Frequently Asked Questions

 YES! We have completed a lot of different skull types and have set prices for these skull types. We have completed a few different skulls not listed on our price sheet, so give us a call to find out if we can complete/will complete your specific skull/animal/fish, 660-641-2425.  

 Each animal type has a typical estimated time frame. We will Provide an estimated completion time frame based on numerous different factors, including the number of skulls/animals/fish already waiting to go into the beetle box, types of skulls, etc. Please remember we are dealing with unpredictable insects which may take longer/shorter amount of time than we estimate based on numerous different factors!  

Once we receive your skull the work begins on our end.  The skull is prepped before going into our beetle enclosure. This means removing fur/skin, extra meat, brain matter, etc, then drying the meat and finally we place the skull into our beetle enclosure. The beetles can clean a whitetail deer skull within 1-2 days (but there is more to it). The skull is then removed once all traces of material besides bone are eaten. 

Your trophy is then put into a degreasing process. This removes all oils/fats in the bone which cause yellowing or yellow spots in the long term. Degreasing is a step a lot of taxidermy businesses doing European mounts want to skip or shorten. At ECK Farms we believe it's important to provide a long, deep degreasing process so your trophy remains in perfect condition for the long term. 

Once degreased your skull your skull is then placed in a bone safer whitener (if included in your skull type or chosen during check in), given a bone sealer (to keep skull in pristine condition) and a tooth treatment (if applicable). 

At ECK Farms we use whitening agents which are shown to not damage or erode away any part of the skull bones (including those fine bones). This process takes longer than other methods available but offers whitening services without erosion to the skull bones. 

 Yes! At check-in to ECK Farms, we get information and signatures from the customer at drop off and pickup. Identification is required at both check-in with ECK Farms and pick up with ECK Farms. NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS POLICY. We are implementing this policy to protect our customers and our business.  

You might have read some various pros and cons to using both Dermestid Beetles and boiling the skull. Using dermestid beetles has far more benefits than boiling.

One of many reasons why hunters opt to have their European mounts cleaned using dermestid beetles is to preserve the details in those fragile, honeycomb patterned bones. High quality European mount skulls will always have these portions in pristine condition. Dermestid beetles won’t cause these brittle, sensitive bones to break or warp the way boiling does. 

All you need to do is examine a European mount that was cleaned by a dermestid beetle colony versus one that was boiled, and you will instantly notice a difference in bone structure integrity.

Yes, there is a difference! We could go into the scientific information, but it would take up half this page. 

The Dermestid Beetles will not damage any antlers such as found in deer and their relatives. The antlers will be unharmed when placed with dermestid beetles.

Horns on the other hand can be damaged by the dermestid beetles. To assure this doesn't happen all animals with horns (such as those in the bovine family), will have to be removed prior to placement in with the beetles. This is done by a specific process to not damage the horns on removal. After the skull is cleaned the horns are epoxied back into place. There will be no trace of the horns ever being removed.