VetClick Discussion Forum

Hi Caroline

I went out to the garden last week in the early evening, and came across a fox hiding in the leaves. He was startled by me, and ran off. Do foxes hibernate in back gardens, and if so, should we leave some food out for him to get through the winter? I live in London.

Ben

Hi Ben

More and more foxes are moving into urban areas and thriving in towns and cities so you will probably see more of your fox. Foxes do not hibernate and although urban foxes do well scavenging on our rubbish and uneaten takeaways, I always advise putting extra food out for all sorts of wildlife when we get very cold spells.

Hi Caroline

Thanks for your reply. What kind of food should I leave out for our fox? Dog pellets? What about fresh water?

Ben

Foxes are scavengers and will eat all sorts of food including your leftovers but this can lead to attracting rats and mice. Any cat or dog food is fine and a good quality cat food will also help any hedgehogs which may be in your area. Dried food is also fine and fresh water should be available at all times, not just for the foxes but for all wildlife.

I am studying animal management and have been given an assignment to complete on rehabilitation. Would any one tell me what the short-term dietary requirements of a fox would be???

many thnx

The main diet foxes receive when in our care consists of dog or cat food, dead day-old chicks and dog mixer biscuits but we do supplement with rabbits from time to time as well. A vitamin / mineral powder is also added to the food once or twice a week - we use SA37. This diet is for adult foxes which are nearing the end of their rehabilitation, before release. Cubs (once they are weaned) are given tinned puppy food, but chicks as well.
Debilitated foxes are given Hills a/d mashed with water, Lectade or fluids initially.

Hi i am also studying animal management and would like to no what bedding you use to rehabilitate a fox and also what type of materials and furnishings you would use to build an enclosure to keep them in

The bedding used greatly depends on the injuries etc the fox has. Normally we would use straw, but for animals with larger wounds etc we would put a blanket down to help prevent contamination of wounds.
As the whole idea is to have animals for as short a time as possible, the enclosures we use are small & sparse to facilitate easy cleaning etc. We have concrete floors & weldmesh walls.
The only foxes that have large enclosures with logs, grass, vegetation etc are our permanent residents - those that have become imprinted on humans because of being hand-reared by well-meaning but misguided people.

We are new to rehabilitation and would like to know how to care for a small fox? He is eating out of a bowl his formula, but how often do we feed him and how much? He crys alot?
Any information you may have for us would be greatly appriecated.
Kat

It is impossible to advise without having more details about the cub. I need to be able to ascertain the age.
Most importantly though, if you rear one cub on its own it will become imprinted on humans & will not be releasable back into the wild. Animals need to be reared with others of their own kind to avoid this. If we get one youngster in & don't think that we are likely to get any more, then we get in contact with other rehabilitators & move the youngster on to another centre as soon as possible.
Can you let me know whereabouts you are situated.
Assuming you are in the UK we may well be able to find someone close to you who can give you appropriate advice.
If you can give me a detailed description & weight of the cub, & maybe even email a photo, I will then be able to give advice on feeding, frequency of feeds etc.

Hello

I have been feeding foxes in my garden for a few years but now I find two cats come and eat or take away the food. I've set up hoses but they soon get over that and come back. Any ideas please to stop them. Thanks. Anne

Hi Anne
I don't know that there's much you can do to stop the cats as anything you set up to frighten them off will also frighten the foxes off.
I wouldn't feed during the day, but only put food out at dusk. If you are doing this & the cats are still coming round, I don't think that there's anything else you can do.
Not much help, sorry, but don't give up on the foxes - you are lucky to have them coming into your garden.

i would like to know. How to feed a fox when its in a rehabilitation centre? I would also like to know what pre-release training that a fox as to go through to get released?

thanks

The main diet foxes receive when in our care consists of dog or cat food, dead day-old chicks and dog mixer biscuits but we do supplement with rabbits from time to time as well. A vitamin / mineral powder is also added to the food once or twice a week - we use SA37. This diet is for adult foxes which are nearing the end of their rehabilitation, before release. Cubs (once they are weaned) are given tinned puppy food, but chicks as well.
Debilitated foxes are given Hills a/d mashed with water, Lectade or fluids initially.

The rehabilitation process depends entirely on why the fox was with us in the first place & how long it has been with us. The process is different for each animal & it is therefore impossible to answer this question accurately.

Hi Caroline. Many thanks. I know I'm lucky!! I just love foxes. I'll carry on feeding anyway. Anne

Anonymous User Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi Caroline
>
> I went out to the garden last week in the early
> evening, and came across a fox hiding in the
> leaves. He was startled by me, and ran off. Do
> foxes hibernate in back gardens, and if so, should
> we leave some food out for him to get through the
> winter? I live in reading
>
> emily

hey
im also doing an assignment on fox rehabilitation and im struggleing to find any information.
could you please help me the transportation requirements for a fox when its going to be released and also any pre-release sites.
thankyou very much for your help
cat

Adult foxes are released back where they came from & are transported in a darkened varikennel.
Cubs are put into pre-release pens at the release site for 7-10 days & then the door is opened for them to disperse, but food id still provided daily for 2-3 weeks after this to help the cubs out when they are first released.

feed the foxes with markies dog biscuits the cats wont eat them.

hi i am doing an essay on rehabilitation and management, and have chosen the fox. i desperately need to know how everything such as diet, behaviour, habitat, breeding and territory etc is considered PRIOR to rehab and release. i don't understand, and im soooo stuck cant find anything on the net! would very much appreciate anybody's input.

