#articulated skeleton

It does work for smaller ones! Look up "[animal] articulation tutorial" for step by step process.

What I have going for this deer is multiple sizes of wire, from 9 gauge to 24 gauge weights, and a piece of rebar for the spine.

I use hot glue to stick non-weight-bearing parts and to be a placeholder for where I will drill and wire things in the future. Hot glue sets instantly, is easy to pull apart and is easy to remove with rubbing alcohol. This makes it good for temporary fabrication but not so good long term.

For long term, you will want to drill holes in the bones and glue wires between them. This is much stronger than glue and adds a small degree of posability. It's SMALL though, so pick your final pose before you start drilling. Skeletons to not have hinges, but rather slide and rotate within sockets, which is impossible to do without the cartilage, flesh, muscles etc.

Posable, manipulatable skeletons will have much more visible wires and springs and are a whole other beast than simple articulation

This joint isn't going much of anywhere but that's ok because I drilled the holes to connect it right where I wanted it to stay in the final pose.

For big joints and the spine, I used a steel-epoxy mix since those have to bear a lot of weight.

Smaller animals can use tiny holes, thin wire, and glue. If you're careful to take the tail out before all the connective tissues dissolve, you can pose it naturally by soaking in water, posing, and drying in position.

In Very small animals, the connective tissue throughout the skeleton is thin enough to dry out without rotting. Meat will turn brown and cartilage will turn yellow, so it's not the cleanest look, but I like it. There's a bit of gluing to do but if you're careful in the cleaning process, the only wire you'll need is one to pose the spine. Pose when wet, let dry, and glue the remaining bits together.

This deer is my first full articulation as sticking rodents in orbs takes considerably less drilling.

So I bought this little fella, anyone have any ideas how to mount or display?

[6-30-21] Today’s Tarot of Bones daily draw is the Magician, reversed. You are taking yourself for granted, and not giving yourself enough credit. You think of yourself as incompetent, and yet you have achieved so much in this life! Stop comparing yourself to other people; all you do is hamstring yourself that way. Instead, step back and take an objective look at everything you have learned and done over the years, and consider how much more potential for growth you still have. You are an amazing being, and it's time you believed that fact.

[4-20-21] Today’s Tarot of Bones daily draw is the Happy Squirrel, reversed. Your confirmation bias is showing! You're trying too hard to make patterns where there are none, and assuming everything has some super-important spiritual message for you. Instead of placing yourself at the center of the universe, just accept that you are a tiny part of a monumentally enormous, complex system full of galaxies that you will never lay eyes upon, but which are no less important than you are. Instead, allow the other beings in the world to be themselves without trying to force some meaning on them; let the squirrel just be a small, furry mammal going about its business regardless of what you think of it. Appreciate them on their own merit, instead of whatever meaning you can squeeze out of them to try to make yourself feel better about your place in the world. The more you can allow the other beings to be themselves, the more you can see yourself as a diverse community of independent living beings, each with their own amazing story. (You're included in that, of course.)

[2-10-21] Today’s Tarot of Bones daily draw is the Magician. One of the powers of the Magician is his ability to constantly renew himself. He is ever the student, and his journey never ends. This is not a source of frustration, though, but the humility that is needed to accept that we are all very small beings in a very big universe. Once you get to that point, you are then able to open yourself to learning as much as you can while you're here, and making the most of the time you're given. It keeps you from getting stuck in one spot, and you're always welcome to shed what no longer suits you because there will always be something new to take its place.

[1-12-21] Today’s Tarot of Bones daily draw is the Magician, reversed. If you feel like you aren't being as effective or efficient as you could be, take a hard look at how you're actually using your resources. Are you really making the most of what you have, or are you wasting some of it on unnecessary things or efforts? Remember that taking care of yourself is NOT waste, but do look at how you might be able to tighten things up a bit.