j lunar é "MELT RUTH DI TllPllis z DDIIEDTEI WIT" 1 - ' Silver Fox -and l Mink Farming

The 1947 Provincial Pelt Show trhich was concluded at Summer- iitlc on Wednesday afternoon. had lite largest entry list 1n all lto history-over 1.100 pelts. Com- petition was very keen in every class. There was a largo number e1 outstanding pelts and the aver. age quality was the highest in years. Judge Douglas Bell had a very difficult task but he mea- sured up to hls requirements in first class shape. All the eon-r. Mill!“ Wflfliéd hard 1nd doggy-ye the greatest credit for the ar- rangements made for displaying, rpssiiying and halndling the pelts, Stcretary Walter R. Show. asa slslcd by Stewart Wright. hand. led the clerical work perfectly. A complete list of the prize winners appears elsewhere in this paper,

One of the very important firings in making a fox ranch pay is production. For years this sub_ ltCl has been studied by various NIIlhOFlllPS including Dr. C. K, (ittnn of the Experimental ranch, summersldo. who has written l- ~nedly on the subject, and rrronllyt by Dr. Charles F‘. Bassett. s nior biologist at the United States Fur Animal Experiment Station Saratoga. N. Y. ‘His art- i:le. "Time Fox Matings For Maximum Production" we have rtieasure 1n presenting to o r r-adcrs and we advise it be carg- fttllv studied. cut out and put up for future review. . .. _

"itecetit studies with dogs and i't.\'¢"5 indicate that an optimum production of young is depend- ettl upon the time in the estrous (‘Yrlr- when the female is mated. tit-iftetli ‘ind Amoroco recommend for maxinm-zn production of young ‘he free and unmolested mating o.’ creyltound bitches on the sec- mill or third day following first acceptance. Whitney, also work- ltig will: dogs. reported three ran-pregnancies. three litters of 9m‘ pup. and one litter of two n: the totnl production of seven writes of ViiflCtliS breeds" mated 1H the first. dny of acceptance. luter. in referring to the mating (logs. he stated. ‘Coitus at the first of the acceptance period rnds to result in sterile mating.’ tut ‘from a. practical point of tun" the optimum time to mate hitches for large litters is after the third day of acceptance?’

Tn llbllllll an optimum produc- l~'t o.’ silver fox pups. Roclurtati hi» t“l;'J1‘l1ll'l'.‘lld'3fl mating vixens mt the first and second days of acceptance and repeating the ‘tinting for all females still in bent on the third dav. This pro- eedure would undoubtedly provc srlisfactory. provided one has n ‘wvzc number of active. aggres- Alvr- males. Johannson has ad- vised mating fox vixens on the first day of acceptance and every other day of heat thereafter. fitlnn reported an average pro- rtzciinn in 1939 of 3.85 pups from "R fox vixens mated on the first liar after the first lifting of the t'--l tscruticl day of acceptance). 'l‘\\':til.l'-l\\'n vixens mated on the t dav of acceptance each aver- rvvwl 2.91 pups. while eleven nth- ers fllfilt-‘d on the third clav of Iient Dmduced 27 young. an average of

5

ln 1946. Gunn rebortedibe re- suits of experiments conducted with 274 fox vixens durinR the ranting seasons of 1930-1944. One httndred and sixteen vixens mated early in heat averaged 3.53 pubs. with 15.5 per cent of (lie females noti-tircgnant. Fifty vixens mated it. the middle of heat averaged 71.12 pups, with l8 per cent non- |‘|"‘l!lihnl. while 108 mated late i i=rat produced an average of 2.23 ‘W112. but 44.0 per cent of the vixens were non-pregnant. State of tieat was determined by the "ll picture of vaginal smears lztkett at two-day intervals.

