# Resident Evil Dogs



## bignick

So i was thinking about making two of these to sit on my front porch. I am assuming that the only real way to do this is with chicken wire and paper mache. Then once that is dry corpse it up and paint it. Anyone ever attempt this or no of any links to help me get started? 

Thanks in advance,

Nick


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## Spooky1

Just make rubber suits to put on real dogs, just like they did in the movie.


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## Lilly

that sounds like the ticket..
just shape it up and slap it on ..corpse up done.
wear goves
use pliers
bend any ends inwards
check out papier mache Stolloween ....his site should help you


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## bignick

If i had some dobermans i would totally dress them up to look like zombie dogs. 

Thanks Lilly I'll check his work out.


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## RoxyBlue

Is this the dog you're talking about, Nick?










Take a look at the Spooky1 MacGuyver entry on this site for some ideas. We made ghoul hounds using clothes hanger wire and a plastic bottle torso fleshed out with newspaper and papier mache. We weren't trying to make them look like real dogs, but the construction would have been the same if we were. The largest of the two stood about a foot tall at the shoulder.

If I were doing this project, I think starting with a chicken wire framework would be a sound approach since you're looking at dogs that are a bit bigger than what we built. The most challenging part would be getting it to look like a real corpsed Doberman. I would definitely rely on a good picture to guide me in that respect.


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## scourge999

I wouldn't go with the mache route. If it turns out really well (I am sure it will) then you should have something as durable as possible. Maybe armiture with styrofoam then a hard foam coat. I would hate to see such hard work dissolved by the elements.


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## RoxyBlue

There are some zombie dog pictures (not resident evil, but close enough for ideas) at this site, for additional inspiration:

http://timwiese.com/ZombieDogLayout.htm

Scourge is correct that weatherproofing is an issue for papier mache creations. If you keep them on the porch, it shouldn't be a problem. If not, there are also exterior varnishes you can use to protect your pieces (and Stolloween is indeed a gold mine of information and useful tidbits when it comes to papier mache).


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## Undeadvoodoomonkey

Go out and find a good plastic dog and add to that. Re-sculpt the head. I've seen them in a lot of display type stores.

I'd make one of these it's way scarier. 
http://media1.break.com/dnet/media/2008/5/35may7-stuffed-animal-freak.jpg


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## dave the dead

Undeadvoodoomonkey said:


> Go out and find a good plastic dog and add to that. Re-sculpt the head. I've seen them in a lot of display type stores.
> 
> I'd make one of these it's way scarier.
> http://media1.break.com/dnet/media/2008/5/35may7-stuffed-animal-freak.jpg


OMG!!!! FUR IS MURDER!!! FUR IS MURDER!!!!

Nick, you could keep an eye out for cheap wire-frame Christmas reindeer (or free after xmas when they start hitting the curbs) The basic form is very close to a dog, and more than sturdy enough as an armature....plus some are already animated.


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## RoxyBlue

Undeadvoodoomonkey said:


> I'd make one of these it's way scarier. http://media1.break.com/dnet/media/2008/5/35may7-stuffed-animal-freak.jpg


My goodness, the things some people will wear (shakes head).:googly:


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## Silent Requiem

i would start with a pair of plaster walkwy dogs and modify that.


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## bignick

i will start looking around and see what i can find. My scarecrow was the first and only thing i ever made out of chicken wire and i didn't have to be so perfect with that since it was basicaly being covered with burlap and foam and a coat. I am mainly nervous about sculpting heads and stuff like that so i ham going to try and shoot for plaster or plastic dogs and see what i can do from there. thanks for all of the tips and advice so far though.


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## bignick

Well a lightning bolt struck me yeterday. I was searching ebay and the internet looking for plastic dogs to use and coming up with nothing. Then i get a phone call from my Dad saying he needed me to come over and airbrush some taxidermy mounts for him and thats when it hit me. Taxidermists use foam forms for animals like coyotes and wolves which look almost identical to a dogs body. So i went online to Van ****'s taxidermy shop and started looking through their forms of coyotes looking for the right form. Well i found two that i like one is a sitting form and the other is a standing form. Best is they sell fake teeth and eyes and ear inserts that i can use to give me the perfect look. Only down side is that it may cost me a bit to them (close to 120 each) But if they look good then its worth it.

