The farmer that raises sheep not only sells the wool but fattens and sells some of the lambs, wethers or old ewes from time to time. The farmer is in the business to make the most out of it and such will be the case with the fur farmer. In the cities there is a demand for the carcasses of coon and opossum at prices ranging from 25 to 75 cents for coon and 10 to 50 cents for opossum, depending upon the size of the carcass, as well as the city in which you are marketing. In New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, there is a ready sale for all coon and opossum carcasses at good prices. Other cities that use large quantities are Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburg, Detroit, Chicago, and Milwaukee. There is no city of any size north of the Ohio River but offers a market. St. Louis, Louisville and other southern cities being near the coon and opossum producing sections does not offer so good a market. Muskrat are now served as "marsh rabbit" in Baltimore and other cities. The trapper realizing from 5 to 10 cents each.
With the exception of muskrat, fur bearing animals breed only once a year, unless the first litter are killed or die, when another is sometimes born and it might be said, such is frequently the case. The number that the various animals produce at a litter is given in the chapter dealing with that animal.
It is not all that are successful bee raisers who have gone into that business, yet how few failures are there among men who began in a small way, learning more of the business and gradually increasing the number of hives in their apiary.
One thing is important and that is, get the animals accustomed to their keeper as soon as possible. The old will be wild for some time but the young soon become tame. Skunk and coon are easily tamed and even beaver, otter and mink have become so tame when secured young, that children have safely handled them.
A man who has been in the "fur farming" industry for years, in response to the inquiry, "Will the business pay," says: "Yes, it will pay the right man big dividends on the capital invested." The right man is one who has "natural aptitude" for this sort of work, and who is "cut out" for "fur farming." If he has an "inkling" for this sort of work, he will study the nature and requirements of the animals and attend carefully to their every want.
Fur farming as an industry is only in its infancy, in fact, not begun. The future looks bright to those who engage in the business in a business way. To those who expect to make a fortune at the business in a year or two, we predict failure, but to all who are willing to go at the industry, building a substantial enclosure, paying the same careful attention to the feed and care of their fur animals, that they would to other "stock," to get best results, far more than ordinary profits should result.