﻿2 BULLETllSr 1350, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTUEE 



Government and to claim others by squatters' rights for engaging 

 in fur farming. So great has been the demand for islands that 

 practically all the desirable ones under the control of the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture are leased for the purpose. 



A number of individuals in Alaska have attempted to raise blue 

 foxes in pens, and recent reports show that some of them have been 

 successful (fig. 2). In addition, litters of blue foxes have been pro- 

 duced in captivity at the experimental fur farm of the Biological 

 Survey, in New York State, as well as on ranches in other parts of 

 the United States. A number of ranchers and raw-fur buyers main- 

 tain that blue-fox pelts produced in pens lack the quality and finish 

 of those produced in the wild. This has been held to be the case 

 with silver foxes also. Approximately 90 per cent of the silver-fox 

 pelts sold on the raw-fur market in 1924, however, were from ranch- 

 bred animals. 



Fig. 1. — Sections of the Alaska coast where blue-fox pi'oduction is becoming an 



important Industry : 



1. Southern Alaska. 4. Kodiak-Afognak region. 



2. Prince William Sound region. 3. Islands off the Alaska Peninsula. 



3. Lower Cook Inlet region. 6. Aleutian Islands. 



Because the number of islands available for fox ranching is lim- 

 ited, those already engaged in the business should determine as 

 quickly as possible whether blue foxes can be produced profitably in 

 pens. If this is found possible, blue-fox ranching can spread to the 

 mainland of Alaska, to Canada, and to the United States. With the 

 resulting growth of the industry, there will be an increased demand 

 for breeding stock as well as for pelts. 



Blue-fox ranching is in a condition similar to silver-fox produc- 

 tion in that it is an industry of too recent development to be sup- 

 ported by the results of extensive study and research. Sufficient is 

 known, however, to assist beginners, as well as established ranchers, 

 with information on some important phases of the business, such as 

 organizing the ranch, breeding, feeding, pelting, and sanitation. 



The information given in the following pages is based on a study 

 of the methods and practices which have been found to give the 

 greatest success on islands in Alaska. 



