i have a sheep skull that i need to clean for a european mount. i've read over all the pertinent skull cleaning threads on here, but still have one question:

how do i get the horn sheaths off? last year i had one done by a taxidermist, and i saw that he had taken the horn sheaths off to boil/simmer the skull for tissue removal. this year, i want to do it myself and save the cash.

troy

Troy,

Is the head still fresh?

If so, cut off all the big chunks of meat from the skull, plus take out the eyes and tongue. Basically you want to have the skull with small scraps of meat on it. Don't worry about the brain. It will come out later.

Spray the head with water and put it in a black plastic garbage bag. Close it up tightly. Set this in the middle of your back yard for a couple of days. With the warm weather we are having they should release within 2-3 days. When you're ready to remove the horns you might have to hold one horn and whack the other with a 2x4 to loosen it. (If this is a Ramboullet or Merino Ram, all bets are off . . . I had a set one time where the horns never did release!) Don't worry about hurting the horn by whacking them - they'll be OK. I also used to hold one horn and swing the head so that the top of the other horn would hit a tree trunk. (see below about keeping your mouth closed when doing this!).

Now here's the warning . . . after a couple of days in the bag it will start smelling a little ripe but that's what you want . . . the bacteria eats away at the membrane that holds the horns on the core. When you start whacking on it you might want to wear an old shirt and pants and expect to take a shower when you're done (also, keep your mouth closed when you whack it! )

When the horns come off the skull is ready to finish cleaning. Don't boil . . . just simmer (OK, maybe a very low boil . . . but not for too long as it may cause the skull to come apart along the suture lines.) Before boiling go to the grocery store and get a box of "washing soda" from the laundry soap department. It's sodium carbonate (NOT to be confused with baking soda - sodium bicarbonate). Put a small handful in the water before boiling and it will reduce your cooking time by half.

Never (say this with me . . . NEVER ) boil sheep horns!!! The cooking will draw grease and yuck out of the bones and cook it INTO the horns. Remember, the horns are simply hair that is bonded together. The boiling can easily discolor the horns and you will never get it out.

Now you's starting to see why the taxidermist gets paid for doing this! Oh yea . . . I almost forgot . . . if you like living with mama, NEVER (say this with me again . . . NEVER) use her stove top to cook a skull!!!

Good luck!

JDS

right now, the head is in the freezer. i've already removed a lot of meat, the lower jaw, the eyes, tongue, soft palate, etc. there is still a lot of cartilage associated with the nose.

anything else i need to do? i probably won't be able to get around to dealing with it until after my spring break (march 24 or so).

the sheep is a "corsican" - one of those mouflon x domestic sheep hybrids that run wild in the western hill country in places.

if UTA were still maintaining their bug boxes, i'd just take it up there . . .

troy

Troy, JDS is right...... it WILL stink when you pull it out of the bag! And yes....KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT when working on it!
One other thing to consider when you are finished getting the horns off and the skull cleaned is what to do with the horns.
Take a small wire brush, copper will work the best, and brush the hell out of them! Wash it off and when dry, spray them down with WD-40. It will soak in and really bring out the colors. Over the next few days keep spraying untill it wont soak any more then wipe it off. Set it in the sun for a while and wipe it off again. You will see a BIG difference in the way they look!
By the way..........its worth the $100 to send them to a skull cleaner like Skulls Unlimited in Oklahoma City and have them clean it with their bugs! It will last much longer and look twice as good!
Good luck!

[ 03-12-2003, 22:49: Message edited by: bo-n-aro ]

What happens if you don't remove the horns, but just clean and bleach as per a deer skull??

there is a layer of cartlidge like material between the horn and the pedical. If its not cleaned out the chance of attracting bugs will always be there. Also, if it gets a little moist, it will rot and smell.

Troy,
Sorry it took awhile to respond - I was down in the hill country on a short vacation.

I forgot to tell you that when the horns come off I would suggest cutting the horn cores (the bones that go down into the horns) off about 2-3" from the base. That way you don't have to clean them plus it's usually easier to put the horns back on.

When everything is cleaned and you are letting the skull and horns dry, MAKE SURE that you put the horns on the cores to let them dry. If not, the horns will shrink a lot and probably will not fit back on the cores.

To reattach the horns, I firt let them dry thoroughly (several days) and mix up some Bondo (car body repair compound). Put the bondo on the horn cores and slide the horns down into place and hold them there for about 10 minutes.

If any Bondo squeezes out don't wipe it off. Instead, resist the temptation to wipe it and let it start to harden. When it gets like rubber just pop it off the skull part.

Let us know who this all works.

JDS