Trophy Skull Cleaning
OutdoorHub 10.17.12
Well it’s that time of year again, deer hunting season, and with the kill comes the trophy. In the past most hunters who wanted to preserve their bucks have relied on conventional taxidermy mounts, but a company in Oklahoma City is changing that for many Oklahoma hunters. The company is called Skulls Unlimited and for more than 25 years they have been providing hunters with an exciting alternative, the European style skull mount.
Skulls Unlimited was founded by self-confessed skull junkie Jay Villemarette, who has himself amassed one of the world’s largest privately own collections of bones. “I began cleaning deer skulls commercially from my home in 1986 and business has been steadily increasing every year since. I probably didn’t clean more that 30 to 40 deer that first year but now the company has grown to clean more than a thousand annually.” Villemarette’s company also cleans skulls for zoos, museums and nature centers but hunters still make up the largest share of the cleaning business.
Hunters have many choices at Skulls Unlimited. Options range from a plain, pristine white skull, with or without the lower jaw, to those mounted on a wall or desk top plaque, and even the recent addition of camouflage dipped skulls. In this process, skulls of deer, bear or nearly any other animal can be coated in a pattern of the customer’s liking. “Camo-dipping is really catching on,” says Jay. “it gives hunters one more way to personalize their trophy.”
There is one other factor driving the shift towards professionally cleaned skull trophy mounts and that is price. At $125, the skull cleaning service offered by Skulls Unlimited is on the average less than a third the cost of a traditional deer shoulder mount. “We are happy to offer the best possible product at a reasonable price,” says Jay, “everybody likes a good deal.”
So with lower pricing, professional service and a beautiful final product, Skulls Unlimited is sure to continue serving hunters and their trophies for many years to come.