l These results were also check- “l by "i=1 twins with active male foxes. and the average m. ter sizes for matings occurring on the first. second. third and "W111 days of lifting of the tail W9" 3-14. 3.336, 2.44 and 1.69 re. SPBCUVBIY- Non-pregnancies tot- an“! 5-7- 13-7. 36.2 and 523 per cent for the four days. Gunn‘; "e" Indicates quite clearly that the variation in litter size whloh occurred was due very largely to the non-pregnant vixens of the "PM! srvttps. lThe question of when in the estrous cycle vixens should be mated to result in an Optimum production of young has been studied at the U. s. Fur

ins the 1948. 1m and 194s breeding seasons. In 1943, 13 vlx. ens were mated on the first day of acceptance. t9 on the second. and 14 on the third. The average production of pups was 1.77. 3.98 and 3.79, respectively. It will be observed that the average pro- duction of pups from those fe- males mated on the second day of acceptance is in close agree- _ment with the 8.05 average re- ported by Clunn.

Later the 1946 matings were re-analyzed to ascertain whether they occurred early or late in the first, econd or third day of ac- ceptance. In addition, experi- mental matings were conducted in 1944 to detennine whether ear-

_ 1y second or ‘early third-day mat-

‘ings would give an optimum pro- duction of young. The results of these two years of work mowed an average of 1.40 pups from five vixens mated rarly in the first day of heat. a 2.67 pup average from six late flrst-day-mated vixens. 3.97 pups from each of 3'1 early second-day females. 536 pups per female from 3i late second-day individuals. 4,14 pups for % early third-day vixens. and a 4.33 averase for nine_,females mated latc in the third day of acceptance.

Because of the consistently high production of vixens mated late in the‘ third day of accept" once. and because the top pro- duction of vixens mated late in

the second day of heat was due primarily to a lack of non-DWI‘, nancies, it was believed advis- able to repeat the work of the previous two years "lid Pllict‘ special emphasis on arranging the proposed matings so that an equal number of vixens would be available for comparison on the advisability of early and 35"" second and third-day motto!!-

A total oi 229 fox vixens (178 adults and st veerllnss) We" mated at specific Perms l" m“ estrous cycle durinfl m‘? three years this experiment was l" progress. Animals were confined. 1W0 m a pen, in raised. wire- floored pens from the Slaflfll the breeding season until matintl occurred, when they were moved to the pen in which they would bvrltsenbleggdfed a standard station um“ their young were four dflyfi ration once daily in the evenins until their young were 1°" ‘W’ old. when both morning and eve- nlng feedings were Blvefl- 3°‘

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cause of the nature of l-llé 9f‘ periment. it was imperative h ° determine accurately l“! w e“

one}; vixen reached first accept- ance. The procedure followed has been previously dtlcfllled l‘ detail. As soon as a vixen allow- ed a male to mount and attemvl a matinll. they We" lnlprlupled before intromission could occur.

A; acceptance was reached. vixens were mated accordintl 1° a pro-arranged schedule. 1x18 schedule provided a Prov" i‘ tributlon nf females in the ears second. late secon. early m“

found than all healthy and

o muting place.

Chinchillas I

I luvs ncsntly returned from a visit to Montreal, Que. and where I spent considsrublsitima studying and obssrvuig tlia different methods and qsnsrol routine of raising Cinn- cltillos. I visited tbs two lorgsst Chinchilla ranches in that locality and ccqulml o grant dsol of information on the more advanced or fins points of ranching thus little am- | mols and will gladly answsr any and all questions within my powsr pertaining to tits industry

Needless to soy‘, I sow your animals and my own and "IlIlilWfi-l brought lioms a Chinchilla pail for your in- sanction and will gladly show it to you if we con-arrange

_Writa or Plions for Furtllsr Particulars Limited Quota Available Al “SW90 Psr Pair

J, F, "Qflulfl, tram: r.:.|.