Here is a link to the sitting form i am thinking about using.
http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/103094/coyote-lifesize-straight-form-without-rods

I'll post up some other pics of the other forms and the fake mouth inserts (fake teeth)


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## bignick

here are some more links
http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/103080/coyote-lifesize-flexamove-form-with-rods1

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/103054/coyote-lifesize-mannikin-with-rods1

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/103058/coyote-lifesize-flexamove-form-with-rods4

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/101007/lifesize-coyote-climbing-up-with-rods

Mouth Inserts
http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/104044/mohr-coyote-tongue-panting-medium

Just in case anyone has a lot of cash and wants to do a real life like headless horseman they also sell horse forms ($860)

http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/26130100/horse-lifesize-form-standing-with-rods


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## Sickie Ickie

Seen the moth before and always loved it. This looks like it may be a good one to animate: http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/103058/coyote-lifesize-flexamove-form-with-rods4


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## RoxyBlue

(slaps forehead) - taxidermy forms - why didn't we think of that!?!

Those are great forms to start with, bignick, and the time it will save you is probably well worth the money. I really like the stance on the climbing one - it just screams "potentially evil" to me.


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## Sickie Ickie

connect a dim light with an audio track and motion sensor, and you got it made, man!


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## bignick

I think before i mess with animation i am going to work on making them static and looking good. I will have to construct some feet out of spray foam though. the forms don't really have big enough feet to do the trick for me. So i will start there and then more than likely paint the entire thing either black or a dark red. After that i will corpse it like i did my bucky's and i should be all set. I just hope these don't dissapear on me. What i really like best about them though is that because of the wires sticking out of the bottom of their feet i can also use them in the lawn.


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## bignick

They also sell eyes for the coyote that light up (dimly of course) but it makes it look like the eyes are glowing.


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## RoxyBlue

These are going to be beautiful props. Do post pictures as you go along. I'd love to see how they progress.


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## Spooky1

Sounds like you have a good plan. I remember seeing the forms in the catalog. I thought about using one to make a graveyard wolf, but that may be for Halloween 2010.


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## Sickie Ickie

love the night eyes!


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## bignick

I am deffinately going to go with this plan. My only dilemma is the ears. I am not too worried about them though because i know enough taxidermists that can show me tricks and stuff like that to get the perfect look. I am just debating if i should use the night eyes? They also sell Wolf forms but they are close to $230 a pop. so i think i am just going to stick with coyote. I hope the forms aren't too small.


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## Mr_Chicken

Looks to me like the coyote may be a little small for a wolf. It appears that it's a little under 3 ft long and 20 inches tall (A: 4 1/4" x B: 11 1/4" x C: 34 1/4" x D: 19 3/4"). Then again, that may be just big enough.

As for the eyes, personally, I'd just make my own like this. It's easy and it saves a few bucks.


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## bignick

I am talking about using the coyote form for a dog appearance. Not a wolf appearance. I thought maybe the coyote form would be too small but after seeing those measurements it should be fine. As for the eyes i have a small can of glow in the dark paint that i think i am going to use.


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## octoberist

Nevermind.


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## Sickie Ickie

try these ears http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/30004004/coyote-earliners1


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## bignick

I saw those ears but i have my doubts about them i saw some other ears that were more expensive but looked really real.

Here is the link
http://www.vandykestaxidermy.com/product/102615/52876


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## tonguesandwich

Almost the dog you want, scroll down when you get to the page. These are coated in a silicone to keep them moist, hence the price
http://www.horrorbid.com/auction_details.php?auction_id=109677


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## bignick

That is exactly what i am shooting for only i am hoping that mine will look more like the resident evil dogs. That is a taxidermy form coated with latex and silicone. Thanks for the link!!


