6 



LEAFLET NO. 8, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGTi I CULTURE 



April, before the young are born, :in<l disinfected with n coal-tar 

 spray. Plenty of clean, dry leaves or straw should be placed in the, 

 nest boxes for bedding. The young minks announce their arrival 

 by a orying noise similar to that of young kittens, and this is con- 

 tinued until they are fairly well grown. It is not advisable to dis- 

 turb the nest box until the young are 2 or 3 weeks old. If, however, 

 there is need of examining tlte litter before this time, the mother 

 should be penned out before the nest box is opened. She will carry 

 food to the young when they are about 3 weeks old. but this fouls the 

 nest and tends to bring about insanitary conditions. A clean nest 

 box with plenty of bedding should therefore replace the dirty one. 



The best method of killing minks for removing the pelt is by 

 asphyxiation. The animals may be driven into a tight box with a 

 slide door singly or several at a time. After the door 

 Killing is closed, a small quantity of carbon disulphide or 



chloroform should be poured on a bunch of cotton 

 and this introduced through a hole in the top, which should then be 

 immediately corked or otherwise tightly closed. Two tablespoons of 

 either liquid is sufficient for one mink in a small box, and not much 

 more is required for several animals unless the box is large. The 

 animals die quickly and without struggle. If illuminating gas is 

 available it may be used instead of a volatile liquid. A rubber hose 

 carrying the gas may be inserted through the hole in the box and 

 the space about the tube plugged with cotton. 



Caution. — Both carbon disulphide and illuminating gas are inflam- 

 mable and should not be allowed to come in contact with fire. 



After the animal heat goes out of the body the flesh shrinks from 

 the skin, permitting the pelt to be removed more easily and keeping 

 the skin side free from blood. This will be in about 

 Pelting half an hour, but care should be taken in cold weather 



to prevent the carcass from freezing during this 

 time. The only tool needed in skinning a mink is a pocket knife, 

 and this should be kept sharp. 



A slit is made up the back of each hind leg, starting at the inside 

 of the paw and running to the hock, then from the hock to a point 

 just below the root of the tail. The back of each front, leg is slit 

 in the same manner from the paw to the first joint. The skin is 

 then worked free from the flesh from the first joint to the claws. The 

 bones of the foot are cut free from the pelt, but the claws are left 

 on the skin. A slit is made from the root of the tail about half its 

 length so that the bone can be pulled out. The carcass is then hung 

 on a hook or nail by the tendon of the hock joint and the pelt is 

 pulled down, the knife being used whenever necessary to free it. until 

 it is removed as far as the neck, Careful work is then necessary to 

 cut around the base of the ears, including them in the pelt, around 

 the eyes, and around the mouth and lips. 



The pelt is placed on a wooden frame (fig. 5) for drying as soon 

 as it is taken from the carcass, and all carcasses should be disposed 

 of immediately by burning. Any fat or flesh adhering to a skin 

 should be removed immediately, as fat causes skins to become brittle 

 and worthless and flesh starts decay when conditions are unfavorable 

 for rapid drying. 



o 



