Domesticated Silver Fox - Current Project Status

Current Project Status

Following the demise of the Soviet Union, the project has run into serious financial problems. In 1996, there were 700 domesticated foxes, but in 1998, without enough funds for food and salaries, the number had to be reduced to 100. Most of the project expenses are covered by selling the foxes as pets, but the project remains in a difficult situation and is looking for new sources of revenue from outside sources.

In an article published in Current Biology about the genetic differences between the two fox populations, an experiment was reported in which DNA microarrays were used to detect differential gene expression between domesticated foxes, non-domesticated foxes raised at the same farm as the tame foxes, and wild foxes. Forty genes were found to differ between the domesticated and non-domesticated farm-raised foxes, although about 2,700 genes differed between the wild foxes and either set of farm-raised foxes. The authors did not analyze the functional implications of the gene expression differences they observed.

In another study published in Behavior Genetics, a system of measuring fox behavior was described that is expected to be useful in QTL mapping to explore the genetic basis of tame and aggressive behavior in foxes.