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## turtle2778

Okay so for your animation, why not use the form that is adjustable, but put it on a lunging pnuematic prop. One static and one moving. I love this idea. I can't wait to see what you come up with Nick.


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## turtle2778

Oh and if you don't get the eyes that glow I'm gunna be disappointed. Real dogs eyes glow when light hits them.


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## Sickie Ickie

or when real dogs are taken over by demons.


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## bignick

I am a static prop kind of guy. I think that unless you really know what you're doing with animatronics the can look cheezy and ruin the whole display. So because i have never animated anything and don't really know how i will leave everything static for this year. As for the glowing eyes i am 95% sure that i am going with them. This is going to be a rather expensive Halloween. Time to start watching for sales! 

Don't worry about the build i will be sure to post plenty of pictures of my progress.


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## The_Caretaker

Since you are going with the glowing eyes I would use a trigger to turn them on only when some one is close, possible also trigger a growl. A PIR would work well for this


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## Sickie Ickie

Don't know if this would save you any money or not, but check out: Zombie Animatronic "Halloween Hell Hound Resident Evil" on ebay. Someone is selling a tax. coyotee.


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## bignick

Thanks for the idea Caretaker.

Sickie, 

Thanks for the link. I have a feeling though that the form is going to be hard to work with since its been cut in half so i am gonna stick with a new one. But thanks for the link again.


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## bignick

Okay a little update.

I ordered a form last night and i did not go with the glowing eyes. Now befoe you guys start saying how much i suck, i want you to know that i did my homework on this and it was a lot easier and cheaper for me to do it this way. You see i know a few taxedermists and i asked them about it and they all said that unless you are using the skin to cover the form you will see the wires clear as day. They were right too because i am only going to be using pantyhose and latex to cover the coyote form so something like that would stick out like a sore thumb. Plus this way i don't have to worry about hiding any electrical wires or running extension chords to plug in the glowing eyes. 

I should have the form by next week and start working on it some time in March/April.


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## RoxyBlue

Thanks for the update, nick. The eye choice sounds entirely practical and appropriate. I'm looking forward to seeing how the dog turns out.


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## bignick

I don't want to get cocky and shoot myself in the foot but i feel pretty confident that it will turn out pretty good. I only ordered one form and if it goes well then i will try again. If not then i am out $100.00, so i am hoping that it goes very well.


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## jabberwocky

Iam pumped to see how this project goes............
I hope its ok to throw out a couple ideas.

Id think of possibly "flocking" the exterior of the dog that has not been eatin away yet by the "zombiefication" process.
That should give it a slight fur texture without getting to involved with actual fur, but will also look way better then just paint.
For the eyes, I imagine theres some sort of indentation in the form.
Have you thought about an led light hooked to a watch battery?
Should fit in an eyesocket and would eliminate any need for wires.

Just throwin that out there.
Good luck.


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## Sickie Ickie

Has the form come in yet?


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## bignick

i did get the forms last week but i haven't really gotten to work on it yet. To be honest i am going to have my work cut out for me on this prop. For example the head is not attached to the form like i thought it would be so i am going to have to attach it then sand it down so that the seems are not visible. I need to cut part of the head off to install the teeth. I will have to cut out the eyes to install my fake eyes. The entire form will have to be sanded to hide any and all seems.


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## RoxyBlue

Can the seams be hidden by the corpsing process? That would save you some elbow grease.


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## bignick

not really they are raised and rigid. I am thinking about doing all the work that i need to do to this and then lightly spread some great stuff over it and let it dry. Then i will sand it all down. This should hide all seems and cut marks that i will need to make to install everything.


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## bignick

Well this past weekend allowed me enough time to finally get started on this prop. I haev attached a bunch of pictures below.

Here is the form straight out of the box. The head does not come attached but i only think its because the head was turned and shipping may have broke it off.



















Here is the jawset that i am installing. It comes with both the top and bottom jaws and a rubber tongue.


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## bignick

Here is the head. I had to cut out the bottom jaw in order to install the jawsets. You have to be very careful because this is foam and it is very fragile.



















