Fur Garners Good Prices at Auction

Ohio hunters were up bright and early Saturday morning to auction off their prized furs

Around 100 trappers attended the Ohio Trappers Association Fur Auction at West Muskingum High School. As hunters arrived each of their furs were given a grade.

"We look for quality of the fur, if it is good color, nice, full, heavy fur. We also look at the leather, the skin side of the fur, to see what color it is. If it is a dark color or a black it is a low grade, because it is an early caught fur, not saying before the season came in, but early when season comes first in," says Bob Fissell the auction coordinator.

A fur is also given a low grade if it there is damage to the skin. But Fissell says he has seen some lovely furs that garnered a good price.

"Some fellas look at the monetary end of it and they really go out and they trap hard and they catch a lot of fur and of course when prices are up they make some money," says Fissell.

The buyers of the fur often sell the pelts to manufacturers to make coats or other apparel. Fissell says the auction had a good crowd because the price of fur increased recently.

Katie Jeffries

KJeffries@whizmediagroup.com