Do mink make good pets?
No. Domesticated mink do not make good pets. While dogs and cats have been selectively bred for pet-quality traits over thousands of years, domesticated mink are livestock that have been bred for clothing and oil and life on a farm. They retain many of their aggressive traits. Mink have very sharp teeth and claws and can inflict nasty injuries on their handlers. They are also carnivorous and so need a high protein diet. Given the chance, mink will eat your pet guinea pigs, rabbits and goldfish. If you have heard that mink make good pets, it’s misinformation. We only know of one owner who successfully raised a mink in his home and even he has been unable to reproduce that success with other mink from the same and subsequent litters. Mink have not been selectively bred for pet-quality, so FCUSA does not recommend you attempt to hold and raise them as pets unless you are willing to give, at the minimum, 20 years to the project. If ferret-like pets are what interest you, consider a ferret
