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regaled with tidbiLs oonsisting of >mall wild mammals, as rabbits, 

 woodeliucks, rat>. mice, and other animals likely to be captured about 

 tlie farm. Fresh drinking water, of course, should be supplied regu- 

 larly. If a spring or other natural water supply can be included 

 "vithin the yards much labor is saved. 



A fair daily allowance for each fox is one-fourth of a pound of 

 meat and a small handful of miscellaneous scraps. One of the most 

 successful breeders feeds a quarter of a pound of meat and a quait 

 of skim milk daily. Another varies the meat diet with a sort of 

 hoecake made of corn meal and sour milk. The meat tised is l>eef 

 or mutton in the fonn of butcher's scraps, imsalable parts, and the 

 like, or. most commonly, horse meat procured esi>ecially for the f>ur- 

 pose. Horse meat is very satisfactory food for foxes and especially 

 commends itself on account of its cheapness. In all rural districts 

 it is a very simple matter to procure a worn-otit but perfectly healthy 

 horse, and after slaughtering it to keep the carcass on ice. furnishing 

 a supply of meat for months. ^Alien located on the seacoast near 

 fishing settlements fox raisers supply fish, lobsters, and other sea 

 foods to their foxes at little or no cost and find them satisfactory. 

 The expense of feeding is thus comparatively small. According to 

 an estimate of one of the most experienced fox breeders, who fed 

 butcher's meat and skim milk, the cost of feeding one fox, when 

 everything is purchased, is 1 cent per day. In actual practice, how- 

 ever, the cost in his case was much less, since he was able to utilize 

 the scraps from his own tal)le and to obtain much other material 

 from his neighboi^. 



BREEDING. 



Foxes breed only once a year, and the mating or rutting season 

 includes the months of February and March. The i>eriod of gesta- 

 tion is about fifty-one days. Therefore the yotmg are born in April 

 and May. The number of young in a litter varies from two to eight, 

 the average number born to adult parents being five. In the wild 

 state foxes are monogamotis. The male has only one consort, at 

 least only one in a season, and while the young are being reared 

 he dutifully forages for them. In confinement, however, one male 

 sometimes has been mated successfully with two or even three 

 females. In certain cases this may be desirable, and at an advanced 

 stage of the business may offer no difficulties, but at first it is ad- 

 visable to handle the animals in pairs. It is possible, also, as proved 

 in a number of instances, to allow male and female to remain to- 

 gether throughout the year without bad restilts. but it is much better 

 to keep them separate, except dtiring the mating season. They 

 may be paired in December or January and separated in March or 

 April. The females shoidd be kept in the small inclosures continu- 

 ously and the young removed when weaned. The males, if regularly 

 fed, are not quarrelsome, except in the rutting season, and there- 



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