A Record 700 Pounds Completed in One Month!

Our typical pattern is to purchase about 1,000 pounds of raw shed antlers per year, and process them in batches 3 times a year (approximately 350 pounds per batch). This month has been uniquely challenging, and life changes have led us to cut up all the antlers we had on hand (about 704 pounds) and process them so we won’t have to worry about production while we’re at a smaller rental home for the next 9 months.

The life changes are happy though – just a lot to coordinate! We’re moving from our Gilbert, AZ rental of 4 years into a short-term rental to bridge us until our new home is built in Queen Creek, AZ. And with that, we’ll be downsizing in every way until that new house is ready.

But my goodness, what a go-go-go sort of month it’s been! James spent over 2 full weeks cutting antlers. From the time he got home from work, he’d head out back and cut antlers until well after dark. Three weekends of Saturdays and Sundays he spent cutting antlers while the girls and I were inside.

Then my in-laws arrived to help with the move, which was perfect as I spent the first week of their visit grinding antlers, the second step of our process. I just take the cut pieces and soften up all the rough edges with a belt sander. I also spend quite a lot of time cleaning and scrubbing the ones that don’t pass my QC inspection. The past week was full of 6-8 hour days; I would grind antlers on the back patio while my in-laws took the kids for the day.

Last, we boiled. Boiling antlers is the quickest step in the process, and we completed the entire batch in about 7 hours one Saturday.

Finally, we wipe the individual pieces, check them again, weigh, sort, and label. This part takes a lot of time, probably the most time, but we have fun doing it. After a rough month of production, we now have 22 bins of cut, grinded, and sterilized antler pieces ready to go. Over the next few months, or as needed, we will take out a bin and wipe and weigh them together while we watch a show after the kids are in bed.