Elk Ivory
 

Help me out, please. Which teeth do you get elk ivory from? All of them? Just the molars? One particular pair?

Is there such a thing as deer ivory?

The Mouse

RE: Elk Ivory
 

i'm pretty sure that the ivories are the most rearward tooth on each side of the upper pallate. it has been a while since i have been fortunate enough to remove any. they make awesome jewelry. not aware of any ivory in deer. i believe elk are the only animal in north america that have ivory.

RE: Elk Ivory
 

They are the 2 teeth closest to the nose on the top. They are round in shape.

BTW: Bulls and cows have ivorys, lots of people just throw the cow heads away without getting the ivory. They are smaller but make nice ear rings etc.

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RE: Elk Ivory
 

Way to go Bull Hunter. I was just going to add that piece. I've shot several elk and cannot really tell the difference between the bull's and the cow's ivories. Someone please? A spike's ivories are fairly small, but I have shot cows that are as large as the fives and sixes that I have shot too. In fact, My father-in-law's cow from last year had larger ivories than my six-point bull. Just wondering???

RE: Elk Ivory
 

You cant miss the ivory, they are round and pretty, i usually just cut them out, they are also graded by darkness or the "eye" i accually got a necklace made out of the one i got this season BEAUTIFUL

ScottFisher

RE: Elk Ivory
 

Ivories are all the same regardless of sex. The only difference is the size relative to age. A spike will have about the same size ivory, but the density of the enamel is less. As the animal ages, the enamel gets thicker and will take on a brown staining that makes a pattern unique to each animal. The ivory will then begin to wear and the tooth will start to shorten in height and will begin to flatten out. I have some that are so flat you can actually stand it on end.

The best way I have found to remove them is with a large bladed knife. Insert the knife on the outside edge of the tooth just under the gum. Push upwards rocking the knife front to back. (Don't put your hand on top of the muzzle as the knife can be pushed all the way through if you push too hard) Next do the same on the front and back of the tooth. Finally push the knife upwards on the inside of the tooth. Rock it front to back, then lightly pry to the outside. The tooth should pop out onto the knife blade. It should take about 1 minute to do. Clean the meat off of the bottom of the tooth by scraping with a pocket knife. Don't scrape the main part of the tooth as it will scratch it. Do this right away before it dries or it will be very hard to remove. The teeth can be naturally polished by rubbing them on your pant legs.

Dream to Hunt...Hunt to Dream

RE: Elk Ivory
 

A cow elk that I got a few years ago actually had three ivory teeth, one was about half the size of the others and was right beside one of the normal ivorys, than another cow I got actually had, what I'd call a cavity, her ivorys were nearly gone.

RE: Elk Ivory
 

Thanks for the replies and the info.

The Mouse