Shortly after the mating season this year all the urban foxes disappeared from our garden - usual for the vixens, but the males had been sunning themselves in the open until they suddenly went. Just a few days ago, after weeks of absence, a big male I call scruff walked across the lawn - he was in a dreadful state with a bare tail and an even more patchy coat than his norm. Yesterday a smaller male with similar problems stayed in our garden long enough for me to get a quick photo. Posted the pics on facebook, one of my friends asked what I was doing about it...
Well, it really hadn't occurred to me to actually do anything; I'm interested in the foxes, but quite prepared to let nature take it's course. I'd usually never feed or try to tame a wild animal. A quick look on the web found www.nfws.org.uk - national fox welfare charity which had loads of info on mange. Emailed my pictures to them to check it really was mange, they emailed back within 12 hours - it certainly was mange and they asked for my address to post a (free) treatment to me. I'll have to feed the fox(es) with bait containing the homeopathic treatment. That's a bit against my principles, but secretly I'll be delighted if the foxes get to trust me and tolerate me near them. The attitude and service provided by the NFWS is exactly what a charity should be, a huge thumbs up to them. Not everyone is going to approve as foxes are vermin and can be a real problem, but no animal should be left to suffer a lingering death through something nasty (but curable) like mange. I know that's inconsistent with letting nature take its course, but...
I'll also take this opportunity to air my odd view on fox hunting. I'm pro hunting as well as pro foxes.
If that seems strange, my reasoning is that if foxes are valuable to the country community, even if it's for something many find abhorrent (i.e. hunting), they will be allowed to survive or even nurtured. If they're valueless, and a nuisance to boot, it would be quite easy to wipe them out completely.
With hunting fox populations will be controlled rather than eliminated. The habitats they need such as copses will be kept. The hunts will want hedges rather than barbed wire round the fields. The hunts do also tend to take out the weaker members of the fox population.
Without hunting there is no incentive to maintain a population of foxes, or to maintain the habitat they need.
Another thought concerning foxes killing hens and caged domestic pets. If humans are going to cage animals which are natural prey to foxes, it's the human's responsibility to ensure the protection is sufficient. Imagine the terror of those caged animals if a fox gets into their cage - they're totally unable to obey their instincts to flee. It's my opinion (based on no evidence) that the fox kills a whole coop full of hens to shut them up. It must frighten or confuse the fox that the hens don't try to escape, but stay there squawking their heads off at him.
And a pic of a happier fox -
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