Fox at the Bird Feeder

[CT_Shooter]

I see this little fellow often, usually in the backyard by the watergarden. This morning, he stopped by the bird feeder in the front yard for a breakfast of fallen sunflower hearts.

Fox at Birdfeeder.jpg

[North Country Gal]

They are such lovely animals. Love watching them, when I've had the opportunity. Great pic. Thanks.

[Sir Henry]

I had one in my yard almost thirty years ago but haven't seen one since. Great picture.

[WoodrowH]

They are such lovely animals. Love watching them, when I've had the opportunity. Great pic. Thanks.

Tell that to the hens. Kidding aside, great pic. Foxes are beautiful animals indeed.

[CT_Shooter]

They are such lovely animals. Love watching them, when I've had the opportunity. Great pic. Thanks.

Tell that to the hens. Kidding aside, great pic. Foxes are beautiful animals indeed.

Welcome to the forum from CT, WoodrowH. For what it's worth, I do have a chicken and that fox has shown zero interest in her coop. I started out with three; one grew into a rooster and became dinner, a second hen was recently killed by a raccoon that burrowed under the coop at night.

Chickens.jpg

[CT_Shooter]

I'm sorry to report that my little fox friend has had some difficult times lately. A couple of weeks ago, I saw him drinking at the backyard watergarden; his tail had been nearly completely stripped of fur. As he walked away, I could see that his right leg had a noticeable limp.I expect he encountered an adversary, likely a coyote, and escaped.

Last week, I saw him again, looking for some afternoon sun to curl up and nap. He walked without the limp, but he looked like hell. I let him be, and he curled up by my basement bulkhead door.

He appeared again today, in the same spot. I carefully held my camera through the slider door on my deck to allow him to have his space and some peace and took these pictures. In the sleeping photo, you can see his bare tail. So sad.

Fox Sitting.jpg

Fox Sleeping.jpg

[Cofisher]

It is sad when a beautiful creature like that gets beat up. I hope he recovers and continues to grace your property.

[PT7]

Wonderful photos to bring your story along, CT. Mr. Red Fox does look quite ragged compared to your early Feb photo. As he keeps on stopping to visit you, he'll soon learn that he has found the best sanctuary yard in the neighborhood! Take good care of him....he sure can use a little TLC nowadays!

[JEBar]

have you heard any reports of "wasting" disease or mange in your area ..

[CT_Shooter]

have you heard any reports of "wasting" disease or mange in your area ..

I have read about wasting disease, but never about this species. Fox can suffer from mange, but this was a sudden decline. I think it was more likely the result of a fight for food and/or life.

[JEBar]

my reason for mentioning them is the absence of hair on the fox's tail .... I've only seen chronic wasting disease in deer but have seen mange in several different wild and domestic animals ..... I've also seen animals get into fights and lose some hair but none like that .... I'm sure your first hand assessment is on a much stronger footing than mine

[Abnermal]

My guess would be mange. I've seen it in foxes,raccoons and even groundhogs.

[PT7]

When I first read through this thread, CT, I neglected to ask you about your chicken coop. It is a cool-looking design, and of course I really like the looks of the wood, even w/o a Henry stock finish!
So, did you build it? What are the dimensions? How many chickens can you keep in it, and do you plan to get more? I can't quite figure the function of the two longer planks with the handles. How do you use those?

Nice home for your remaining chicken. But she looks a little like she might like some company.
Thanks for posting your photo.
PT7

...For what it's worth, I do have a chicken and that fox has shown zero interest in her coop. I started out with three; one grew into a rooster and became dinner, a second hen was recently killed by a raccoon that burrowed under the coop at night.

Chickens.jpg

[CT_Shooter]

It is a cool-looking design, and of course I really like the looks of the wood, even w/o a Henry stock finish! So, did you build it? What are the dimensions? How many chickens can you keep in it, and do you plan to get more? I can't quite figure the function of the two longer planks with the handles. How do you use those?