Rsprassstlng

was comm ciuuclutu RANCH no. t Ila llsonl, Qua. -

t

thriving. Yas I thought of

Animal Experiment Station dur-fl

combin ed:

rear their PWN- vhf“

mark. Coicliester County, N. S

The tum-legged pig born and raised on farm of E. C. Foote. Den-

and late third-day groups in the ratio and ago desired after 1943 and 1W matings had been counted. Since there had been few late third-day matings in the previous two years of experiment- atlon. enough were planngd for 1945 Lo give numbers comparable to the previous total. plus (the stunned marinas of each of the three other groups. Because vjx. ens were mated in 1945 according to this schedule in the order in which they reached acceptance. selection into the various groups was determined solely by chance,

With very rare exceptions. first acceptance of females was dem- onstrated mornings when the mules were most actuve. Vixens close to acceptance !n the morn- ing 'ro tested again in the afternoon to determine receptiv- itY- Early second-day matings occurred prior to noon on the day following first acceptance. Late second-day matings. except in isolated cases. occurred in the late afternoon of the day follow- ing first acceptance. Early and. late lhird-tlziy" itintings look place- in the mortiitig and afternoon of the third day following first ac- ceptance. Only one mating was allowed in each instance. Fol-

liiu -

lowing that: mating. a vaginal smear was taken to determine » the presence of tiormal sperm.

Data are available on 229 vix- ens (178 adults, 51 yr-vrllns) mated mi (‘Pitt-r tho (‘Jilly ' E late lirsL curly second. late r» 0nd. early titird. or into lhirfl day of receptivity. The trend in the production of young foxes followed the same pattern previ- ously reported. Information ob- tained from additional vixens in 1945. when added to that already procured in 1943 and 1944. merely leveled off some of the earlier peaks. The number bf pups whelped per female mated late in the second day of receptivity was. still hiyiii t4.90). ziltholtgh the diffcrenct. hetwt-eir these females anti those tnated late in the third day of heat. (4.64) was not so great as previously reported (5.26 vs. 4.33). Early third, etirly second. late first. and curly first-

day matings in that order. re- sulted in tlecreasingly- smaller litters. A correlation study was

made to determine whether there was any relationship between the time of mating and the number of pups per litter. In this studyi data on the tron-pregnant fe-: males were discarded. since they, produced no young. The resultsy indicated that there was so sta- tistical significance between these two factors. igure 2 illustrates. titis point very clearly. and sug- gests that. tho proper time in the estrous cycle when tnaling should be allowed is very important. not. because of any increase in litter,

size. but because of few non-l pregnancies. .

. A further breakdown of the‘

data in table t shows "that of the.’ 229 females mated. 12.2 per cent‘ aborted. resorbed or destroyed] their young. 11.8 per cent were non-pregnant. 16.6 per centl whelped litters of three or less. and 59.4 per cent produced litters of four or more. In the 28 fe- males who destroyed their young are eliminated from further con- sideration (because of a lack of information rm the size of litters they whelped). the percentage of vlxens “thelnlnf! three pups or less rises to 18.9 per cent. a ration of about l to 5. These facts suggest that in the silver fox all the ova are released at very nearly the san-e time. Mat- tngs properly timed could thus normsllv be expected to result. in good-sized litters. while those tiiat are not can be exnsvzted to result many limos in non-preg- nancies.

nerlmentoiion durlntl the breeding w-"swn

clearly nn rvitlfywrv‘ nroducwm of

(lav following first acceptance. This time has been designated as

nod-day and late third-day mat-

vfxrrl! are receptive for on": "We"

days or less. few for renehers lwould care to risk waiting

=T.'-~-~.t’v’tv is ‘female first stands with her tail

l

The result of three years of ex- i fox - indicate quite; that in order to obtalnf ups . it is advisable to allow ma lmsl lo occur on the afternoon of the '

late second-day heal. Differences: in production between late sec-y I lvvga are not. great. but since many!

