34 COMMISSION OF CONSERVATION 
150 lineal feet of fence wire, 4 feet wide, 2-inch mesh, gauge 
No. 14. 
150 lineal feet of ground wire, 3 feet wide, 2-inch mesh, gauge 
No. 14. 
150 lineal feet of carpet wire, 3 feet wide, 2-inch mesh, gauge 
No. 15. 
Nails, spikes, staples, hinges, locks for door and No. 16 lacing 
wire. 
It is not customary to use a smaller meshed wire at the ground 
level, but cases are known of the death of fox pups caused by having 
their heads caught in the two-inch mesh. A smaller mesh, therefore, 
if it could be procured in No. 15 gauge, furnishes an additional pre- 
caution against the death of the valuable animals. 
A new type of paddock fence, which is evidently an improvement, is 
being put up in some of the newest ranches. Instead of the two-inch 
mesh No. 16 wire, a strip of galvanized sheet iron three feet wide is 
fastened at a height of four or five feet from the ground. Joist pieces 
2 inches by 4 inches are placed from post to post to nail to. The ad- 
vantage of the sheet iron is that foxes cannot climb to the top of the 
fence and fall, breaking their legs or producing a rupture or an abor- 
tion. One pen was seen where the sheet iron was placed at the top of 
the posts and no overhang was required. Foxes climb fences only when 
badly frightened. Such a state of fear is to be avoided, but may be 
impossible to control with some animals. Sharp sticks and stumps 
near the fence should be taken out lest the falling fox be ruptured or 
otherwise hurt. The middle toe nails of the fox may be cut off every 
few months to prevent climbing, or the sheet iron used as described 
above. It should not be placed near the ground as it would interfere 
with the circulation of air in the paddock. 
The door into the paddock should be placed from eighteen 
a to twenty-four inches above the ground level and should 
be provided with good hinges and a good lock. If no 
exterior fence is used, make a double door entrance, so that one door 
is closed and locked before the other is opened. If foxes have the run 
of two pens, a door between the pens set up two feet high and with 
a sloping platform on each side from the sill to the ground, should be 
provided. Doors should be about 2 feet by 4 feet in dimensions. Many 
ranchers have a small passageway between pens, which foxes are obliged 
to crawl through, as when playing, they do this so often that they 
wear off the guard hair over the hips and shoulders. 
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