Wanted: Frozen Wyoming jackrabbit carcasses.
That’s the word from taxidermist David Sconce, who lives in a remote corner of Montana. He specializes taxidermy mounts of jackalopes – mythical jackrabbits with deer-like antlers. Plenty of people in Wyoming make them, too, especially around Douglas, where it’s rumored they have a large colony.
Lately, Sconce said he’s had a severe shortage of jackrabbit carcasses. He needs them because he uses the hares’ skins for his creations.
“One of my main guys who was supplying me kicked the bucket, God bless him,” Sconce told Cowboy State Daily on Friday.
After reading a recent Cowboy State Daily story about jackrabbits, he reached out to CSD, wondering if the word could be put out about his quest for jackrabbits.
Wyoming jackrabbits are particularly prized for their quality, he said.
“The ones from Wyoming and the Dakotas, they’re kind of more husky and stouter, and they have thicker coats,” he said. “There are a lot of jackrabbits in the Texas hill country, but those are scrawny and their fur isn’t as thick.”
‘I Only Need The Front Halves’
Sconce buys in bulk, 200 to 300 jackrabbit carcasses a month, at $10 each. And he’s also willing to cover the shipping costs.
He doesn’t even need the whole hare, “I only need the front halves,” he said.
Any takers of his offer can “go out with their .22s and shoot jackrabbits in, in the middle, because I don’t want any holes in their heads,” he said.
As for getting only the front halves, “I had one supplier for a while who would just freeze carcasses whole, and then saw them in half when he was ready to ship some to me,” he said.
Otherwise, he recommends hunters cut the carcasses in half in the field.
“Then you can put the front halves in freezer bags and stick them in the freezer. After a day or two they should be frozen solid enough to ship,” Sconce said.
“Once you have enough, you can put the freezer bags in a plastic case – like those totes you can buy at Walmart, and then duct tape it shut for shipping,” he added.
Gives Them A Snarl
With a steady supply of jackrabbit carcasses, Sconce can crank out 10-15 jackalope mounts a week.
Each comes with a “jackalope license” to prove the owner didn’t illegally poach one of the legendary critters.
He makes his own foam body molds to stretch the skins over. His special trademark is giving the jackalopes a snarling mouthful of teeth.
For that, he uses fabricated racoon mouth molds ordered from a taxidermy supply company.
He also makes his own antlers out of foam molds, saving himself the trouble of tracking down deer antler suppliers.
He takes pride in his work, noting that many jackalope mounts seem to have been made from roadkill jackrabbits.
“Those things look terrible, they look like something out of a cartoon,” he said.
A Fondness For Wyoming
Jackrabbit numbers seem to be down around the country, which might explain why supply lines are thin right now, Sconce said.
But Wyoming might be one of the last best places for top-quality specimens of the huge, gangly hares. Sconce particularly covets jackrabbits with white winter coats.
“I’ve heard that areas around Casper, Gillette and Rawlins have lots of jackrabbits,” he said. “When the wind is blowing sideways and it’s freezing cold in the winter, I hear that you can go down into the gullies and find them bunched up in there, trying to get out of the wind.”
The Douglas area is also good for jackrabbits, he added.
And residents there appreciate jackalopes, even paying homage to the mythical beasts with a giant jackalope statue.
“I went through Douglass as a kid, and that’s pretty much the jackalope capitol of the world,” he said.
Wyomingites interested in supplying Sconce with jackrabbits can reach him at 406-529-1080 or 406-626-1626.
Contact Mark Heinz at mark@cowboystatedaily.com
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
