only individual taxidermist will be certified and NOT the name of a business. The certificate should be no less than 12 inches high and no less than sixteen inches wide. The certificate should be of high quality suitable for framing. The certificate must be signed by the president and witnessed by the secretary, and dated. The certificate shall only be awarded at the annual awards banquet that follows the state competition, and shall not be presented at any other time. Point Values Fist Place = 3 points Second Place = 2 points Third Place = 1 Point Eleven (11) points = certification in one category ____________________________________________________________________________________ Tomball man contracts brucellosis from feral hogs 09/17/2009 Associated Press James Belcher developed symptoms that turned out to have nothing to do with swine flu but everything to do with hogs. Doctors earlier this year diagnosed the 76-year-old Tomball resident with brucellosis. "It has been a nightmare," said Belcher, who picked up the disease from feral hogs that have rooted through parts of his property in Cherokee County. Belcher's brucellosis was traced to him cleaning a feral hog in March. Belcher and his son butchered one of the many feral hogs they had shot or trapped. "People need to know that they should be cautious when they handle those pigs, and always wear gloves," he said. "I wouldn't want what's happened to me to happen to anybody." Belcher faces months of more treatment for the disease, which is caused by a bacteria linked to feral hogs. An estimated 2 million of the wild creatures roam Texas. The Houston Chronicle reported Thursday that about 10 percent of Texas feral hogs test positive for brucellosis bacteria, but the rate in eastern parts of the state has been known to be higher. The disease can cause pregnant animals to prematurely abort their young. In humans, brucellosis can cause flulike symptoms such as fever, chills, aching muscles, intense joint pain, nausea and fatigue. Human fatalities are rare. Belcher was diagnosed with brucellosis following surgery for an aortic aneurysm. "The pain was incredible," he said. "That first week, I honestly can say I didn't care if I lived of died it was that bad." A physician with experience dealing in brucellosis in South America helped diagnose Belcher, offering antibiotics in a treatment process he continues today. "I never used gloves when I cleaned hogs," Belcher said. "I sure wish I had, now." For every 100 Taxidermist that has mounted a boar, it is very easily conceivable that 10 of them have come in contact with the brucellosis bacteria. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Bylaws and Competition Rules have been posted on the KTA website ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Current Members that have earned a Certification are listed on the website Page If you have received a certification and are not on the list please contact us so we can add you name ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ We have a new KTA Sponsor Griffith's Taxidermy Thanks for your support John ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ History has been made in Tennessee's rich conservation legacy. After a nine-year effort to restore huntable populations of wild elk to the Volunteer State, three hunters successfully harvested the first animals Monday morning on the Upper Cumberland Wildlife Management Area 50 miles north of Knoxville. The last documented elk taken in Tennessee was in 1865. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ SCI has offered to conduct a Safari Club Measurer's class at the next convention. The cost would be $150 per participant. The fee includes a one year membership to SCI and a SCI measures kit. If you would like to participate please email ktaxidermy101@yahoo.com so we can decide at the March meeting if there would be enough participants to warrant conducting the class. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ New polling data released by Gallup finds a new low of 44% of Americans believe laws impacting firearm sales should be made more strict, reflecting a drop of 5 points in the last year and 34 points from the high of 78% recorded the first time the question was asked, in 1990. The results are based on Gallup's annual Crime Poll, conducted Oct.1-4. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ October 09, 2009 Buck Lure Ban? - 5 by J.R. Absher The Pennsylvania Game Commission’s veterinary consultant this week recommended the statewide prohibition of scents and attractants utilizing deer urine in an effort to prevent the spread of chronic wasting disease into The Keystone State. Walt Cottrell, PGC chief veterinarian, told the Pennsylvania Game Commission during its regular October meeting Monday that nine states are presently considering banning deer urine use by hunters because of its potential to spread chronic wasting disease. Recent scientific findings indicate that CWD can be spread by excreted prions (altered proteins) found in the waste of infected animals, long before the disease is manifested in cervids like deer and elk. First identified in Colorado in 1967, CWD has been found in Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, South Dakota, Montana, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Utah, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. No cases of CWD have been identified in Pennsylvania.The disease is spread from one deer to another through saliva and other bodily fluids, along with food that has grown in CWD-contaminated soil. The proteins that carry CWD are excreted in both feces and urine, and once they reach the soil, according to Cottrell, become 700 times more infectious.In his presentation to the Commission, Cottrell said he would recommend and support an immediate ban on the use of deer urine, as well as the feeding of deer with food that may have been grown in CWD-contaminated soil from other states.The Commission did not act upon Cottrell’s recommendations. