Just curious!  Are we all talking about soaking with just good ole H2O?  We 
have 3-4 different things we soak in besides the usual water.  For the 
bloodier specimens we find that a weak solution (1-5%) of ammonia hydroxide 
is helpful.  This particular solution is quite helpful on cartilagenous 
tissues also.  We have a "fibrous soak" and a decal 'block surface' soaker 
too.  Just thought I'd add my 2 cents and a little variety to our lives.