Aaron works as a tanner at a tannery. Being a girl raised in the suburbs right outside of Baltimore city and then moving to Philly, I had no idea what this meant. Tanner? what is that?? So, here is what happens: Rich or not so rich person kills an animal, any animal, and brings it in to where Aaron works. Rich person probably went to a reserve of some sort where the animals are kept in pens and then released to be shot. Rich person pays for this and wants it as a trophy. Sometimes Rich person actually makes use of the meat, sometimes not. These "trophy" animals range from deer to the exotic. Aaron has tanned zebra's, lions, animals shipped here from Africa, India, etc. Now let's talk about Not so Rich guy. Primarily he kills an animal that is not exotic and uses the meat. He does not do this on a reserve, he does it in the wild. I am guessing though that the animal is probably used as a trophy as well, on display in his living room.
Aaron gets the hide and works it so that it can be used for taxidermy (to make a stuffed replica of the animal). Without working the hide, it will essentially rot. It needs to be preserved in a certain way. Plus the hair needs to be cleaned and brushed and all that jazz. Then, back to the person, or back to taxidermist.
He does this all day. I know what you're thinking. How? How could he do this? I know. It seems horrible. And if you think that, regardless of what I may say, it may always seem horrible to you. I won't even defend it because people tend to have such strong views about the whole thing. But, I'll state my opinion:
My opinion is that it has made Aaron a more reverent, thoughtful man. He respects these animals. He gets upset when he gets an animal hide that has been taken care of poorly, not because it may make his work harder, but because it shows that the person who gave him the hide does not respect the animal enough to take care of it better. He gets upset at the people who kill animals strictly for sport and are wasteful when the animal could feed a family. I agree with him on all of these points. I personally find nothing wrong with going hunting, killing an animal, eating it and using it's other remains for the betterment of your family or friends. Before we all became "civilized" and started keeping animals penned up just to go to the slaughterhouse, this is how it was done.
So, while I was away this past Thanksgiving, Aaron was riding his bike to the store. On his way, he found a beaver on the side of the road who had been hit by a car. It was dead. He did not leave it to be picked up by roadside clean-up and thrown in the trash, he instead picked it up and brought it home. He skinned it, could not use the meat as it was not certain on how long the beaver had been dead, but saved the skin. He tanned it at work. We are going to make a hats out of the beaver skin. I didn't see the whole beaver of course, but the pelt is beautiful. There are coppers and other colors in the hair that I wouldn't have thought this creature had. I hope the beaver had a fruitful life. If someone could use some part of me, after I die, I would hope that they would. That's why I'm an organ donor. I realize this is not exactly the same, since the beaver didn't actually say, "Yes Jennifer, I want some of myself to live on, make a hat out of me," but nothing is ever perfect. Anyway, I have reverence for the animal as well as Aaron. The following pictures may not seem so though. We also don't take ourselves or anything else too seriously.
Because honestly...We had to see what a dog mixed with a beaver would look like. Wouldn't you?
So, if you get offended by pelts or skulls (which he cleans at the house also) Sorry. But, this is part of my life, so take it or leave it, it's me. I think it is pretty neat. If I could live on a ranch, grow things, have animals, make cheese and wine and wear a hat made from a beaver instead of bought at Sears or Old Navy, I'd be a happy camper. And I think it's great that it takes all different kinds. The world is an amazing place.
The combo of dog and beaver is not an attractive one. Good thing evolution didn't take things that route!
ReplyDelete