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Name that skull!
Went fishing and my dog started rolling in this dead animal.
It was pretty much cleaned to the bone, so i took the skull, it looked cool.
I soaked it in peroxide for a day, (saw it on dirty jobs) It didnt really do anything, so i soaked it in bleach for a day, it rotted all the skin off and caused some bones to crack.
Anyways, its pretty easy.
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...m/CIMG6132.jpg
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...m/CIMG6133.jpg
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...m/CIMG6134.jpg
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...m/CIMG6135.jpg
rawr
http://i48.photobucket.com/albums/f2...m/CIMG6136.jpg
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Re: Name that skull!
Raccoon...? ;) Nice find!
I don't know how many will agree with me, but I find the hobby of scavenging to be quite rewarding. I've been doing this actively for 5 years, and have had dead things around my whole life (grew up with hunters). I know quite a few tricks to get things looking rather nice.
First and foremost, as you've already discovered, bleach is BAD for bones. Peroxide/water is the best way to go, but you cannot expect a miracle overnight. I'm currently soaking some dried up meat off of some bones I got awhile ago with a simple dish soap/water solution. Every few days I change out the water, give the bones a good scrub (using those stiff-bristled tooth brushes + wire brushes for anything really stuck on there) and let them be again.
I have a great cleaning solution, but it's rather long, so you (or anyone else interested for that matter) may private message me if you'd like it.
If you ever have any extra bones you'd like to get rid of, I'm always open to give 'em a new home. :D *LOL!*
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Re: Name that skull!
It looks very canine; too long and not round enough to be feline.
I have a few skulls of my own; I will post pics sometime; I collect them too :)
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Re: Name that skull!
Definitely a raccoon, and a nice specimen - looks like you've got complete dentition.
Kerosene soaks will also remove greasy tissue; just let it dry -really- well before you handle it again.
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Re: Name that skull!
My guess is prob a raccoon or stray dog/odd fox.
~mike
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Re: Name that skull!
I vote Coon too.... that last pix is wicked cool!!! :twisted:
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Re: Name that skull!
Yep, its a raccoon.
The whole body is still there, but i just wanted the skull.
When we first moved here i found what i think was a goat skull, i should have saved it.
Oh well.
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Re: Name that skull!
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Re: Name that skull!
with the skeletons i prepare at work, after we feed them to the beetles we soak them in ethanol (alcohol) and let it dry out. what it does is kill any remaining bacteria on the skull. If it looks clean and doesn't smell you should be alright, you might want to do a quick soak in alcohol or peroxide but not too long if yo udo peroxide, it could eventually damage the bone if left too long. looks good!
~mike
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Re: Name that skull!
niiiice i have quite a few skulls myself.
my mom is currently selling some... i'll post a pic here... hold on...
okay i'm back LOL
http://www.timelessspirit.com/images/snakes/skulls.jpg
wild russian boar, bear, coyote, river otter, horse
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Re: Name that skull!
Found a dog skull the other day actually.
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Re: Name that skull!
Quote:
Originally Posted by recycling goddess
Those are awesome!
Is there anything i can do to keep the bottom jaw on, but still be able to move it up and down?
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Re: Name that skull!
i have no idea... i just leave mine sitting on a shelf... i don't play with them LOL
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Re: Name that skull!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesw
Those are awesome!
Is there anything i can do to keep the bottom jaw on, but still be able to move it up and down?
wire around the hinges.
~mike
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Re: Name that skull!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jamesw
Is there anything i should do to preserve it?
That's entirely up to you! I usually don't use anything, but on a few, I have. On one cat skull (that, um, i didn't REALLY clean very well...) I used some clear primer (?) paint. That made it real nice and shiny, and since I was lazy about cleaning it (i did a little work, not much, just enough to make it okay to handle), it seems to have stopped any smell from seeping through. I mean, I don't know if it ever would have smelt, but I used the clear paint, anyway. It smells like nothing, now. I just hung it from a bar on the trampoline, sprayed 1 coat, waited 3 hours, sprayed another and hung it in the garage for a few days. It is now in front of my television, lookin' nice and slick/shiny. I don't particularly care for the unnatural look of it up-close, but from a distance, it still looks like a natural skull.
On one of my coyote skulls and on ALL of my jaw bones with teeth intact, I always use some brush-on super glue to keep the teeth from falling out. I lost one of my 'yote's teeth and that was the last time I skipped out on reinforcing them. Anything that's missing teeth just looks a little awkward to me. ;) Also, brush-on super glue can be used as a sort of a brace to keep fragile bone from splitting, if it's already cracked.
These are just my own practices. I'm sure everyone that does the scavenging-thing has their own ways, but these are what work for me, so I stick to them.
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Re: Name that skull!
Quote:
Originally Posted by recycling goddess
Gorgeous, Aleesha! Thank you for sharing! :) They look so clean, but the color of them doesn't seem very altered. I always appreciate natural-looking bone, compared to what some people do to it (spray paint it {or bleach it} white or black! yuck!) Of course, I've seen lots of skulls that have gorgeous paintings on them. I've even painted some Egyptian symbols on a few of mine, and a simple Native American-like deer with night time background.
The coyote & horse ones made me squee with joy. Hehe. :D
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Re: Name that skull!
Quote:
Originally Posted by recycling goddess
Very cute flower! Nice collection...
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Re: Name that skull!
thanks. the flower is in the *cough* bullet hole *cough* and so she keeps it with the flower to see the skull rather than the cause of it's demise. not that the cause bothers her, it's just nicer to look at the skull rather than the hole :P
after all, my mom is a high priestess crone... she has so many dead things in her freezer. you don't go for icecream in the dark let me tell you... you definitely want a light on when you go into the freezer!
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