Here is the jawset fitted into the bottom jaw.


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## bignick

Here is both the top and bottom installed it took me close to 4 hours to do this. I think mainly because i have never done this before and i was very cautious and took my time. Next time i think i could do this a lot faster.










Using hot Glue i tie everything together making it one solid piece again.


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## bignick

Here is where i ended after about 5 hours. Oh if you are wondering how i connected the head i used metal rods inserted into the body form and then pushed the head into the rods. I also loaded the head up with hot glue to make the form solid.


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## bignick

I will keep you guys posted as i make more progress.


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## RoxyBlue

That jaw set looks great (as does the form) - nice work and well worth taking your time with!

I see you have a big fish in there, too


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## Sickie Ickie

You're really doing a bang up job so far, man! This is a type of project that takes time, so don't rush it. You are going to make it look fantastic!


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## Spooky1

Puppy has big teeth. 

I'm looking forward to see how your doggie turns out.


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## bignick

RoxyBlue said:


> That jaw set looks great (as does the form) - nice work and well worth taking your time with!
> 
> I see you have a big fish in there, too


Thanks, as for the Big Fish it a Barracuda that i am restoring.



Sickie Ickie said:


> You're really doing a bang up job so far, man! This is a type of project that takes time, so don't rush it. You are going to make it look fantastic!


Thanks a lot, I am hoping that at this pace i can knock out 1 in two at most three weekends.



Spooky1 said:


> Puppy has big teeth.
> 
> I'm looking forward to see how your doggie turns out.


For the teeth i actually took my dremel to them and sanded them to more of a point (Canines only). I will be sure to keep you guys posted on how everything turns out.


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## Front Yard Fright

That thing is going to be WICKED when you're done!
I can't wait!
.


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## Dixie

You have done just an amazing job on the proportions of this piece, very realistic indeed. I get spooked just looking at him, even knowing that its not real!!!


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## bignick

Thanks for the comments. Next step will be adding the eyes and LEDs and Ears. Then i coat the entire thing in Great stuff and once dry remove sections to look like bite marks or just missing flesh. After that nylons and latex and then finally airbrushing the finishing touches.


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## Draik41895

ooh,thats cool,id like to see the led eyes too


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## bignick

I was planning on ordering them from Monster guts but i wish the wire was longer. THe one Monster guts sells is only 18" long. I need more 3-4' long. Any ideas on how i could do this or where i could buy this?


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## Sickie Ickie

Just chop it in the middle and solder in a section of speaker wire to however long you need it.


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## bignick

I was wondering if it was that simple or not. 

Anyone know where i can buy some shrinkwrap to put over the spliced sections to keep moisture from getting into the wires? I mean it is going to be in the elements.


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## Sickie Ickie

sure. any hardware store ought to have it. It's called shrink tubing and you'll find it in the wire section. You can heat it with a soldering iron or lighter and it'll fit nice and snug.


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## bignick

Thanks Sickie Ickie,

Last night i was messing around with the eyes for my dog and i dropped one. Since the eyes are made of glass it shattered once it hit the basement floor. So now i have to reorder my eyes which will take me awhile to get. So its gonna be awhile till i can post new pics or go any further.


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## Sickie Ickie

Bummer, man. Looks on the bright side, now you can either have a cyclops eye or a three eyed dog.


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## bignick

I thought about making the dog with only one eye but i think i will start with two eyes and then try one.


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## Silent Requiem

one rotted out socket might be cool...


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## bignick

Sorry to forget about this thread i have been updating my thread on halloween forum a lot and forgot about this one. Well i finished the dog this past weekend and here are some pics of the finished product.

Let me know what you think.


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## RoxyBlue

OMG, he looks like raw meat, yet somehow still approachable. It's as if he knows he's been a good dog and he's waiting for you to hand him his favorite body-part treat

I really like the stringy parts you did with the black material.


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## bignick

yeah he didn't turn out real mean looking. Next time i will have to work on the eyes and ears to give it more of a snarl look.


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