does anybody know how long a deer takes to get the velvet off the antlers? just wonderin also after it is off how long till the pink goes away? i know this has nothin to do with taxidermy lol
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Carrie,
deer have been known to strip their velvet off overnight.The pink usually goes away after a couple days of rubbing trees, thrashing
bushes,etc.How dark they become is often dictated by the type of trees,bushes,etc.The barks of different trees cause different color shades.
Carrie;
A healthy male deer begins to grow set of antlers at about the same time that the fawns are born.This growth begins from the pedicals on the deers skull.The developing antlers are covered with a layer of skin called velvet,because it looks and feels like velvet cloth.Antler velvet is skin covered by fine hairs.Under the skin is a layer of blood vessels that provide the necessary nutrients for the growth of the antlers.The antlers are soft and sensitive if touched or rubbed against a tree.The velvet bleeds if cut and bruises easily.
Deer may also suffer from frostbite if the velvet remains on the antlers too late in the fall.While the antlers are growing, bucks try to find areas where they will not be bothered and do not have to move around too much.
Growth of the antlers is rapid. Within a month the first fork or tine will start to appear.At two months, the buck develops his second tine.
These tines continue to grow longer as new tines are formed.It takes four months for the antlers to be fully formed.The final size of the antlers or rack depends on the age of the deer.A yearling buck develops two long tines without any branching.Older deer grow sets of antlers with branches.
Most deer devolop their largest antlers between the ages of four and six years.An old deer's antlers are smaller than they were when he was in his prime.A typical rack of a mature buck has eight points or tines with four tines on each antler. However,Whitetail deer may have 10, 12, 14, or even 16 points.Whitetail deer with such large racks are quite rare as these are the deer hunters prize most.
All male deer do not grow the same size antlers.The size of the antlers is determined both by diet and heredity.For their antlers to grow well deer require a diet with about 16 to 18 precent protein and adequate calcium and phosphorous.Also, the deer with the largest antlers likely had a father with large antlers.It has been found that large antlers are an inherited trait just like hair and eye color in humans.
Antler growth stops in the fall and the bones start to solidify.The flow of blood to the antlers gradually stops and the velvet dries out.
The dry velvet irritates the deer,they are anxious to get rid of it.Deer rub their antlers against small trees and bushes in an effort to peel off the velvet within a day or so.One captive buck was observed to peel off all of the velvet within 10 minutes.Other deer have been observed to have velvet shreds from their antlers for a week or more.
have something to do with taxidermy. what if you are asked to mount a deer that is in the shedding stage and your customer wants thier deer to look just like it did when alive? you would want to know some of the above noted facts and get some reference photos, etc..
What is the best way to preserve antlers in velvet that are in the "shedding stage"?