Fox Angels Foundation
Charity No. 1183633
Foxes are large predators
Contrary to popular opinion, red foxes aren’t quite as large as most people believe. They tend to be around 60 centimetres, tall and 90 centimetres long.
Their faces, backs, sides, and most of their tails are covered in red/auburn fur with darker legs and white usually on their chests, faces and the ends of their tails.
Their scientific designation is Vulpes vulpes,
Vulpes being the Latin name for fox
Foxes mating season is January - March
Foxes tend to mate from late December to Early March with cubs being born March – early May when spring finally arrives. Litters are fairly small usually seeing a vixen with two to four cubs, although it isn’t unusual to see six or seven cubs in a litter!
Foxes eat cats and small pets
The misconception that fox’s prey on, and hunt cats for food is believed to be from people witnessing vixens carrying their young who at first are grey/brown and not the distinctive red/auburn colour that we see in the adults.
Whilst it’s true that red foxes have hurt or taken cats, they would usually avoid most felines as they are not that different size wise and a cat can be a formidable opponent when cornered, reports of foxes taking cats and small pets would presumably be animals that are elderly, very young or perhaps injured and therefore not able to put up a fight.
There are plenty of videos on social media and you tube of Foxes and cats interacting, playing together or eating side by side but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t chase them!
A fox will generally hunt prey that it knows it is able to catch and overcome without putting themselves in any undue danger.
Foxes are aggressive
Foxes, like all members of the Vulpes species, generally tend to be non-aggressive.
It’s incredibly rare for a human to be bitten by a red fox, and in the majority of cases where it has actually happened, the fox only attacked out of fear and because it felt threatened, and most incidences of fox bites tend to be to rescuers or rehabbers.
Under most circumstances a fox is going to be far more afraid of you than you are of him!
Foxes can retract their claws like cats
Foxes are the only type of dog capable of retracting their claws like cats do. Foxes also have vertical pupils that look more like those of cats than the rounded pupils that other dogs have
Fox Hunting is illegal in the UK
Sadly, some cruel people continue to hunt foxes and ridiculously call it a “sport”. In 2004, a law was enacted in England and Wales to ban hunting foxes with dogs, an activity in which hunters would ride on horses following a number of dogs who would pursue the exhausted fox before ripping the animal apart. However, hunters can still hunt and kill foxes by other means. Fox hunting with dogs is still legal in many other places, such as Ireland, North America and Australia
You can find and support your nearest Hunt Saboteurs group through their website: Hunt Saboteurs Association | Taking Direct Action Against Hunting (huntsabs.org.uk)