Foxes how much of a threat are they to children, cats, and dogs, do they carry rabies?

"The Fox condemns the trap, not himself" William Blake

The Red Fox, friend or foe?

I saw him in the early morning light sitting in a corner outside eating one of my prized apples, that's where they have all gone I muttered aloud. The Fox heard me, set down the apple core, went down the stairs and walked into the forest. He looked back at me, it was then I realized that I will see him again tomorrow.

The Sly Fox, a subject of many folklore, campfire stories, and nursery rhymes is interesting, misunderstood, and a Wiley character often suspected of foul play of which they had nothing to do with. Sporting a well known thick red tail, white patch from it's chin to the tail, and long legs the Red Fox is easily identified. Lurking in the shadows peering out between the trees, rocks, or other obstacles he is always exciting to spot, but not always a welcomed visitor. There are those who harbor a fear of them, others a profound dislike and some are admirers of the crafty canine. They hold the same curiosity of us as we do of them when a Fox spots a human, they stop and look at us as if we are the curiosity and the unwelcome intruder. I suppose we are as far as being a curiosity is concerned, an intruder sharing the same place and time is a little harsh. I would prefer being seen as living in harmony alongside them, and that is most likely due to them not being a threat to me in any way. There are legitimate reasons for harboring a general dislike of the wild animals, some of which we will explore in this article, let us begin.

The American Red Foxes lifespan in captivity is as long as 10 years, in the wild, it is 2-3 years. His fur is a rusty red color with the legs being darker many times they will be black. They are canines and with that, they sport long canine teeth, and black pointed ears which aid in their excellent sense of hearing. The fur on his belly is white up to its nose. The male is called a "dog", the female is "vixen", he weighs an average of 10-12 pounds and she a bit lighter at 9-10 pounds 56-74 inches in length, males are slightly larger at 54-78 inches long. Being nearly the same size and weight it is difficult to determine the animals' sex from a distance, with a sharp eye one may notice the snout of the male is longer than his female mate.

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Foxes mate in the winter, when spring arrives a litter of 2-12 puppies are born, they are mates for life and both of them share in caring for the pups. Born a dark gray coloring it is not retained long, they lose the gray and within a month of birth grow a new coat, this one is the classic Red Fox color. Female Foxes reach maturity at 10 months of age, the male takes longer, they have a short life in the wild, 2-4 years. Because most of the time Foxes are sighted alone the common consensus is that they live a solitary life, the male and female travel, hunt, and feed independently but they do meet up from time to time. That time is sometimes brief and other times for longer periods of time spent grooming and playing with one another. Observations in urban areas have disclosed the mating pair will sometimes have other mature adults in their "group", they are referred to as "helpers". The helpers are generally offspring of the mating pair that have stayed in the nest too long and are completely dominated by their parents. They are territorial animals and will defend their territory from other Foxes.

Red Fox pups are sometimes colors other than the typical red-rust.

Their territory or habitat is varied, marked with scents to warn off intruders they normally will not fight with a direct neighbor, they recognized one another, it is the strangers they don't want around. If the Fox is absent from its normal territory another one rapidly moves in and becomes the new resident. Foxes are found to be living in a wide range of environments in North America, deserts, grasslands, forest, mountains, and they have adapted to living in suburbanized areas. They are adaptable to almost any habitat, but still, prefer the forests and other wooded areas to others. Living in burrows (Dens) the Fox finds security for raising offspring, staying cool, and storing food. Dens range in depth from 1-1/2 feet to just over 8 feet deep, ( .45-2.4 meters), they sleep in the dens an average of 9.8 hours a day. Not above taking over the den of wolves, porcupines, and other large mammals, often sharing them with Badgers, and Woodchucks, they are accommodating in some ways.

Foxes are Omnivores, they will eat almost anything, small mammals, crickets, crayfish, beetles, caterpillars, and rabbits. They will continue to hunt even if they are "full", like squirrels and other mammals they store food for the winter. Nocturnal hunters they can be seen during the daylight hours occasionally, their excellent sense of hearing aids them in their night hunting excursions, hearing small animals deep in the ground they dig until the prey is captured. Other times like a cat they stalk their prey, getting as close as possible they suddenly jump upon the intended target.

A Fox hears prey beneath the snow, he leaps and dives in head first.

Foxes do not hunt domestic dogs or cats, they simply are not viewed by them as prey, nor are they seen as enemies. Like most other canines they will chase cats, for whatever reason, but when catching up to them and the teeth and claws come out, the Fox will retreat. Unless it is backed into a corner, it will then fight its way out, but to take on a cat or dog is out of the Foxes normal behavior. Chickens, Rabbits, and newborn animals are prey to the Red Fox, the fact that they will invade a chicken coop is not only folklore but rooted in truth.

Humans are not seen as prey by Foxes either, we are far too big, they prefer to give us a wide berth, but they will fight when they are in a corner and feel trapped. Some accounts of Foxes attacking small children exist but they are extremely rare and when it does occur it generates an enormous amount of press coverage which overrides how truly rare those attacks are. Even in cases when the animal accidentally gains access into a house as soon as it realizes humans are near all the Fox wants is out of the place, open a door and let him out, a better choice may be to call your local animal control. If we don't corner them, grab onto one, or reach into a Fox den we shouldn't fear being attacked by a Fox. But what if it's diseased?

Rabies, if a Fox attacks which are rare, or if you are bitten by one assume it has rabies, just like every other mammal. A bigger danger is to our domestic pets, dogs, in particular, Fox scat carries diseases that may be spread to another canine, our pet dogs. When we find Fox scat in the garden or yard just like any other dog feces it should be picked up and disposed of. Mange is a disease that is easily spread to a dog, easily treated when discovered the dog will not die from it, lose of fur is generally the most severe after-effects of contracting mange.

Foxes are not a threat to us or our pets, however, it is best to keep them away from our homes. They are scavengers, willfully jumping into our garbage cans for a quick and easy meal, they make a mess out of your garden and yard, and as mentioned earlier the disease their scat may carry is reason enough to avoid them.

Thanks for reading and sharing my blog, many people are convinced Red Foxes are dangerous animals, the inspiration for this article actually. I read a write-up in a forum where a Fox was blamed for killing a mans' cats, so he started eliminating the Foxes in his area. Unfortunately, the real culprit is most likely the many Coyotes that inhabit the area where he resides, 8% of a Coyotes diet consists of cats, feral or domestic it doesn't matter to the Wiley Coyote. Thanks again for reading the blog.

jacquesandkate  Emergencykitsplus.com