Euro Mount Smell

[Doc Holliday]

Has anyone (who used a taxidermist to do it) ever gotten a euro mount back that stank?

This is an elk....skull appears clean as a whistle, but the whole thing including the antlers smells like a sack full of buttholes. Have used most of a can of Lysol, and also wiped the antlers down with a damp terry cloth, but after a couple of days it is still stinking up the room I put it in. I have had some whitetails euros done and never experienced anything like this. Wondering if it was sitting in a shed with a bunch of other rotten stuff and just got some invisible funk on it.

 

[Buckshot85]

Yup. Mine get hung in the garage for several months.

 

[Geewhiz]

All mine have had a bit of an odor for the first few months... however I cant say that it smelled like buttholes..

 

[JeffP_Or]

I have not but I've only had one done by a beetle person [she is meticulous!]; the rest I did myself.

I have had friends complain - most were pronghorn though and the sheaths had not been removed. I have also heard/read that the ear canals are the primary problem for deer/elk - without popping out the little ear bud covers or spending an inordinate amount of time/effort to dig out behind them and into the canals, stink will ensue!

 

[Touchdown88]

Wipe the horns down with some denatured alcohol then soak a few cotton balls in alcohol and drop in the brain cavity. Wait a few days an you'll be good to go!

 

[butcherboy]

Sounds like or smells like the maceration method was used. No degreasing was performed using dawn soap and ammonia. Just straight maceration and maybe a quick power wash and that’s it. It will stink something fierce without the degreasing. Then it should have been sealed. Call whoever did it and find out their process and ask to have it finished so it won’t smell.

 

[JPD350]

There is a pocket of nastiness at the back of the sinuses, it is super hard to get to from the front if you keep the sinus bones intact, if you don't you can just get a long screw driver and get it from the front.
I always take a long screw driver thru the brain cavity and poke two holes, one into the left and right sinus cavity. If you just put the screw driver into the area and tap it with your hand it will poke thru, it is very thin bone. After that I take a big drill bit and drill out the area. sometime I'll take a stiff wire and put a little 90 bend at the end and get a little bit more scratched out past the drill holes. If you do this right after you get the brain out the cleaning process usually gets most of it out because the water flows freely thru that area. Once that nastiness gets embedded it is extremely hard to get the smell out for quite awhile.

 

[manitou1]

What jpd 350 said. There is either meat in the ear hole or brain tissue left in the cavity. Or... cartilage left in the back of the sinus.
I have had to re-boil and get LOOONG hemostats to retrieve cartilage on mounts I THOUGHT were complete.

 

[ShakeDown]

^ What everyone said above. Also, if there is cartilage left on the back of the skull, a power drill with wire brush is the ticket.

Elk do some nasty shit on their antlers, so a hot soapy scrub down and a power wash there helps as well if that was missed.

 

[ColeyG]

Sealing/finishing with a coat or two of mop'n'glo is good for a variety of reasons, residual smell being one.

 

[Doc Holliday]

I got some denatured alcohol this morning at the hardware store and drop some soaked cotton balls in the brain cavity, and wiped down the antlers with a terry cloth soaked in the denatured alcohol. I can still smell the funk but it is definitely more subdued Have it out in the garage.....I live in FL and the garage gets well over 100 degrees between noon and 7pm or so. Hopefully it will bake it out soon enough. I like the sound of Mop n glo as a next step if needed. Appreciate all the replies, and glad to know this is fairly common.

 

[elkguide]

Good advice but be very careful in washing down your antlers if they are dark from being rubbed on trees etc. A good washing can leave them very white.

 

[Jperson]

I agree with ColeyG. A couple coats of mop'n' glo does wonders on the smell.

 

[boliver29]

I do about 100 European mounts a year always seal with mop n glo blow all the small holes out with a air gun if the stuff is dry if they peroxide soak it in hot soapy water then blow it out. Also if it has all the thin bone up in the nasal cavity it can be near impossible o get all the tissue out.


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[30338]

Congrats on the bull. I'd soak the skull in a 5 gallon bucket with dawn dish soap and hot water for 7-10 days.

Maybe the mop and glow will work as well, never tried that. I do 10-20 heads per year and don't tend to have issues with smell after a proper degreasing.

Oh and I'd take a warm rag with Dawn on it and rub down the antlers good too. Then hose them off.

 

[roymunson]

more boiling, or put it up somewhere high in the weather for a while.

Did my son's whitetail this fall. Had a funk to it. hung it on the basketball hoop our of the reach of the dogs for a couple weeks and it's inside now.

Mop N Glo gives it a sheen and a not unpleasant scent when you're done.

 

[Troutnut]

Never had even a slight stink to any of mine, though I don't climb up on the wall to sniff them. I've done most of them myself with beetles and had one done by a pro with beetles. Always degreased after.

 

[Gatorgrizz27]

I’ve only had a Euro done on one deer but never noticed a smell. Can‘t say I’ve sniffed it but we put it in the back of our car and drove it home for an hour with zero comments from the wife. It hangs in the home office and I never catch a whiff of anything when I’m right next to it.

 

[shooter78]

Never had any smell to any of mine for sure


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[Hac]

The guy that does mine uses mop'n glo, smells okay