In the early years of Soviet power, the national economy of the country was in dire need of gold currency to purchase equipment that was required for industry. At that time, the gold currency was partially replenished at the expense of Siberian furs.
In the summer of 1928, work began on the establishment of a fur farm in the village of Ivanovskoye, Tobolsk district. Previously, there was a farm for breeding Chinchilla rabbits for the local population. On August 21, 1928, three breeding foxes — two females and a male — were brought to Tobolsk on the steamer Kazanets from the Sharkal farm.
On April 1, 1929, the Tobolsk (Ivanovo) zoofarm was taken over by the GPSK and on the balance sheet of the main fur and raw materials office. It was the first experimental animal breeding farm in Western Siberia, with a livestock of 10 foxes, some Russian, some American.
In the 1930s, the Tobolsk animal husbandry mastered the complex technique of this specific branch of production. Animal breeders were engaged not only in breeding silver-black foxes, but also other valuable breeds of animals — beavers, raccoons, sables. The state farm provided great assistance to collective farms, which in the 1930s and 1940s began to engage in cellular animal husbandry.
In 1931−1935, 60 foxes were kept at the Tobolsk animal farm, 4,697 young animals were raised. In 1936−1940, 650 foxes were already kept, 8649 young animals were raised. In 1937, a profit of 455 thousand rubles was made from the sale of silver-black fox skins. The material base of the animal farm was constantly improving. He had his own power plant, a large car park, and a good subsidiary farm.
During the Great Patriotic War, the team retained the main population of female silver-black foxes. It was stable — an average of 600 heads. The collective of the animal farm won the Red Banner of the People’s Commissariat of Foreign Trade of the USSR, received the All-Union Monetary Award. More than 500 professional hunters were engaged in the production of furs.
In 1946, a new type of fur-bearing animal, the blue arctic fox, was brought to the farm, and in 1959, for its anniversary, the fur farm brought a third type of animal, the mink. In 1956−1960, 750 foxes, 375 arctic foxes and 108 minks were kept at the Tobolsk animal farm.
Tobolsk animal breeders achieved the highest results in the 1960s and 1980s. So, in 1980, the population was: 1000 foxes, 1440 arctic foxes, 14 007 minks. The furs of the Tobolsk fur farm were famous far beyond the borders of our country. Tobolsk fur was in great demand in America, England, France, etc. Annually, the state farm produced furs for 4−5 million rubles (in prices of the 70s). Its territory became a fur farming school. Students from Yamalo-Nenets and Khanty-Mansiysk districts came here to study. In terms of the development of cellular animal husbandry, the Tyumen region occupied one of the leading places in the country.
In the nineties, due to the transition to market relations, changes took place in the activities of the animal farm. Stock feed receipts stopped, they began to arrive with great interruptions. In order to preserve the company in the new economic conditions, a workshop for the manufacture of skins was launched. In May 1994, a workshop for sewing fur products was launched. In 1995, 75 fur coats, 3,000 hats, 270 collars and 200 mittens were sewn. But lack of money, economic confusion, increasingly took hold, and in the late 1990s, having become bankrupt, the animal farm ceased to exist. It is sad that they failed to maintain production, the products of which were in great demand on the world market and competed with the best fur producers.