November 2024 • Nebraskaland 31
task of removing the buck's facial hide, muscle
fi bers and brain tissue with a knife. From there,
you'll need to soak the skull in boiling water to
loosen up the rest of the deer's hard-to-remove
fi bers. I rarely enjoy this labor-intensive process.
The technique I do like, especially if I happen
to shoot a deer early in the season, is to remove
the deer's entire head, dig a hole in my garden,
and bury the skull. I cover up the antlers with
aluminum foil to prevent mice from eating them,
and then place a bucket or large pail over the
entire skull. Just before the ground freezes for the
winter, I remove the skull, wash it with a hose
and soak the skull in a combination of water and
clothes fabric softener to remove any leftover
odor. The fi nal step is to dry the skull in the sun
and stuff two scented dryer sheets in the brain
cavity. Now it's ready to display.
The last, extremely easy option of removing
deer antlers is to take a fi ne-toothed saw and,
starting underneath the pedicles, cut the antlers
off at their bases. Choose this technique if you
know you're not going to hang your deer on the
wall, but you still want the antlers for other uses,
including rattling antlers for deer hunting.
After the skull dries, apply furniture stain with a brush to restore antler color that has been lost. RYAN SPARKS
Chronic Wasting Disease
Chronic wasting disease has changed the game for
those who want to display their big game trophies. These
processes involve the brain and the spinal cord, where the
stubborn prions that cause CWD accumulate most. People
should take proper precautions for handling and disposal,
especially in areas where the disease is known to exist.
Disease experts recommend wearing gloves and a mask,
and soaking the skull and all equipment in a solution of 50
percent chlorine bleach and 50 percent water after tissues
have been removed. In places where CWD rates are high,
your best, and easiest,
move may be to
remove the antlers
and affix them to
one of the many
faux skull options
available from retailers
like these
shown.
p g ,
like these
shown.
by Justin Haag
