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Whitening a deer skull
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Howdy! First time poster. Long time hunter. I found a freshly dead deer in the woods 8 months ago. Took the head, skinned it and buried it in a tub. 8 months later I dug it up. It’s almost done (some flesh is still stuck in a few holes). Downside is that at some point water filled the tub and stained the skull a chestnut brown. It’s currently soaking in a bucket of hydrogen peroxide. Ive been checking on it but it’s still very brown. What should I do to whiten it? I’m considering simmering it in a pot with peroxide but it would have to be inside as I live in an apartment. So I wouldn’t want to do that unless I was sure it would get the job done. I can’t hang it up outside to sunbleach because my landlord would get pretty peeved. Plus I’d worry squirrels would get to the antlers. Any advice? |
Here are some instructions. You will have to degrease it first by boiling in dish washing detergent, http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=hunting.skull
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If it was a metal bucket and those are rust stains then there is likely nothing you csn do, but for degreasing i would recommend dish soap and absolutely NOT boiling it in washing detergent because too much heat may degrade the bone and affect the longevity and additives in the detergent may be abrasive.
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More likely the brown color is from the tannin in the soil carried into the tub by the water.
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Get 40% ( by volume ) peroxide from a beauty supplier like Sallies Beauty supply. Mix it with Whiting, that you can get from Van Dykes or McKenzie Taxidermy Supply. Make a paste and, using a paint brush, cover the entire skull with the paste, wrap it in saran wrap ( to keep the paste from drying out ) and put it in the sun or under a really bright light or a UV light such as a tanning bed. After a couple of days, clean it off and repeat if necessary.
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I have no knowledge on the art of taxidermy but this guy has some good info on skull mounts :
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