Close encounters of the foxy kind

04 September 2004 ~ 23:37

We were standing outside the vet�s office after dark to get some fresh air because of the humidity�and so our sick rat Sky might feel better�when Mark spotted a small fox trotting past the front garden. It looked like a juvenile, for though it was obviously not an adult, it was clearly not a kit either.

Mark called to him/her in a gentle voice and the fox trotted towards us. But just then a car drove past and he ran into a shed. However he kept peeking out and Mark suddenly hit on the idea of taking some of the vet�s free samples of kitten kibble to scatter for the foxy.

He crept nearer until he was just several inches away from us. We watched in fascination as he delicately nibbled up the food. He was there for more than ten minutes and didn�t appear frightened of us at all, just wary.

I can honestly say that this was the nearest either of us have ever been to a fox and we were honoured and delighted to share a little of his lupine company.

And it was even more of an honour that this lovely animal saw us as fellow animals, that we 'big, bad humans' weren't terrifying androids to him�just mammals on a par with him. That feeling of connecting to a wild creature of nature was the best of all, especially when that creature is a beautiful red fox.


Stored nuts | Future acorns