82 FUR FACTS 



in March and April and when raising them it is advisable at this 

 time to pen them up in pairs. Never put two males in the same pen 

 at the breeding season, or two or more females in with one male, as 

 they are terrible fighters and are liable to injure one another. It 

 takes about forty two days from mating time for the young mink to 

 appear. After the young mink arrive do not bother them by opening 

 the boxes or going near them. Do not forget to feed the old mink, 

 and give the mother mink milk and plenty of fresh water. If she will 

 not take the milk give her plenty of fresh meat. If you bother the 

 mink in any way at this time you are very apt to lose them, so that 

 the best plan is to keep strictly away until the young mink are ready 

 to wean. In order to secure young mink for breeding purposes 

 they should be taken in May and June. No one would think of 

 trapping mink at this time of the year for their pelts and it is against 

 the law hi most states. However, if they are to be taken for breeding 

 purposes it is possible to get a permit from your local game warden 

 to trap them. Watch the stream for mink tracks where the old 

 ones leave their holes and the young mink may be secured by digging 

 them out, or by setting a box trap for them. There are some raisers 

 that build the pen in four divisions, one division for the females, 

 one for the males, and two for the young mink. In selecting a piece 

 of ground choose a piece that is located on a little hillside with good 

 drainage, that will take in a bluff of rocks, so that the mink can 

 find then* natural hiding places. Put in nesting boxes and some 

 straw so that they can build their own nests at the proper time. 

 Feed them carefully, and regularly, and with fresh food. They are 

 very fond of fish, but do not give them tainted or spoiled stuff. They 

 are also very fond of muskrat meat. Their natural building place 

 is in old logs, in caves, or in drift piles, but always near the water, 

 the nest where the young are born being usually in the ground. Try 

 to arrange the enclosure in as natural a manner as possible, putting 

 in a few old hollow logs and digging a few holes and making them 

 look as natural as possible. Funsten Bros. & Co. will welcome any 

 letters from professional mink raisers that may be published on the 

 subject, for the benefit of the beginner. This is a new industry and 

 help can only come from the man who is making a successful business 

 of raising mink. The best pen is one five or six feet square, with the 

 sides made of smooth white boards, placed side to side on a raised 

 footing of stone, or concrete, sunk eighteen inches into the ground. 

 The floor of the pen should be the bare ground. Heavy wire netting 



