Meet Bijoux. She's the much beloved pet Dumbo Rat of a client and she passed away one night after living with a large cancerous tumor in her belly for some time.
It was my client's wish to have her preserved elegantly and regally, so we opted for a plush pillow to sit her on and some head embellishment. I would up using a vintage Betsey Jonson charm as a crown of sorts, and couldn't resist a little diamond ring.
Because she had been ill her coat apparently wasn't as lustrous as it had been in healthier days but I think she's still beautiful.
I used silicone rubber to make a mold of her body (sans skin) and made a carcass cast. This is a pricey technique but completely manageable with smaller specimen, and yields a highly detailed mannequin to then taxi the dermis onto. In this case that was extremely helpful as Bijoux had a very specific growth on her body that may not have been obvious under her coat, but was significant in how her body was shaped.
She went home last night to be with her human, and thus closes another little chapter in my taxidermy career.
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