Thanks, PT7. I did build it (a few months before my wife was diagnosed with cancer) from plans I bought from Catawba Chicken Coop online at http://catawbacoops.com/

It is about eight feet long and is large enough for about six hens. I have only ever had three chickens. One was a rooster (which we ate) and one was mangled by a racoon last summer. Now, I only have one, but she's healthy and happy and lays about an egg per day.

The handles are so that two people can pick it up and move it around the yard, which we did for the first year. Since I'm alone, now, it basically stays in one place. It's very easy to clean and is perfect for a suburban backyard like mine.

[CT_Shooter]

I took the first picture (below) today. It broke my heart to see how quickly mange can destroy an animal. I've posted several pictures of this once glorious creature, and now I post this one. He's mostly blind, can barely hear, and is wasting away. His face is all scab -- crusty skin shutting his eyes, ears, and nose.

I watched him sift through some leaf debris that yesterday I fished out of my water garden filter system and dumped onto one of my vegetable beds. I rescued seven frogs and put them back in the water at the time. I watched as he ate. I'm sure he must have found a small frog, fish, tadpole or two that I missed. Then he walked to the water and drank for more than two minutes.

It breaks my heart to know that, according to the CT DEEP, it will take two to four months before he dies an increasingly painful death, all the while highly contagious to other animals, including pet dogs and cats. I couldn't find any information about reporting this animal to authorities for intervention. All I could find was a description of it's symptoms and a warning to keep pets indoors.

I'm conflicted. I want to kill him if I have a chance. I was able to get within ten feet of him today with my camera before he realized I was there and it took him more than a minute to discover me. If I decide to do it, I'll let you know whether I select the Crossman 2100 .177 pellet gun (pumped all the way) or my single shot 22LR bolt action rifle, both of which are illegal to kill a fox in my neighborhood. I'm conflicted.

Fox Mange.jpg

Fox at Birdfeeder.jpg

[Cofisher]

Tough duty that. I have had to put down several wild animals and it is never fun. Our thoughts are with you.

[JEBar]

I hated to be right about the mange .... its nasty stuff that has to be dealt with

[PT7]

Sure sorry to read about and see the photos of that Red Fox's struggle now. And too easy to understand the conflict it's causing in you, CT.

Have you tried contacting your local animal control office in Chester? http://chesterct.org/town-services/animal-control/ Maybe that person could at least point you in the right direction for help, or they may intervene and take the fox down and relieve its suffering.

Trusting and hoping for the best outcome....
PT7

It breaks my heart to know that, according to the CT DEEP, it will take two to four months before he dies an increasingly painful death, all the while highly contagious to other animals, including pet dogs and cats. I couldn't find any information about reporting this animal to authorities for intervention. All I could find was a description of it's symptoms and a warning to keep pets indoors.

I'm conflicted. I want to kill him if I have a chance. I was able to get within ten feet of him today with my camera before he realized I was there and it took him more than a minute to discover me. If I decide to do it, I'll let you know whether I select the Crossman 2100 .177 pellet gun (pumped all the way) or my single shot 22LR bolt action rifle, both of which are illegal to kill a fox in my neighborhood. I'm conflicted.

[CT_Shooter]

Have you tried contacting your local animal control office in Chester? http://chesterct.org/town-services/animal-control/ Maybe that person could at least point you in the right direction for help, or they may intervene and take the fox down and relieve its suffering.

I didn't call them because on their webpage, they redirect issues with wildlife to DEEP, but I'll call them both today to see if there are any options. Thanks.

[CT_Shooter]

Have you tried contacting your local animal control office in Chester? http://chesterct.org/town-services/animal-control/ Maybe that person could at least point you in the right direction for help, or they may intervene and take the fox down and relieve its suffering.

I called DEEP this morning. Their advice is to call the local police, who are the only folks authorized to "dispatch" the animal. If I see him again, I will call. Our small town has a single resident state trooper who supervises two part time town police officers (and there's one vacancy right now), so it may not work out that anyone would get here in time, anyway.