Fox Hunt

[airedale]

Well not really, I have a long driveway that has alarms and it is common to hear them go off because of various wildlife. Well tonight they were really bing bonging and I took a walk out with a flashlight for a look see. Did not see anything, the wife comes home from the store and tells me there is a fox in the driveway, she thought is was a cat because it trotted right up to her car. Came in and told me about it and I went out and there was a gray fox just walking around grubbing for food, I believe it is the same one that was here in the spring I photographed with the Turkeys. 

We pulled up close and I did a mouse squeek and he came right up to the car and laid down beside it. Man something not right here, Rabies is the first thing I think when I see wild animals that are not afraid of humans. So I watched him for a while and he did not appear sick and appeared nothing like any rabid animal I have seen on video. But it does seem to have an injury. I was not going to have him running around by the house for my dogs to mess with and I did not want to kill him for basically nothing, so I decide to catch him, cage him and if he is OK tomorrow I will take him for a ride, if he acts goofy I will put him or her down.

So thats is what I did, caught him in my chicken catch net and put him in a cage with some food and water and will wait until morning and see how it goes.

Al

 

[Pygmy]

Geeze, Al.....A healthy grey fox allowing himself to be caught in a net   ???...

I am thinking Ba Da _ BING... Why take a chance ??...

[airedale]

Hey Dan I hear you, there was a time that fox would have been shot on sight, but I believe this guy is the same Fox that was hanging around the place for most of the summer. I would see him out in the pasture catching mice and as long as I did not get too close to him he paid me no mind. Gray foxes are kind of rare around here and so long as he did not cause me any problems like the chicken killing reds I have to deal with from time to time I gave him a pass and actually enjoyed watching him. 

I will be the first to admit that as I have become an old man the free passes I give when hunting keep climbing, I hardly kill anything anymore.

I have dealt with wildlife my whole life and am very careful especially with all the Coons I hunted, if I see any hint this Fox is sick with something bad it will be put down.

Al

[rob-c]

Wow either he’s the most laid back fox ever or as you’ve noted he’s off . I’ll be curios on your report tomorrow . 

[airedale]

So in this morning's daylight I could see much better and it appears to me this Fox has an injury, having problems with his rear leg I think. Moved him to more comfortable and larger quarters, he has a good appetite as he has downed two quarter pound hamburgers. No big deal to wait and see if he can come along and get better physically.

Al 

[LET EM GROW]

Hes going to follow you home after the drop off to get some more quarter pound burgers! I know i would be.. lol 

[Larry]

hey can you pick me up 2 cheeseburgers w/Swiss & bacon & a coke

[Splitear]

2 hours ago, Larry said:

hey can you pick me up 2 cheeseburgers w/Swiss & bacon & a coke

No joke, I'm going to fake a limp and find my way to Al's driveway  

Good thread Al, I appreciate you sharing the progress. Really shows the difference between a killer and a sportsman.

[chrisw]

Making me jealous that I don't have a pet fox to feed cheeseburgers to! Very cool, hopefully he can recover, his buddies will never believe him when he tries explaining this to them...

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[heavuser]

8 hours ago, airedale said:

So in this morning's daylight I could see much better and it appears to me this Fox has an injury, having problems with his rear leg I think. Moved him to more comfortable and larger quarters, he has a good appetite as he has downed two quarter pound hamburgers. No big deal to wait and see if he can come along and get better physically.

Al 

[airedale]

Well the little guy could not overcome his injuries and succumbed, my best guess is he probably got rolled over by a vehicle.

Al

[Splitear]

29 minutes ago, airedale said:

Well the little guy could not overcome his injuries and succumbed, my best guess is he probably got rolled over by a vehicle.

Al

That’s too bad. Still, good on you for trying Al. 

[heavuser]

1 hour ago, airedale said:

Well the little guy could not overcome his injuries and succumbed, my best guess is he probably got rolled over by a vehicle.

Al

You gave him a warm place, comfy bedding, and food. No better way to go when you're a wild animal.

Edit: To be honest, this post was a nice change of pace. As a relatively new hunter(3 years under my belt), I want to kill everything that moves. Sometimes I think I am losing my compassion for animals until I see things like this. 

Edited November 12, 2022 by heavuser

[rob-c]

I’d say a couple juicy burgers for the little guys last meal was a good one. 

[Doc]

Yeah.......Here comes the Monday morning quarterback. But perhaps others who might have similar encounters might handle it with the DEC. They have access to rehabilitators who may be able to render some medical assistance to the critter with a minimum amount of risk to the people involved. If he died so quickly, there probably was nothing anyone could do that would have had any different end-result. I suspect that the leg symptoms were the least of his problems. I'll bet your theory about the car hitting him was probably right.