The diet we use for foxes during their rehabilitation consists mainly of dog food & day-old chicks, although we do also use fresh roadkill (rabbits, pheasants etc.) when available.
Most animals are with us for a relatively short time & adult animals are always released back into the territory they came from & therefore habitat, territory etc do not need consideration.
We do have to consider cubs if we take in a lactating vixen, & in these cases we have to get the vixen back to where she came from as soon as is practically possible. If she is going to be with us for some time, & we have no idea where the earth is, then all we can do is to monitor the area for any signs of lone cubs.
Regarding behaviour, we have to monitor all animals prior to release to make sure that they are displaying normal, wild behaviour. In cases where head trauma has occurred, it may take a considerable length of time for them to recover & show normal behaviour, & sometimes the damage can be permanent, in which case the animals would not be releasable & euthanasia would be considered.
I hope this helps - it is a difficult question to answer as each case is judged individually, there is no black & white answer.

We have several regular foxes that come into the garden. Have noticed that one only has half a 'brush' the end doesnt appear to have any fluffly fur, though is coloured so presumably has some fur covering. He is also limping pretty badly on his front paw. Is there anything that we can do to help it, other than making sure there is a regular supply of food down?
Also is there any benefit in buying the pre-packed fox foods that you can get on the internet or are we just as well off with dog food and scraps?

hey there,

i am trying to find out what resources are needed to rehabilitate a fox. Also, what resources are required tohand rear a squirrel.

please help me!

hey,Ben

I saw a fox in the back garden too, it was about 10 metres long and when
i told my brother & sisters in ran off. then i saw it again, then i told my mum then again it ran away.what shall ido? should i keep it a secret and feed it? or shoo it away?



courtney

Last year when we moved into a new property we replaced some fences in our back garden which were quite expensive and now with the foxes jumping up over the fences they have become quite loose and I am concerned about further damage.
Another problem is that we have spent a huge amount of time and effort preparing and laying our rear garden with grass turf and the foxes tear it up every night and dig holes. They also foul the garden leaving plenty of reminders for us that they are visiting.
We have a baby daughter who we have prepared the garden for her to play in but now we are too concerned about the germs in the foxes' droppings to allow her on the grass.
What can we do to dissuade the foxes from damaging all the hard work and effort we have put in to our garden and to make it safe for our baby?

Hi
I have been feeding foxes for the last 6 months, they usually come out at 9/10ish and sit across from my house and wait for me to leave our leftovers! Two regular foxes sit and wait and one has been sitting right in my front garden waiting patiently on food. When the other/younger ones think it is safe they also come out, normally four, five at the most! I noticed last week that the braver one was limping badly and now the last few days I haven't seen hide nor hair of any of them. Food is being left untouched and the birds are eating it in the mornings! I am worried about them do you think they'll be okay?
Noticed one out at 6pm begining of last week!!
Thanks
Sharon

I specialise in Wildlife Management in London. The Abandonement Act 1960 states that it is illegal to abandone a animal.

An urban fox released in to the countryside will simply starve to death as not being used to hunting for rabbits etc, having raided bins and eating waste left overs found on the streets killing chickens, pets etc.

A released urban fox would be more likely to attack and kill farm livestock, other wildlife species including endangered animals and birds. The fox is also at risk of being attacked by other foxes that are currently living in the release zone.

An urban fox with sarcopic mange could easily pass it on to 'healthy' foxes which may contract the disease and then die from scratching themselves to death with infested wounds. This would be the releasers fault for creating more misery and suffering.

Releasing foxes into the wild following capture or 'rescue' is a cruel act for the foxes and other wildlife, farm livestock which would be put at risk. Humane euthanasia by a professional using licenced firearms or by a qualified veterinary surgeon should be carried out. The future welfare for the released fox is not considered or what effect it could have on the environment by the releasers.

Another point to think about is that a hungry fox is a dangerous fox. I have dealt with a recent case in a school where a mange ridden fox came up to a child and swiped its paw at the childs leg. By nature, foxes are mean't to be shy, scared and fearful creatures.

On another occasion, a farmer told me that the only foxes that trouble him at lambing time are ones released by pest control companies on the edge of his land. New born lambs are at risk of being killed which would have a direct effect on his income and livelyhood.

Kind hearted people who leave food out for them only encourages the problem and should be avoided at all costs.
Where is a town fox going to find dog or cat food if they are dumped in the countryside?

The main reason I am called into schools is due to foxes fouling all over the playgrounds and paths. The risk of children getting toxocaris having touched fox fouling is very high. Schools can also be infested with fleas that are walked in from outside.

Urban foxes will almost certainly be riddled with internal parasites, worms and externally have ticks, fleas and mange infestations.

By releasing a fox back into the wild, you would be at risk of being prosecuted under The Abandonement Act 1960, The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 & The Protection of Animal Act 1911.

The Local Police Wildlife Liaison Officers will confirm all of the above.

Is it humane and safe to release urban foxes back into the wild?

As it is currently illegal, why is the law flouted and ignored and why are the Police not enforcing the laws laid down.

Hi
Does anyone know what kind of tagging is used on foxes that are re-habilitated or re-located?
thanks

The Abandonment Act 1960 has now been taken over by The Animal Welfare Act 2006 with regards to releasing trapped foxes.

The Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 also prohibits the releasing of pest species back into the wild in order the protect protected species.

The term 'pest species' is no longer used in law & it is not illegal to release a wild fox back into the wild following rehabilitation. They are always released into suitable areas (usually to where they came from). Non-indigenous species such as Canada geese, muntjac deer & grey squirrels can only be released into certain counties if a licence to do so is held.