I recently cleaned a deer skull in this fashion, and it can out with virtually no damage to the bone.
Once you can see that all the flesh is gone, rinse under running water to remove small particles, and allow the skull to dry. Time varies based on water temp and skull size, but expect this to last at least a month. Some teeth may fall out but they can be glued in later. The flesh will rot right off of the bone in the water. Change the water every four to seven days as needed. It is best if the tub is placed in a warm shed, far from your house and from your neighbors house. Simply fill a Rubbermaid tub with water and place your skull in.
This takes a long time and STINKS but it has good results. Keep rinsing, scraping & peeling until 90% of all the flesh is removed. To remove what is left of the brain, use a bottle brush under running water push the brush up into the skull cavity and basically brush & clean just as you would a bottle or tall glass. Remove the remaining flesh by hand, either with gloves or without (I stopped using gloves because they get in the way too much). Make sure you collect any teeth that may have fallen out from the bottom of the pot you can glue these back in later. Allow it to cool slightly, but not all the way. Once the flesh is soft and easily falls away from the bone, grab a pair of tongs and remove the skull from the pot. If you boil it for too long or at too high a temp, the bone may begin to separate along the joints. Check your skull as often as possible, about every 10-15 minutes. Reduce it to a low simmer and place your skull in. You will want to designate a pot specifically for cleaning skulls you can buy a used pot at almost any local thrift store. I have a freestanding propane burner (purchased from Wal-Mart) that work GREAT because I can move it away from the house. Most outdoor grills these days have a stove burner, which works perfect.
You should do this outside as it WILL make your house stink. They will eventually break down & you should be able to wash then out down the road sometime.Ģ. Be aware: you may not be able to get all of the bugs off, so don't stress if there's one or two left inside. If you want to kill the beetles, leave the skull in the freezer for 24 + hours, then shake and brush the bugs off outside. If you simply want to slow your beetles down, leave it in for about 15 minutes, then shake and brush the beetles back into your bug-tub. Place your skull into a plastic zip-lock bag and set it in the freezer. Finally, when you remove the skull from your beetle tank, there will still be beetles on it. Make sure you do not place more than one skull in at a time, and make sure you remove the skull quickly after all of the flesh is gone, because the dermestids will begin to eat the bone. I have heard that a good strong colony can clean an entire buffalo skull in about 48 hours, but don't be disappointed if yours takes a few extra days. The larger and hungrier your colony is, the better. make sure it stays slightly damp by misting it slightly now and again. Check on your skull about every 12 to 18 hours. The dermestids prefer to be somewhat hidden, so you can place a small cardboard box over the skull to provide cover for them as they eat. You may want to set your skull on a piece of card board instead of placing it directly on the bedding, as sometimes the bedding (especially cotton) will stick to your skull. Make sure it is completely thawed before you place it in with the beetles. Once your colony has grown for several weeks, it is time to thaw out you skull. Check every few days to make sure they still have food, and also lightly mist their container with water every other day. Feed you beetles raw hamburger and let them multiply for about two to three weeks.
It is best to let your starter colony grow a bit before placing your skull in (keep the skull frozen so it does not rot or dry out). Use ONLY cotton batting or cotton balls that are 100% natural cotton or use pine shavings. They will need a cotton or pine shaving bedding. Set up your dermestids in a large Rubbermaid tub, preferably in and out-door heated shed (it is best to keep the room temp just at eighty degrees if possible). This method is best if you plan to make cleaning skulls a hobby. You can buy dermestid starter kits on eBay fairly cheap. They are much less messy than other flesh eating bugs such as maggots, and they are fairly easy to contain because they cannot fly in temperatures below about 85 degrees. Dermestids are small, black, flesh eating beetles. This is the way many museums prepare skulls.
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