30 



farmers' BULLETIN 795. 



son. By the middle of September young foxes are large enough and 

 the weather is sufficiently cool for shipping with safety. When there 

 is not an adequate local demand, foxes are generally disposed of by 

 advertising in publications devoted to furs, fur farming, or trapping. 

 Shipments of live stock by express arc generally at the risk and ex- 

 pense of the purchaser. Valuable animals are usually accompanied 

 by a caretaker, especially if the journey lasts more than two days. 



Skins of foxes killed late in December, -when fox fur is in its finest 

 condition, are ready for market in January. Foxes are skinned by 

 making a cut straight from one heel along the rear edges of the 

 hind legs and beneath the tail to the other heel, and withdrawing 

 the body through this slit. The skin of the tail should be cut along 

 the lower side, its entire length, and the bone removed in order that 

 air may come freely into contact with the flesh side and dry it 

 quickly. Unless this precaution is taken, the tip of the tail is likely 

 to decompose and lose its hair. For the same reason the back skin 

 of the ears should be separated from the cartilage to which it is 

 attached. When the operation of skinning is over, the pelt is freed 

 from particles of fat and muscle. It is then drawn, flesh side out, 

 over a stretching board similar to the one shown in figure 22, not 



Fir.. 22. — Diagram for stretching board for casing skins. The wedge makes it adjustable 

 in width and facilitates removal from a skin. 



for the purpose of actually stretching the skin but to prevent it from 

 shrinking and becoming wrinkled as it hardens. Before the skin is 

 completely dry it should be removed from the board, turned hair 

 side out, and hung by the nose where it will be free from pressure on 

 all sides. No preservative is required. Although raw fur buyers 

 are to be found in nearly every town in fur-producing regions, fox 

 farmers prefer to sell their peltries direct to metropolitan establish- 

 ments, where rare furs are handled extensively and where experi- 

 enced furriers are familiar with values. 



In preparing valuable peltries for market, extreme care should 

 be taken to prevent blood from coming in contact with the fur. 

 With this in view, the method of killing commonly adopted is to lay 

 the fox on its side on clean snow, and then to compress its chest by 

 standing upon it. • This stops the action of the heart and lungs and 

 death follows immediately. The same result, without the unpleasant 

 features connected with thus catching and smothering the animal, 

 can be obtained by means of a killing box, which from a humani- 

 tarian point of view is preferable. This is merely a tight wooden 



