05/11/2026
Degreasing is one of the most important steps in skull preservation because it removes the natural oils and fats trapped deep within the bone after cleaning. Even a skull that looks clean on the surface can continue to leak grease over time, causing yellow staining, unpleasant odors, and weakened bone structure if it is not properly degreased. Through warm water and degreasing agents, fats are slowly drawn out of the skull. Proper degreasing is especially important for animals with high fat content, such as bears, hogs, and mature predators, where hidden grease can ruin an otherwise beautifully prepared piece.
Everyone has a different way of doing this I thought I’d show you mine. This big stainless pot is filled with water and a little Dawn Platinum (you don’t want to use platinum with antlered animals it can discolor the antlers). I have an aquarium heater set to 90 degrees. The water gets changed every couple of days until there’s no longer a cloudy film on top (the film is the oils). This bear has been degreasing for 2 months in the first photo I’m pointing to the grease that is still being drawn from the bone.
Typically a deer takes 2-3 weeks to degrease depending on age, a bobcat 4 weeks, a bear or hog 2-3 months!
Of course there are faster more aggressive methods to achieve this, but the risk is cracked teeth and loss of bone integrity.
