# how to save deer feet?



## kody10 (Apr 24, 2009)

i killed a deer about three weeks ago. i have had the legs sittin in kosher salt ever since. am i doin the right thing and what is the next step i should take and when?


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## erictski (May 20, 2009)

add borax to the water to help clean anything out of the hide...soak that a few days...


rinse good then clean all the goo and bone marrow out of the leg bone if you havent already...

then wrap the foot around a 2x3 to make it a 90 degree angle tie it up with string...let it dry and it will be hard as a rock...throw some epoxy in the bone and stick a bolt in it and mount it on a board for a coat rack


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## kody10 (Apr 24, 2009)

there is not water in the bucket. i was told to put it ove the legs to rot the meat away. they said it might take a while but i am seein that it is doin anything


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## M.Magis (Oct 2, 2003)

Wow, the things you see on the internet.  May as well pitch them now. To be done properly they must be skinned, tanned, and mounted just like anything else. Anything less is asking for bugs in the future.


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## kody10 (Apr 24, 2009)

i didnt find that on the internet. i have done the same thing with tails before and it worked quite well.


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## JerseyJays (Jul 12, 2008)

M.Magis said:


> Wow, the things you see on the internet.  May as well pitch them now. To be done properly they must be skinned, tanned, and mounted just like anything else. Anything less is asking for bugs in the future.


LOL i was reading down saying to myself the same thing...

remove the bone,then salt, then send feet to tannery, and purchase the forms for deer feet from mckenzie... add some clay, sew them up..... 

OR

bring them to the taxidermist

OR

buy them freeze dried (not your own, but theres no difference in feet) from here:
http://www.rmi-online.com/index.php/cPath/17_1091?osCsid=eac5f3043c37156c0b953a1dfb8d04a5


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## erictski (May 20, 2009)

M.Magis said:


> Wow, the things you see on the internet.  May as well pitch them now. To be done properly they must be skinned, tanned, and mounted just like anything else. Anything less is asking for bugs in the future.


false....

We have about a dozen legs in the house made into shelves and hat racks and some drying to make a lamp or two...

soak the legs in a solution for a while i thought borax ill ask my dad again...then after a few days or so then you just remover the marrow from the bone...then shape them how you want and they will dry and be rock hard...no bugs no problems...


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## kody10 (Apr 24, 2009)

how do u get the marrow out? this is my first time


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## JerseyJays (Jul 12, 2008)

erictski said:


> false....
> 
> We have about a dozen legs in the house made into shelves and hat racks and some drying to make a lamp or two...
> 
> soak the legs in a solution for a while i thought borax ill ask my dad again...then after a few days or so then you just remover the marrow from the bone...then shape them how you want and they will dry and be rock hard...no bugs no problems...


i wouldnt trust that after a few years... especially if you live in a damp area..
once a littly water end up in it they will become rotten meat again, and attract bugs.. 
once bugs get in your trophy room, you better hope they dont get into every mount you own..


im not sayin they wont dry out rock hard, im just saying there are more professional methods that are just as simple... so why teach someone the easy way out when there is a right and wrong way to do things...

that way, which may have been "right" many years ago.. i dont know for sure as i am only 23, is definately outdated.

to each their own tho.. good luck to all of you hunting!


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## erictski (May 20, 2009)

JerseyJays said:


> i wouldnt trust that after a few years... especially if you live in a damp area..
> once a littly water end up in it they will become rotten meat again, and attract bugs..
> once bugs get in your trophy room, you better hope they dont get into every mount you own..
> 
> ...


i understand what you are saying...not trying to argue...just saying what we do...my dads got feet that are easily 15 years old with no sign of bugs or rotting or anything...

to the OP...

To get the marrow out after we soak them we usually use a long drill not in a drill press just in the hand to turn it out as best as we can...then use a wire coat hander and just keep cleaning it out till you think you got it...helps too to wrap a rag around the wire to scrub it out...you may even want to flush it out with alcohol...

Ill try to find that book at my dads ... it was a deer and deer hunting book...

no i am not stamping my name to this because i dont want to be blamed if something goes wrong and you get bugs and your mounts get ruined...just saying how we have done things...take it for what its worth


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## M.Magis (Oct 2, 2003)

You could take the raw feet, position them like you want, and let them dry rock hard. They would look fine, and people actually do that. But, it’s nothing but untreated flesh waiting for bugs to find it. Soaking in a borax/water solution isn’t a whole lot different. Yes, they look good and may continue to look fine for 5-10 years. Or, maybe they’ll draw bugs within 6 months and they attack every mount in the house. I could mount a raw skin to a form and it would look fine for a while. But, would you hang it in YOUR house?


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## subconsciously (Aug 22, 2009)

Im no taxidemist or will ever claim to be, but about 22 years ago I took a deer leg (around 4 inches above the ankle) bent it and left it on the back porch for about 2 months. Took a long screw and attached to to a peice of wood. Been on the wall before my son was born and he's 20 yrs old. No stink, no bugs, no hair loss, and no taxidemist.

Oh yea, coverd it real good with a clear coat finish.


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## scrapewatcher (Apr 14, 2009)

if your doing it for your self all that stuff will be fine. it's 95% bone and cartlage any way. you have no one to please but your self. but to the taxi's they won't because of shrinkage and there's a whole lot better way's of doing it without the shrinkage and a world of differance in the quality when someone is paying. but if it's just a hobby project for you or a family member or a friend go for it.


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