206 FUR FACTS 



understand why civet cat is not more popular in this country than 

 it is. It is probably due to the fact that for many years it was re- 

 ferred to as the "Pole Cat" which people usually connected with a 

 strong odor. But that is all nonsense. The modern method of 

 dressing and cleaning absolutely removes every trace of odor. 



The civet cat skin when taken off cased and stretched is about 

 14 inches in length and 4 inches in width. The finest civet cat pelts 

 come from Minnesota and the Dakotas and the Northern part of 

 Iowa. However, as stated before they are found pretty generally 

 throughout the United States, but seem to go no farther North than 

 the Canadian line, and few are found in Minnesota. 



On account of the comparative low price of the skins very little 

 if any attempt has been made to domesticate and raise the civet cat 

 for market, however, there is no reason why they could not be suc- 

 cessfully raised. As the civet cat very closely resembles the skunk 

 in its habits, the same general methods given for trapping skunk will 

 apply to civet cat. 



MOUNTAIN LION 



The mountain lion is variously called the puma, the panther, 

 and the cougar. It is found in the Western states, Arizona, New 

 Mexico, Texas, and some are still found in Florida and the swampy 

 sections of the gulf states. It varies in size, the larger specimens 

 coming from Arizona and New Mexico. It has little or no value for 

 furriers' purposes, and only the larger specimens are used for mount- 

 ing life size for museums, etc., and for rugs. The color is a yellowish 

 brown with a darker shade down the back and to the tip of the tail. 

 The color varies in different sections. 



Some naturalists claim that the panther, as it is known locally 

 in the Southern states, is a different species from the puma, found in 

 the more Western states. However, they are very similar in every 

 way except that the panther is smaller in size than the larger moun- 

 tain lion of the Western States. The mountain lions of the West 

 grow to a very large size. They are powerful animals and will put 

 up a terrible fight and are very destructive to live stock. A full 

 grown mountain lion will easily kill a large steer and will attack a 

 full grown horse with remarkable ease. They are very quick and 

 are light of foot and spring a considerable distance, and usually 

 pounce on their prey from an overhanging ledge of rock, or from over- 

 hanging branches. It is said that when food is plentiful they only 

 suck the blood of the animal they kill and very seldom, if ever, return 



