CHAPTER VII.
Questions and Answers.
As we are asked certain questions so often we are pleased to give below answers to those most frequently received:
"What is The Best Way For Me to Start Raising Skunks for Fur?" Start with a few and increase the number as you can care for them. Dig out or capture a couple of litters this spring. Mate the males of one litter with the females of the other litter. There are usually eight to ten young in a litter. The old skunks mate about March 1st and the young are born about May 1st. Never inbreed; that is, do not mate related animals. Furs are becoming scarcer and prices are continually advancing. Those who start early in this industry will make the most money.
"How Can I Breed For Black Skunks?" Each year save your largest and blackest skunks to breed from. Market the skins of all the rest when prime. Be always on the lookout for blacker specimens, especially males. You can mate one black male to four or five females and even if the females are not entirely black there will be a good percentage of black among the young.
"What Should I Feed Skunks?" Skunks in confinement will eat meat of any kind, bread, milk, whether sweet or sour, many sweet fruits, green corn and some other vegetables. Table leavings from hotels, waste from slaughter-houses, dead farm stock or dead chickens are all eaten readily and take the place of the beetles, grubs and mice which the skunk lives on when free. Do not give decayed food. Supply fresh water regularly.
"I Live in Town; Can I keep Skunks Without The Scent Disturbing My Neighbors?" Yes. You can remove the scent sacs from your animals. This is very easy to do and the skunks do not mind it at all. They do not lose a meal. After the scent sacs are removed they can never scent again. Your neighbors will not know you are raising skunks unless you tell them.
"How Long Does it Take to Remove The Scent Sacs?" With a little practice you can remove the scent sacs and make a skunk forever scentless in four or five minutes, or at the rate of 75 to 100 skunks per day.
"Does Any of The Scent Fluid Escape When Removing The Scent Sacs?" Not with our method. With proper instruments you can remove the scent sacs completely without spilling a drop of the scent fluid.
"How Can a Skunk Be Tamed?" The skunk is naturally gentle and not much afraid of people. When the scent sacs have been removed from a young skunk it will be found at once quite tame and may be carried about in your arms like a kitten. If it is handled frequently it will grow up very tame, will come when called and will eat from the hand.