Last 20 fox of the Year

[Kusko]

I pulled my snares yesterday after having 60+ out since November 10. This was the first year I trapped and I didn't catch a fox for the first three weeks of the season. My best night was 6 and I was skunked on many.

Here are last of my 53 foxes I caught here in western Alaska this year. They are headed to the furbuyer this week.

[Dom]

Nice looking pelts Kusko. Do you ever catch Arctic Fox? Waidmannsheil, Dom.

[model 70]

nice haul! we can't catch reds here in CA unfortantely. how did you prepare those fox for the fur buyers?

[skeet]

Nice looking catch. Wish the foxes here looked like yours. Unfortunately we have quite a bit of the itch here. I guess if the foxes get the itch there they just don't last too long in the cold. Also we have way too many foxes here. What do you expect to get for the pelts. They are really pretty.

[Kusko]

Dom
I have shot an arctic fox, but never trapped one. We don't have too many right in the area I trapped.

model 70
I fleshed them and then put them on a stretcher. Pro's use wooden boards, but I'm new and didn't know better so I bought wire stretchers. After they sit inside the house with the leather out for a day, I turn them so they are fur side out. I comb each one with a dog brush and let them sit for 5-7 days. I then give the fur, not the leather, a mild borax bath w/o water to get all of the grease out of their fur. Our fox up here in western Alaska are very greasy and my friend who lives a hundred miles away caught one that had 1.5 pounds of fat on it. After borax, I shake them out really good and put them back on the stretcher or box them up to go to the furbuyer.

skeet
I have sold 16 this year for an average of $45 per fox. My friend who lives out a hundred miles has sold 60 for an average of about $43. I expect about the same with these twenty.

Here is a picture of my daughter holding one that we caught on the line last week.

[model 70]

so after stretching them, brushing and boraxing the fur, you don't have to freeze them at all?

[Kusko]

model 70
These fox are kept in my arctic entry where it is cold. A completely fleshed pelt, including the head can be put anwhere as the hide is dried and the hair will not fall out. I don't flesh the head as they are not used for garments, so I keep them cold until they are shipped to the furbuyer. I could put one of these on the wall if I would have split the lips, turned the ears and got every little bit of meat off the head.

By the way, fleshing sucks! I would rather skin three fox than flesh one.

[Trapper_Stephen88]

hey Kusko I know what you mean, I used to hate fleshing, but now I'm a little better and it ain't as hard. This was my first year of going after fox, I caught 1 red fox which sold for $20