BLUE FOX-FARMING 75 



"In taking the live weight, a strap two inches wide is looped around 

 the animal's tail and the other end of the strap attached to a spring 

 balance suspended from the ceiling of the room. When the animal 

 becomes quiet the weight is ascertained and entered. 



"If the beast is to be left as a breeder, a ring one inch wide is cut 

 in the fur of the tail with a pair of scissors after which it is dropped 

 into a hopper and finds itself out of doors. Males are branded near the 

 end of the tail, females near the rump. About four-fifths of those dis- 

 missed as breeders are caught the second time, and some of them are 

 re-caught ten times or more in the course of the season. Recently, Mr. 

 Chichester installed several automatic traps, auxiliary to the regular 

 traps, which have done good work. 



"When the animal is to be killed, the man who has it in hand 

 bends the head backwards until the neck is broken. The dead animal is 

 then thrown into the adjoining room, where other men remove the pelt 

 This is done by ruiming a sharp knife up the inside of the legs, and 

 down the length of the taU, and drawing the pelt off, leaving the fur 

 side in. After the breeding quota is secured, all unbranded foxes enter- 

 ing the trap are killed. All trapping is done at night with light from 

 lanterns. The next day the skins are cleansed and stretched on frames 

 to dry. Later on they are whipped and combed, and, the following 

 summer, barrelled and shipped to London. 



"The skins are prime from November 15 to January 15, approxi- 

 mately. About the latter date the fur begins changing colour, and the 

 skin shows signs of 'staginess.' 



" As indicated, the animals' ages are ascertained by dental exami- 

 nation. In this work no pretense to absolute accuracy is made. Dental 

 examination of a hundred or more dead foxes of both sexes showed a 

 division of the animals into three classes, which classification has since 

 been followed in making the annual census. These are: first, yearling or 

 approximately one year old ; second, middle-aged or approximately two 

 years or three years old; third, over three years old. The young and 

 the advanced in life are easily distinguished, but the intervening ages 

 are more difficult to determine. It is doubtful if the life of St. George 

 foxes ordinarily exceeds five years. 



" On examination of 334 stomachs, seal meat formed the 

 St'omlchs"* entire contents of 64, and the partial contents of 100 others. 



This meat of course was gotten in traps, and was what the 

 animals came for. The contents of 17 full stomachs varied in weight 

 between 14 and 20 ounces. These animals were still feeding when 

 trapped and how much more they would have eaten if unmolested, can- 

 not be determined. The stomach, when empty, weighs from 1^ to 2 



