We have been collecting antlers forever, simply because they are easy to pick up and bring back. So of course there is some sort of market amoung folks with the collecting bug.
I do think that there is a real market for antler gelitin that no one has tapped. The antlers need to be collected, but this provides a real market for the non collectibles at ten bucks a vpound. The Antlers can then be ground up and then boiled to release the geletin naturally pasturizing the product.
This could well have enough advantages to attract even a premium market as we would never have an unlimited supply even with a million farm boys out collecting.
The Great American Antler Boom
Every spring, shed hunters head to the woods looking for deer and elk antlers that may fetch thousands of dollars, or social-media fame.
By March 7, 2022
Every spring, shed hunters from across the country descend on Jackson, Wyoming.
Illustration by Lily Qian
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In Jackson Hole, Wyoming, some antlers are easy to find. A large arch of intertwined elk antlers greets passengers as they arrive at the local airport, and, in town, antler chandeliers hang from tall ceilings at a high-end furniture store. Jackson’s trademark is a town square with four archways; each arch was made from some fourteen thousand pounds of antler. Most of the antlers come from the National Elk Refuge, an expanse of hills and meadows on the outskirts of Jackson where roughly eight thousand elk spend the winter. The animals eat government-funded alfalfa pellets, living in a carefully managed symbiosis with a town that presents itself as a frontier outpost, and which has a median home price of three million dollars.
Unlike horns, which are permanently attached to an animal’s head, antlers regenerate annually. Adult male elk, or bulls, grow their antlers between April and August. During this period, the antlers are soft, cartilaginous, and covered in fine hair—known as “velvet”—and they contain reproducing stem cells. At the end of the summer, the antlers ossify, and elk scrape the velvet off on trees. The velvet is filled with blood vessels, so the process leaves a gory mess; blood stains the hard antlers, and sap, dirt, and tree bark color them further.
5 Unique Uses for Shed Antlers
By Remi Warren
There's no doubt finding sheds can be exciting, but once you've found them, what can you do with them? The answer is: a lot. From collecting and crafting, to decorating and eating, the uses for discarded bones are endless. Even if your wife doesn't approve of such primitive things in the house, all is not lost for a good shed hunter.
SEE PHOTO GALLERYAntlers in a pile look nearly as good as antlers on a taxidermied animal.
Collecting
There is just something about shed antlers. The way they look and what they mean to the hunter invokes those that find them to want to hold on to them. Keeping shed antlers is a physical record of a particular hunting area, or even a particular animal. There is something valuable about being able to put actual tape on antlers from an area you hunt. There is even more value in being able to track a deer's growth from year to year. This data aside, the excitement of a find makes some sheds too precious to do anything with besides watch collect dust.
For the shed hunter, the most unique antlers deserve a place in the house for all to see. The rest join the collection pile outside. Many avid shed hunters take pride in their shed pile. Like any collection, the collector has a desire to constantly add to the lot and keep searching for the few treasured sheds that are good enough to bring inside.
Some shed piles are a sight to see and can tower the tallest of hunters. The best public collections can be found outside of the National Bison Range in Montana, or the famous shed piles in downtown Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
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SEE PHOTO GALLERYWith some simple handy work, you can create a one-of-a-kind cribbage board
Crafting
Antlers have been crafted into useful things for thousands of years. Although the origins may have been purely for survival, like making weapons and tools, today we can appreciate the art of antlers. Shed antlers can be used for something as simple as making buttons, or something as intricate as making knife handle
All sorts of items can be easily made at home. Antlers are fairly easy to work with when using the proper tools. A Dremel tool set is the single best tool for antler working. With a little know-how, antlers can be used to create hundreds of different items. Cribbage boards can be a fun and an easy one to start with that almost anyone can craft.
SEE PHOTO GALLERYIf you don't feel like eating a shed antler, man's best friend won't turn one down.
You've heard the adage "you can't eat the horns," but that's not necessarily true. Deer antlers are edible, and not just as a pill used in eastern medicine or a health supplement. Antlers can be used to make gelatin by boiling the ground antler and straining off the remains, which could be used to make fruit gelatin or added to homemade jellies.
Processed antlers can also be used in baking recipes. Although rare now, some old recipes still call for Hartshorn. This product is made from distilled, ground antler by burning in kilns, which makes ammonium carbonate. This was the predecessor to baking powder, which is still used today in thin shaped cookies and crackers. When heated, the gaseous ammonia is released in the baking process, acting as a leveling agent.
Although you would not just bite into a shed antler or boil it up and put it on a plate, recently antlers have grown in popularity as dog chews. This is now a large part of the shed antler market. Dogs enjoy gnawing on them and get calcium as an added bonus. Just because you're not willing to eat the antler doesn't mean your dog won't be thankful a shed hunting trip.
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SEE PHOTO GALLERYShed antlers are impressive enough on their own if power tools aren't your thing.
Home Décor
Chandeliers and lamps remain the driving force in the shed market, but really they're used in all types of modern décor. From centerpieces on a table to bookends and jewelry holders, castaway antlers have become hip.
Pintrest and other sites are showcasing what hunters have known all along: that antlers are awesome and look great in the house. Unlike crafting, home décor situations require less toolsmanship. A well-placed antler is all it takes to create a room that'll impress hunters and non-hunters alike. The simplest project I've done is attaching a shed to the bathroom wall for a unique towel hanger.
SEE PHOTO GALLERYIf everything in your home clashes with bone, consider turning shed antlers into cash.
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Brown Gold
It's like money just lying in the hills. Shed antlers are big business, and buyers are out there looking to pay you to find them. Most antlers are purchased at a price per pound and on a quality grading system.
As a general average, brown mule deer antlers fetch around $10 per pound and brown elk antlers average $12 per pound. Last year's white antlers in good condition are $8 per pound for mule deer and $10 per pound for elk. Chalky, white antlers still have a value, but around $1-3 per pound. Fresh whitetail sheds generally fetch around $6-8 per pound, but are not as easily sold as mule deer and elk. This is because the market is saturated with humongous whitetail antlers from farmed deer.
Although some buyers will pay a premium for sets, this generally only applies to extremely large or unique antlers. A 400 class elk can fetch over $1500, while a 200-inch mule deer can be worth $500 or more. In some instances, individual antlers or sets have been sold at a much higher price to collectors looking for giant or one-of-a-kind animals.
As for smaller matched sets, a 170-inch mule deer goes for around $60, and 300 class elk sells in the $200 range. If nothing else, shed hunting can turn into a hobby that pays for itself or provides you with a little extra cash for when the real hunting begins.
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