Surgical implants (or grafts) for the repair of bone defects, more particularly, surgical implants that include demineralized bone fibers, are disclosed. The surgical implants have a wettability time of less than 5 minutes and a residual moisture content of less than 6% by weight, and they remain cohesive and retain their shape upon complete rehydration. Methods for making such implants and for increasing their wettability and ensuring uniform density are also disclosed.