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ New Member offering Discount Training to KTA Members Griffith's Taxidermy John Griffith Big Game Specialist Best in the World - Whitetail Deer P.D. National Champion - Game Heads National Champion/Best in World Whitetail Deer PD. Has judged and conducted seminars in numerous states. Recipient of the Award of Excellence given by the National Taxidermy Association. Worked and trained by the best artisans in the world: John Matthews, Brian Dobson, Ken Walker and Joe Meder Any member in good standing with the KTA seeking instructions will get 20% off if they attend John's Big Game Head Mounting School. Current 3 day instruction is $1,200.00 plus materials and 5 day class is $1,800.00 plus materials ,10 day class is $3,600.00 plus materials. Check Out John's website links below and contact him if you are needing instruction. http://www.griffithtaxidermy.com www.taxidermy.net/forum/index.php/topic,15073.0.html _________________________________________________________________________________________________ The safest haircut joint in town That’s what customers can expect at Bruce Gooden’s Okolona Barber Shop. And, for a limited time, those doing business at Gooden’s clip joint also have a chance to win an AK-47 semi-auto rifle valued at $750.You see, besides being a longtime haircutter in the Okolona community of greater Louisville, Kentucky, Gooden is also an avid hunter, gun lover, NRA Life Member, certified concealed-carry instructor and outspoken supporter of the right to bear arms. “It’s not so much about the AK. It’s about the Second Amendment. That’s what I’m trying to do, raise awareness,” the barber recently told local television station WLKY.In addition to raising awareness and generating more business, the promotion is also increasing the membership roster of the nation’s premier gun-rights organization, the National Rifle Association.Regular customers receive one ticket for a chance to win the rifle each time they get a haircut. If they’re a card-carrying NRA member, it’s two chances. And, if they sign up as a new NRA member, they’ll receive six tickets for the December gun drawing.In its newspaper advertisements promoting its AK giveaway, The Okolona Barber Shop is described as “The Safest Shop in Town.”From what we know about Gooden and his shop, we’re confident that statement reflects truth in advertising, a rare commodity these days. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Despite Economy, Tackle and fishing License Sales up 8 percent ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Wisc. Senatorial candidate will wear hunter orange Dave Westlake, the Republican challenger to U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), says he will wear hunter orange at every campaign appearance he makes between now and the Nov. 2010 general election. Westlake, an avid hunter, said the blaze orange shirt he wore at rallies this past weekend was such a hit, he decided to make it part of his campaign. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Classified Page on Website Members can place a listing ( for sale or Wanted) for any Taxidermy, Hunting or Fishing related item free of charge. Send your list of items and/or pictures to ktaxidermy101@yahoo.com and we will post it asap. The ad will remain on the page until you notify us to remove it __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Send us your Profile so we can add you on our “Member Spotlight” website page and photo’s for the “Brag Board” page . Send to Ktaxidermy101@ yahoo.com __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2010 Convention and Competition August 6,7,8 will return to the Crown Plaza Hotel The Campbell House Lexington Ky ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Congrats to Mathew Maddux and Terry Vest for their recent Kentucky Elk Kills. You can see their animals on the KTA website Brag Page ____________________________________________________________________________________________________ A teenage folk singer was attacked and killed by two coyotes in a national park in eastern Canada. Taylor Mitchell, 19, was attacked while she was hiking alone in Cape Breton Highlands Park, Nova Scotia, when she was attacked by two of the animals on Tuesday. She died of her wounds on Wednesday.Nearby walkers heard her screams and alerted park rangers, who arrived on the scene and shot one of the animals. The other has yet to be found.A police spokesperson said the two coyotes were "extremely aggressive" when rangers arrived on the scene."Coyotes are normally afraid of humans. This is a very irregular occurrence," Bridgit Leger, a spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, told Reuters news agency.Mitchell was airlifted to hospital in Halifax but died there. Paul Maynard of Emergency Health Services said she had been admitted with multiple bite wounds on her body."Words can't begin to express the sadness and tragedy of losing such a sweet, compassionate, vibrant, and phenomenally talented young woman," Lisa Weitz, Mitchell's manager, said. "She just turned 19 two months ago, and was so excited about the future." Mitchell's debut album 'For Your Consideration' had been recorded earlier this year and the artist had been on a tour of eastern Canada when the attack occurred."She was so young and talented -- her big dreams were a perfect match with her big, kind heart," said Michael Johnston, the album's producer.Biologists said attacks by coyotes -- also known as prairie wolves -- were extremely rare because the animals were usually very wary of humans. The area of the park where the attack happened has now been blocked of as officials try to find out what caused the attack _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Date: July 29, 2009 Source: National Institutes of Health (NIH) Data from an ongoing multi-year study suggest that people who consume deer and elk with chronic wasting disease (CWD) may be protected from infection by an inability of the CWD infectious agent to spread to people |
| Winter Newsletter 2009 |