Deer bone for scales how long to leave burried

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Kurt W

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Sep 4, 2020
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I buried several leg bones from deer back at the end of March. My question is how long should I leave them buried for nature to do its work of cleaning them of flesh? When I dig them up should I drill holes in them so that nature can clean the marrow out and if so what is a good process for that?
 
It depends entirely on the conditions you buried them in. An acidic peat bog could take thousands of years, in sand they would de-hydrate dependant on the humidity of the sand. You should dig them up and check............... unless you buried them in a churchyard, in which case forget it.
 
bushwacker bob said:
It depends entirely on the conditions you buried them in. An acidic peat bog could take thousands of years, in sand they would de-hydrate dependant on the humidity of the sand. You should dig them up and check............... unless you buried them in a churchyard, in which case forget it.
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Thanks for the reply Bushwacker Bob... I buried them a foot deep in my backyard and am fairly certain that my neighbors believe I am a serial killer...lol. I will dig them up and have a look see .
 
Don't bury bones to get the flesh off. Stick them in a bucket of water for 6-8 weeks and let the microbes do their thing. After that, soak them in acetone for a few days to draw all the fat and oils from the bone. Last, soak in hydrogen peroxide for 2-7 days to get all the blood out of the bones. The longer you let them soak in peroxide, the whiter they'll get.
 
The fire ants around here will strip anything to nothing but bone in record time.
I saw a small snake completely intact reduced to just a skeleton in less than 24 hours.
 
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