SILVER-FOX FARMING. 
51 
mit examination. At one end is a slide door and at the other a 
hinged wire door provided with a hook-and-eye fastening. The top 
cover may be held down by a bolt and lock or by a snap and hinge, 
as illustrated in the figure. A strap handle is attached to the cover 
for convenience in carrying. 
TRANSPORTING. 
Foxes in good condition can be shipped almost any distance, but 
if the journey is long or the shipment large it will be well to have 
an attendant go along to feed and care for them. Foxes can go with- 
out feed for two or three days with no apparent ill effects. In transit 
they have a tendency to lose their appetites, and should be fed care- 
fully, although fresh water should always be supplied. Small pieces 
of meat, preferably liver or beef, and fox biscuit may be given. 
It is not advisable to place more than one fox in a compartment 
of a shipping crate. A crate containing two compartments, each 
Fig. 44. — Convenient transfer box for handling foxes ; it is made of 1-inch boards and 
may be 32 inches long, 8 inches wide, and 9 inches high. 
2 feet high and having a floor space of approximately 2 by 3 feet, 
is large enough to carry a pair of foxes. It should be made of 
wood, with the exception of the door, which should be of wire. 
Some ranchers entirely cover the crate with wire to prevent escape 
of the animals. In the front of each compartment dishes for feed 
and water should be fastened where they can be filled from the 
outside. 
CULLING. 
Every fall before the breeding season begins the old foxes as well 
as the pups should be carefully culled and the best ones retained t:> 
improA^e the stock. This is necessary to maintain the quality of the 
foxes on the ranch, old, unserviceable animals being replaced by 
young, vigorous stock. The following classes should be culled: 
Vixens that have not proved to be profitable producers, old foxes 
that have served their term of usefulness, samson foxes (see p. 33), 
and foxes carrying pelts that are tinged or otherwise inferior. 
