Velvet Season
During the early season you will likely get
a buck in velvet. Meaning if you want to keep the velvet intact you will need
to preserve it ASAP if you can’t freeze it within 24 hours. You will have to
inject and spray the antlers with formaldehyde or some of the new solutions on
the market. I personally stripped our antlers but would have loved to kept
Emily’s buck’s velvet.
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| Here you can see Dan's buck antlers have been stripped of their velvet. |
Preserving Velvet Antlers
To preserve the antlers you will first have
to cut small slits around the circumference of the antlers and on the antler
tips then hang them upside down to let all the blood drain. Next you will need
to inject the bases with the preserving solution until the solutions start to
drip out the cuts. Let them hang overnight and then take the watered down
solution and spray it on using a spray bottle. Remember to wear gloves and eye
protection especially when spraying.
Stripping the Antlers
If you want to strip your velvet the
process is very simple. Use a sharp knife and make long cuts about every inch
or so up and down the antlers. Use your
fingers to peel away the velvet at the tip of the antlers until you have a ½ inch
exposed. Then use a set of pliers and start to strip the velvet strips off in
the large sections you cut. Once you’re done set them out to dry and you will
be able to get all the small pieces and veins and velvet off with ease.
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