I think I have adopted twins

Woodsman · Jul 23, 2015

Fox that is. These two kits are orphaned or abandoned and somehow made their way to our property and took up residence in an old fox den last week. Since then I have been helping them out with some high quality meat based kibble. Not enough to make them dependent on the food but enough to help them through. If successful this will be the third den I have watched grow up although this is the first without an adult fox to help them out.

I have been watching them at dusk and overnight on the security cams and they know how to hunt. Luckily mom must have been around long enough to teach them what they need to know. I have also noticed a lack of dead fish on the rocks that the crows always bring up. I am sure they are dining on fish too. They stick to out property and close to the den and are very wary of people, noises, engines and even other critters like raccoons. All good.

In this pic the one peeking around the tree I believe is the alpha male, It is always on the go, running, and does not eat until much later when the other has had a lot. Tonight I put the camera on the deck with a remote trigger but it did not like it there and was reluctant to come out. It did not bother the other one though. I wish the T3 could silence the focus beep and shutter sound but I did not find that in the manual.

The other one eating in this pic I believe is a female and comes and chows down. I have a trail cam on the den and notice the alpha guards the den opening even sleeping at the mouth on occasion just like the adult used to do.

Fox Kit 04 20150723 by Woody Woodsman, on Flickr

The next two shots are of the one that comes and chows down which I believe is a little female.

I hope they make it

Fox Kit 05 20150723 by Woody Woodsman, on Flickr

Fox Kit 06 20150723 by Woody Woodsman, on Flickr

baturn · Jul 23, 2015

Very cool! You are a lucky man. I've never seen a fox in the wild, to my knowledge there are none on Vancouver Island and I guess I just never got lucky any where else.
Hope they do well.

Ron Evers · Jul 24, 2015

Beautiful animals! We too have had a fox den in the back yard a couple years & watched the kits grow up. Ours would come out @ any time & wander about even as we cut the lawn. Our big female Russian blue cat would play with them. We have not had any around our yard for years now. :icon_sad:

Braineack · Jul 24, 2015

I stand outside almost every day looking in the backyard hoping for something like this to happen to me

Bryston3bsst · Jul 24, 2015

Good on you, Woodsman, for trying to help them. I hope they make it ok too.

Woodsman · Jul 24, 2015

Ron Evers said:
Beautiful animals! We too have had a fox den in the back yard a couple years & watched the kits grow up. Ours would come out @ any time & wander about even as we cut the lawn. Our big female Russian blue cat would play with them. We have not had any around our yard for years now.

The first time the den was used on our property the mom raised three kits alone. Mom would sit and watch me outside and when I was out with the dog at night I would see her eyes and I would talk to her. The second year they were not on the property but were in the field by the trail cam and they would sit and wait for me to go out to the cam each evening. If I stood still on the trail cam path the kits would walk right past me even as they grew quite big maybe a two or three feet away. They get to know you. If someone else was with me, they were gone and not seen. I have not heard the Vixen scream in a few years, that is one weird sound in the middle of the night.