‘lle last minute and then find a non-receptive female when mat- ing was attempted. In the i945 experiment. two or three yearl- ings were never mated because they had ‘passed by‘ when late third-day matings were attempted. Ir. the mating of foxes if only one mating is to be allowed. that mating should take place lite in the second day of heat. Early second and early third-day mat- ings are less productive. but are superior to first-day matings. If latc second and early third-day matings have been missed. there is still a good opportunity of ob- talning a large-sized litter by mating late in the third day.

.

Following the practice of malt! ing n vulvai‘ examination of each vixen every three days tintil a definite swelling is observed. w-lien daily observations should be made. Swelling of the vulva is generally indicative of approach- ing cstrum. and where accom- panied by a secretion that is dew-like in appearance. is a warning that receptivity is close. The vulvar examination of tnost fox females is thus a definite tid in detecting approaching re- rentvity. Some vixens will ex- hibit little or no vulvar swelling. Estrum in these fcnlttlcs must be determined by vaginal smears or by active. aggressive male foxes. Vixens with swollen vulvas should be tested with such mules daily. All other females should be tried with lI1'll"S ever-v two days. There is a lot of work involved in mov- ing" males ztroitad. but a decided reduction in the noti-itiatitig fe- males of the herd makes it ' a practice well worthwhile. In ad- dition there is some evidence to indica that during the breeding season the presence of male foxes ’ " was of unmated femalt- may cause receptivity to appear ".'il"' than when vixens are penned away from all contact with males. This could be ad- vantageous to fox ranchers be- cause of fewer misses, and also because earlier “helped pups are generally believed to be ntore de- sirable.

The males llS9Cl for testing vix- ens should be placed in different pens each city to avoid missing some fc-muics that may he ready to tnate. Some males. particu- larly ytearlings. arc timid and shy. and an aggressively active adult female may soon render vtrh a male completely inactive. The vrholc question of the pro- per dwmlopment and manage- mcnt of the polygamous fox tnale has been well handled by Enders. indicated when a

cocked. allows a male to mount her and attempt copulation. If there is some doubt us to the ex- istiuz: stage of cstrum. allow the tiiatlitg to occur and repeat on the fellowittg day. If acceptance has just been reached. mate on the afternoon of the following day.

Fox ranchers with large num- bcrs of breeding animals who now follow a system o! hair motive (male and female together in a pen during the breeding season) could adopt a modified system of polygamous mating rather easily by building connecting chute! and running a male between two pens on alternate days. Observed mail-res should be covered by B repeat mating the following day.

. a row of three stars fanning his

I - NEWSY

A Guide to Capella

Capella is a spectroscopic binary, which means that it is two stars so close that they cannot be 5gp- arated by any telescope that ast- ronomers have at command. By "lea-HS 0f the Spectroscope. however Observers now know that the larger of the two has the same spectrum as our Sun.’ and consequently con- tains the tame “ingredients. Cap- eLla is nc-v classed a5 magnitude 0.2, that is. “first magnitude" as we learned it in bygone times.

Capella has another claim to notice: it is the star heading one of the “quartei-s" of the sky, write °lh°T quarters are hendrd by Ursa Major (the Dipper). Vega and Cass- iopeia. respectively). Not so long ago I gave some instructions for finding Capella by following a eer- tain course from the constellation Taurus. but on a starlight night quite lately I found a much simpler method. now disclosed.

The constellation Orion L; one of the nwst splendid star-groups of the winter sky. It is one of the few mentioned in Scripture: "Canst thou loose the bands of Orion?" asks Job. So well known is this group that it should scarcely need description. but in the main it is made up of four big stars and three small ones. Orion was a giant huntsman. said the Gredks. and after his death was placed among the stars where he appnnrs as a gigantic figure with a rzirrilc. sword. a. lion's skin and s. club. It takes a vivid imagination to see all that now. and we need not look for more than the four bright stars mark- ing the corners of n. great oblong; (he top two locating Orinrrs should- rrs. and the bottom two marking his hips. Central in this oblong is

belt or girdle. and this ha; a short. hezv ll-ne of stars hanging from if to represent his sword.

