48 BULLETIN 1151, IT. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
that the number of pups whelped and raised to maturity on ranches 
where the policy is followed of leaving the foxes to themselves as 
much as possible is far less than the number raised by ranchers 
who handle the foxes with the same good judgment used in man- 
aging domestic stock. 
Foxes, like other animals, possess a variety of dispositions and 
temperaments. No two pairs are exactly alike, and each pair should 
receive individual consideration. To study their traits' and pecu- 
liarities should be one of the primary objects of the caretaker, and 
his success is determined largely by the use of his wisdom against 
the (Winning of the foxes. 
THE BREEDING SEASON. 
Before the foxes have been selected for mating and placed in their 
respective pens, the yards should be thoroughly cleaned, the dens 
scrubbed with hot water and soap, and sprayed with disinfectant or 
burned out with a blow torch, and the nest boxes cleaned and put 
in place. Foxes usually prefer no bedding material, but on some 
ranches have become accustomed to straw. 
As the breeding season approaches," the foxes should be kept as 
quiet as possible and, as a rule, strangers should not be allowed to 
enter the ranch, although this precaution may be left to the. judgment 
of the caretaker. 
A shy fox may never appear at feeding time, hence the mate will 
gobble up all the feed. Where this occurs feed for the shy fox should 
be placed inside the den. When one is a bully and, drives the other 
away from the feed, it will be necessary to separate Uj^f Containers 
as widely as* possible. It is well for the keeper to .haV«e ^& call and 
to talk to the foxes at feeding time, so that they will become accus- 
tomed to him. All matings observed should be recorded, and it is 
desirable that the rancher spend a large portion of his time in the 
watch tower getting this information. 
After the foxes have been seen to breed the dog should be sepa- 
rated as soon as possible and placed in the quarters built for the 
purpose. While a dog may be as devoted to the pups as is the vixen, 
the care he may give the young is more than counterbalanced by 
the harm he may do to his mate. Dogs have a tendency to injure 
the pups by carrying them in and out of the dens, and often kill 
them by fighting. The separation of the dog and vixen eliminates 
the possibility of loss from these causes. 
PREGNANCY. 
Special care and attention should be given the vixen during the 
.period of pregnancy. Undue excitement on the ranch during the 
advanced stages may cause abortion (premature birth), especially 
among the very nervous and excitable vixens. It may be well to 
mention again that the feed should be of a soft nature and should 
contain nothing constipating. In the case of a shy vixen that will 
not leave the den to eat, the feed should be placed in the outside 
chamber of the den. This will enable her to eat before the feed 
freezes and will also accustom her to the presence of the caretaker 
every day. The caretaker, however, should make sure that the vixen 
