What are the key points for raising silver foxes in spring?
The silver fox, also called the silver-black fox and also known as the black fox, gets its name because some of its guard hairs are white, while the roots and tips of other guard hairs are black and the middle of the guard hairs is silvery white. The silver-black fox has an omnivorous diet, eats little, and has stronger disease resistance than the blue fox, making it suitable for household breeding.So what are the key points for raising silver foxes in spring?
1. Construction of the fox shed
Generally, the fox shed is built in a cage-box style. The cage serves as an exercise area, 200-300 cm long, with a frame welded from angle iron, enclosed on all sides with welded wire mesh, with a 40 cm high and 30 cm wide opening left on one side of the cage, and two holes 15 cm in diameter left on the other side, with the food and water troughs hung outside the cage.
A hole 35 cm in diameter is left in the bottom of the cage connected to the den, and the den is 100 cm long and 90 cm wide, made from 3 cm thick wooden boards, with the bottom nailed from strip boards leaving 2 cm gaps to facilitate the dropping of feces. The bottom of the fox cage and den should be 40 cm above the ground, which helps with moisture prevention and cleaning of feces.
2. Reproduction of foxes
Silver foxes begin estrus in late January each year. During estrus, the vulva of the female fox is highly swollen and pink in color, and a white, viscous secretion flows from the vagina. At the same time, the female fox is active, urinates frequently, has a gentle temperament, and continuously makes urgent mating calls. This is the best time for pair mating, and the female fox should be caught and placed in the male fox's cage for mating, using continuous mating or mating again every other day. Five days after mating, the female fox's vulva contracts and her food intake increases. The gestation period is 50-61 days, with an average of 7 cubs per litter, at most 12-13, and at least 1.
3. Feeding management
Breeding foxes are fed 30 kg of Harwest breeding-period silver fox compound feed.
1. Unmated female foxes
Depending on body condition, continue feeding about 2-3 liang; if body condition is somewhat below average, food can be appropriately increased, with 1-2 grams of 1% breeding-period premix.
2. Mated female foxes
For mated female foxes, within the first 28 days of gestation, the feeding amount is not increased; if body condition is suitable at mating, feed about 2-2.2 liang, and if body condition is below average, feeding can be appropriately increased. After 28 days of gestation, the weekly feeding increase is generally about 5-6 qian. Until 3 days before giving birth, slightly reduce by 2-3 qian, and at the same time appropriately add Yingjiling.
3. Male breeding silver foxes
Feed about 3-4 liang daily, with 1-2 grams of 1% breeding-period premix.
On days when there is semen collection or mating duty, an extra cooked egg can be supplementarily fed.
4. Medication
Female foxes can be injected with Baytril during mating or insemination to prevent infection, or the whole group can be fed antibiotics before the mating peak for prevention.
During medication or epidemic prevention, Yingjiling can be used in combination to reduce stress and improve body resistance.
4. Key points for breeding
1. During the breeding and mating period, in addition to maintaining feed that is nutritious, complete, and easy to digest, the feed is also required to be diverse and fresh in quality, to ensure complementary essential amino acids and sufficient intake of various vitamins and minerals.
(1) For breeding foxes, it is recommended to use the silver fox breeding-period compound feed produced by Harwest;
(2) For self-mixed food, use the 1% breeding-period premix produced by Harwest to improve the anti-stress ability of breeding foxes and promote gonadal development.
2. Create a quiet breeding environment, ensure normal light, and reasonably arrange the cages of male and female foxes to stimulate estrus. Outsiders should be prohibited from visiting, the keepers should be stable, and loud noise should not be made in the facility.
3. Carry out estrus checks in a timely manner, mark reasonably, and arrange mating in a timely manner. Each female fox completes mating after 3-4 natural matings or inseminations, then is transferred to the birthing shed for rearing, and it is not necessary to open the birthing den.
Male foxes are collected or mated once daily, and after 3-4 consecutive days, they can rest for 1-2 days.
4. Mating generally ends on March 5-10, and pregnant female foxes are arranged in the sunny-side row to ensure sufficient natural light exposure;
Do a good job of hygiene and disinfection in the insemination room, and clean and disinfect insemination equipment in a timely manner according to regulations each day, and prepare the equipment for the next day.
5. If the temperature is too low, automatic drinking equipment cannot continue to be used; at this time the pellets can be soaked and fed to ensure water supply. Drinking water can be supplemented once every day at noon, and tocopherol can be added to the water; after mating, change to adding Yingjiling, and at the same time ensure the drinking water is clean and hygienic.
6. Do a good job of environmental hygiene and cage hygiene, wash drinking and feeding utensils, and disinfect the whole group's site once a week.
7. During the period of adjusting body condition before mating, strictly cull reserved breeding foxes that show problems.
8. When pregnant female foxes have poor appetite, priority should be given to adding multivitamins to improve appetite; for those with disease, treatment comes first and preserving the pregnancy comes second.