What Should Be on a Taxidermy Intake Form?

By MountChief Editorial Team|Updated Mar 2026

A good intake form does two things: it captures everything you need to complete the mount correctly, and it protects you legally if something goes sideways. Most paper forms miss at least one of those goals. Digital intake with AI pre-fill cuts form completion errors to near zero, but you still need to know what fields matter and why.

Incomplete intake forms cause roughly 40% of specimen handling errors and mix-ups. Most of those aren't because the taxidermist forgot, they're because the form didn't prompt for it.

TL;DR

Every state requires some form of intake documentation for wildlife received by taxidermists.
Core required fields in most states: customer name, address, license number, species, harvest date, harvest location, and date received.
Species-specific additional fields apply to bear, migratory birds, and CITES-listed animals.
Digital intake records are legally equivalent to paper forms in most states if they contain required information.
Keep intake records for at least five years regardless of your state's minimum requirement.

The Required Fields: What Every Intake Form Needs

Customer Information

Full legal name
Phone number (cell, so you can text updates)
Email address
Mailing address (required for some state compliance records)

This seems obvious, but a lot of shops collect only a phone number and name at intake, then realize they need an address when they're filing year-end compliance records.

Specimen and Harvest Information

Species (specific, not just "deer")
Sex of animal
Harvest date
Harvest location (state, county, unit if applicable)
Hunter license number
Tag or permit number if required by state

The harvest details are where shops get into trouble. A customer brings in a cape, you do the mount, and six months later a game warden asks to see your records. If you don't have license number and harvest date on file, that's a compliance problem. Most states require taxidermists to keep these records for two to five years minimum.

Mount Specifications

Mount type (shoulder, full body, European, pedestal)
Pose or position preference
Reference photos or sketches
Eye color preference
Panel or wall bracket preference
Any specific customer requests

This section prevents the most common re-do situations. Get it in writing, including the customer signature on the pose. If you agree verbally on a right-turn pose and they come to pick it up expecting a left, you want documentation.

Condition Notes

Condition of specimen at intake (fresh, frozen, previously thawed, handled condition)
Any existing damage (hide cuts, shot damage, freeze burn)
Hair or feather condition notes
Cape or skin completeness check

Document damage at intake, always. A customer who brings in a cape with a bullet hole behind the ear might forget by pickup day that it was there when they dropped it off.

Financial Terms

Deposit amount and date collected
Total estimated cost
Payment method accepted
Estimated completion date or range
Late pickup policy acknowledgment
Policy for unclaimed mounts

Both you and the customer need to sign off on these terms. For more on structuring your payment intake, the taxidermy invoicing guide covers deposits and payment plans in detail.

Signatures

Customer signature confirming mount specifications
Customer acknowledgment of shop policies
Shop representative name and date

A signature is your protection. Without it, any dispute about the original agreement is your word against theirs.

What Information Is Legally Required?

Requirements vary by state, but most states require taxidermists to retain at minimum:

Hunter name and address
Species and sex
Harvest date and location
License or permit number

Federal law kicks in for migratory birds (ducks, geese, turkeys), any CITES-listed species, and mounts transported across state lines. Those trigger additional record-keeping requirements under the Lacey Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Digital records satisfy most state requirements as long as they're accurate and retained for the required period. Check your state wildlife agency's taxidermist licensing rules for the specific retention window.

How AI Intake Reduces Errors

Traditional paper forms require the customer to tell you everything and you to write it all down correctly during what's often a rushed conversation at the end of a hunting day. AI photo intake flips that. You photograph the specimen, and the AI identifies species, approximate measurements, and visible condition notes automatically. You confirm and add the specifics the customer provides (pose preference, deposit amount, license number).

That pre-fill step is where the error rate drops. The AI doesn't miss species or skip the condition field. You still review and confirm, but you're catching errors rather than making them.

Frequently Asked Questions

What information is legally required on a taxidermy intake form?

Most states require hunter name and address, species and sex, harvest date and location, and license or permit number. Federal requirements apply for migratory birds (requiring a federal taxidermist permit and species records) and any specimen transported across state lines under the Lacey Act. Check your specific state's wildlife agency taxidermist regulations for retention period requirements.

How do I create an intake form that prevents mix-ups?

The most effective mix-up prevention combines a complete paper or digital record with a physical tag attached to the specimen at intake. Every field on the form should have a corresponding physical identifier, meaning the tag on the cape should match the job number on the form. Photographing the specimen with the tag visible at intake creates a visual record that links the two permanently.

Is a paper intake form sufficient for legal compliance?

Paper forms satisfy most state requirements as long as they're complete, legible, and retained for the required period. The practical risk with paper is incompleteness. Fields get skipped when you're busy, writing becomes illegible, and paper forms get lost or damaged over time. Digital forms with required fields prevent the most common compliance gaps automatically.

What happens during a wildlife agency inspection if my intake records are incomplete?

Inspections typically result in warnings for first-time minor deficiencies, but repeat or significant gaps can result in fines or license suspension. The severity depends on the species involved and the nature of the gaps. Missing skull seal documentation for bear or missing migratory bird license numbers are more serious than missing a phone number on a deer intake. Complete records are your first line of protection.

Are there fields I should collect even if not required by my state?

Yes. Best practice is to collect more than your state's minimum requirements. Harvest county for every deer supports CWD documentation. CITES notation for black bear supports interstate transport. Phone number and email for every customer reduces abandoned mount situations. The additional fields cost minutes at intake and prevent hours of problems later.

How should I organize my intake records for easy retrieval during an inspection?

Records should be retrievable by job number, customer name, species, and date. Paper files organized in seasonal binders by species or date work, but require manual sorting during an inspection. Digital records in a searchable system allow instant retrieval by any field and are significantly more useful during an inspection.

Try These Free Tools

Put these insights into practice with our free calculators and planners:

Sources

US Fish & Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement
National Taxidermists Association (NTA)
State wildlife agencies

Get Started with MountChief

A complete intake record is your protection in every compliance inspection and every customer dispute. MountChief's intake system is built around required fields for every species and includes compliance flags for species that need additional documentation. Try MountChief to make every intake legally complete from day one.