Preparing skull for enclosure

Found a pretty nice fox skull in the woods this evening. It's very clean and free of any traces of flesh etc but would like to know if there is anything special you guys do to ensure it is safe in the enclosure

It is for a Hadrurus setup

Thanks

I would run it through the dishwasher a couple times to be safe. Just to get the little critters off. If it's totally clean and all the brain and other tissue has completely decomposed off then you don't have to worry much about diseases or anything.

Thanks. Would the microwave do the same job?

Putting it in the oven or microwave at a low setting is a good idea.

Thanks

I'd usually boil bones in 6 cups of water with 1 cup of vinegar for about 30 minutes. This whitens the bone and removes any remaining dried flesh off. Air dry them for about a day then microwave in low heat setting for 5 minutes

I was going to suggest the low boil option as
well. Did that with a raccoon skull; it came out
real nice.

You can also soak it in bleach, as well. That will make the skull nice and white

Smokehound714 wrote:

You can also soak it in bleach, as well.  That will make the skull nice and white

Bleach for cleaning bone is overkill. Unrinsed residues in the marrows and air pockets is hazardous for scorps.

Cleaning any porous to semi-porous material with bleach is a big no, no.

Thanks for all your suggestions. Last question: Will the teeth not fall out if i boil it?

Bleach breaks down into harmless saltwater. That's something few people seem to know... You simply soak the skull in freshwater after the bleach...

Smokehound714 wrote:

Bleach breaks down into harmless saltwater.  That's something few  people seem to know...  You simply soak the skull in freshwater  after the bleach...

Saltwater is still dangerous to scorpions.

shaneshac wrote:

Thanks for all your suggestions. Last question: Will the teeth not fall out if i boil it?

No, it won't. Just don't overboil it or it becomes too brittle

This is pretty cool, wish I could find a skull for my tank!

Nice! I'm going to put some deer bones in my next enclosure. My mom had an accident with a deer a few years ago, and my little brother found a fresh one at the side of the road. Me and my grandpa butchered it (we still have a lot of meat in the fridge ) and I buried the bones and the skull. I like making cutlery and little works of art from bones, so I'll dig them up and start working on it

Look forward to see what that looks like

EmielVrolijk wrote:

Nice! I'm going to put some deer bones in my next enclosure. My mom had an accident with a deer a few years ago, and my little brother found a fresh one at the side of the road. Me and my grandpa butchered it (we still have a lot of meat in the fridge ) and I buried the bones and the skull. I like making cutlery and little works of art from bones, so I'll dig them up and start working on it

That would be awesome, should post the results when your done