Do you feed your local fox?

sunshinesquirrel

yep, i feed the foxes too. We have 2 or 3 of them that are regular visitors. I love watching them playing in the garden although my dogs aren't too keen on them!!!! I give them the leftovers and scraps (makes me feel better about not so much waste going in the bin!!!)

cheepskate_2

I heard , cant remember from where, that it is bad to feed foxes.

The reason being that as the cubs grow they only learn to scavange and not to hunt, thus if for any reason you stop feeding them(move away etc.) then the babies/ now older foxes will not know how to hunt and die.

Also because food is not scarce the population goes up, as in the wild when food is readilly available, and once this food source stops, then some starve to death as their is too many competing in the same area.

I always think of this when going to throw any food out to them.

Saying this I on occassions do throw our some carcass for them but it is so occassional that should not interuppt thier natural hunting process.

UKTigerlily

I dunno that they'd stop hunting, it's instinct surely? You only have to look at how many of us feed our cats & they still hunt!

foreign_correspondent

foxes have always been scavengers anyway - they eat quite a lof of other things than meant -windfall fruit etc!!

Hawthorn

No. Purely because if one were to come to our garden on a regular basis, the dog would probably have it. She's very territorial, and whilst fine with animals she knows on the property, animals she doesn't.......well, she might just go for it.

skylight

My vet was surprised at the fox/cat myth and was adamant that a fox is highly unlikely to go for a cat and if it did, the cat would probably win anyway. They tend to ignore each other.

But if you are concerned about the foxes becoming tame, how about feeding them on an erratic basis? Every so often with no pattern. It stops them relying on you but you also know that they are getting a good feed once in a while.

LittleTinker

Feeding the foxes is no different to feeding the rats.

Just because they look beautiful doesnt mean they arent still vermin.

southernscouser

When I was younger there used to be a fox that would lay on my nans front lawn with the cat. And I actually hand fed that fox aswell.

My parents feed them every night without fail, 4 or sometimes more, and since they have been they don't attack the bin bags anymore.

suki1964

LittleTinker wrote: »

Feeding the foxes is no different to feeding the rats.

Just because they look beautiful doesnt mean they arent still vermin.

Agree - and of course you are likely to attract rats into your garden if you leave food down

But then when I lived in the suburbs I fed the foxes - just not in the garden but in the woods where their dens were..

rita-rabbit

Personal choice I believe - but I think it's wrong to feed foxes. There seem to be SO many of them in both urban & suburban areas - maybe it would be better to let them forage & kill mice & rats instead IMHO.