FOX-FARMING 



ranch bred foxes were selling at one thousand 

 five hundred to two thousand dollars a pair. In 

 certain territories where only foxes which have 

 been kept for twelve months or more in captivity 

 are allowed to be exported, prices of wild, half- 

 grown silver cubs were from one hundred and 

 fifty to two hundred dollars each. In 1914 

 silver fox skins fetched about one hundred and 

 eighteen dollars each at the London fur sales, 

 and there were indications that the prices would 

 fall even lower. 



In the early days of the fox breeding industry 

 a certain number of people came to grief over it, 

 through lack of knowledge in handling their 

 stock. Now that there are a large number of 

 silver foxes in captivity, a steadier and more 

 healthy development of the business may be ex- 

 pected. In 191 3, the number of fox ranches on 

 Prince Edward Island was two hundred and 

 seventy-seven. To-day there are ranches in 

 nearly all the Canadian Provinces, Maine, New 

 Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, 

 Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, 

 Washington, and Alaska. In 1914, the number 

 of ranch-bred silver foxes on Prince Edward 

 Island was two thousand six hundred. The 

 value of these foxes was estimated at fifteen 

 million dollars. Prices of both live foxes and 

 skins are now far below their original value, and 

 in the future the prices of breeding stock will bear 

 a more approximate relation to the market value 

 of their pelts. The following notes, culled from 

 my diary of some years ago, relate to the con- 

 struction of enclosures, etc., for keeping foxes 

 in captivity. 



A wired-in enclosure on land similar to that in 



309 



