Guelph, Ontario
I’ve been raising mink for over 30 years. After university I was a salesman for a few years but realized I enjoyed mink ranching much more. So that’s why I raise mink with my daughter and son-in-law.
We also help with mink research. We have two or three research studies being done by Masters Students from the university on the farm right now.
Lauren is doing research into a new housing idea called get-away bunks. And what these are is a place within the cage itself that gives the nursing female a place to go to get a break from her litter of kits.
The research is trying to determine if the females will leave the nest box and use the bunk. And if so, whether the females benefit with better health and better body weight scores by getting away from the constant nursing demands of the litter. The research is also looking at whether these breaks in nursing help the kits to wean onto solid food faster and easier.
Lauren says the research project has also changed her initial impression of mink farms. Now that she sees the daily routines and the amount of animal attention that goes on, she feels mink have it about the best.