Using the two righl-hnnd <|nr5 of the obi-ans! as gulrle. the eye travels straight on. due north, to Capella. Using the distance be- t-ween the two stars a5 a unit of measure. Capella is about thrice this distance from the top star. A further help to the identity of Capella lies in the little tlroup of minor stars hanging from ll.

The Common Connor-ant

On November 3rd. 1936. a visitor brought in a. large bird. somewhat resembling a Loon. tbut. of differ- ent color) and asked I could tell him what it was. It was. I told him. a. Common Cormorant or "Shag" as it is locally; termed. and was rather rare on our coasts. whereas its relative the Double- crested Cormorant is really the commenter of the two In Eastern Canada.

‘Tim "Shag" is also found in Eur- ope and Asia. and most. of us have seen pictures of Chinese toatmen

taking fish by means of tralned~l159d by

Cormotranls. A ring placed round the bird's neck prevents it: from swallowing the fish till the boat- rnan claims it. This picturesque method qt fishing is failing into disuse.

Some authorities call our Shag the European Cormorant and it was certainly the common species on the British coasts.

Common Cormorant. A.O.U 119 Summer visitor. Largest and rarest of our ccmiorants. Adults: plumage of o, glossy black. except for a patch of white near the base of the bill and another on the flanks in the breeding season. Fyes green. bill slender nicd hooked at the llP- Tail or 14 feathers. A11 4 toes joined by webs On the head is a crest of n. few curly filaments above and behind each eye. Young birds have the throat and belly white and the rest of the underparts a mixture of brown rnd black. Length of adult bird 36 in. ..

Both species of coranoratiis build bulky nests of sticks and weeds. usually "among rocfts or on the ledges of cliffs rnd occasionally in hashes and low trres."

Double-crested Corn-orar-l. A0 U. 130. Summer visitor. frequent in the Gulf, Adults resemble the ore- ceding species. but there is no white about the face nor on the flanks. The back is coppery-brctwn. The plumage often has .a flfeenifh 1'9- fiectlon. The crest consists of a few curly filaments above and back of each eye; these feathers are 105i early in the season before nestin8 begins. The tall ha; 12 feathers.

The best grow of three bacon hog carcasses at the recent Regina

until Pall Show was shown by G. V. Idioms.

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NOTES - t

By Agricola o-cwccc-ocoocmccc-oceoccmo-ecccmooc

Immature birds are more brownish in color. Length of adult. about 30 inches.

rTitcre is another. smaller (27 lllllllvs) cormorant. found in Florida igut no specimen has been observed erc.

Abode of Acheulean Man

In Europe there have been four 8116131 €P0chs when the climate be- came so cold that the continent was covered with an ice-cap, as Greenland l5 lodfly. Between caclt glacial epoch the climate gradually became warmer and the glaciers re- treated. Primitive man pushed northward In these inter-glacial epochs. and his presence i: known by the "eoliths” or stone intplements that he has carried with hlnr At first the eoliths are of the simplest form but by the third inter-glacial ellOch their human origin cannot be doubted. The commonest is a kind of hatid-axe called n "coup-de- poing" "a wedge-shaped piece of flint. chipped to a cutting edge." There and other flint implmnents ascribed to Achculean man. have been found in the rock layers of Southern Eitglnnrl. Spain. Frnttcc and Gcrtitani", Illlfl vcw -that la. two years aeo- ln Kenya, Africa.

Ari area. of one square mile. at the foot of Mt. Olorgosaile. has Just been given to the people of Kenya by the Masai tribe. on whose territory it ivas. It. is the first cx- ample to be discovered of the actual camp sites of Acheulean man. and besides the specimens buried in the rich floor sites. there are thous- ands of eoiitha scattered cver the old lane‘. stirfacss, The nrea has been carefully fenced in. and the ordinary fence reinforr-cd with an electric fence to repel lions and other marauders. for it is thought there are at least. two full years of explorirz and digging ahcntl end the worker". must be psurcled.