The Urban Foxes
2011 - 2012 The original Mr Fox
2015 - 2017 Mr Fox #2
2018 Mrs Fox Image captures from 4K UHD video
2019 Scar and his mother, a new vixen Image captures from 4K UHD video.
Mrs Fox stopped visiting in late 2018 and a dog fox and 2 new vixens started coming in early 2019. The vixens produced 3 cubs between them. Two of the cubs, Scar ( named after an injury to his right eyelid ) and his brother Shy ( because he is more nervous ) are visiting most evenings at the time of writing in October 2019. Scar is quite bold and has come into the conservatory on occasion. Shy is more wary and waits on the lawn for me to throw food to him.
Mrs Fox stopped visiting in late 2018 and a dog fox and 2 new vixens started coming in early 2019. The vixens produced 3 cubs between them. Two of the cubs, Scar ( named after an injury to his right eyelid ) and his brother Shy ( because he is more nervous ) are visiting most evenings at the time of writing in October 2019. Scar is quite bold and has come into the conservatory on occasion. Shy is more wary and waits on the lawn for me to throw food to him.
2020 Early Spring and Scar and Shy are suffering from mange
Shy is visiting every evening, Scar 3 or 4 times a week, and I'm giving them a course of mange treatment courtesy of the National Fox Welfare Society. Best way to administer it I've found is to cut a raw sausage in half, scoop out a plug of sausage meat, pour in the 4 drops of treatment then replace the sausage meat.
Shy is visiting every evening, Scar 3 or 4 times a week, and I'm giving them a course of mange treatment courtesy of the National Fox Welfare Society. Best way to administer it I've found is to cut a raw sausage in half, scoop out a plug of sausage meat, pour in the 4 drops of treatment then replace the sausage meat.
2020 Summer - the treatment has worked and the foxes are free of mange
Scar comes for some left overs on the BBQ
Scar comes for some left overs on the BBQ
2021 February - March, Shy gets injured and develops mange again
Shy sustained an injury to his left eye at the end of December 2020. By February the eye was looking infected and on top of that he'd also developed a severe case of mange. Not being able to get any help from local animal rescue centres or vets I contacted The Fox Man in Manchester who arranged for a local volunteer, Eddie, to drop off a cage trap at my home. We set up the trap that evening but it took three weeks of coaxing before Shy was finally caught. By that time he was in a very bad way, had lost most of his fur, and was probably just a few days from dying.
Shy sustained an injury to his left eye at the end of December 2020. By February the eye was looking infected and on top of that he'd also developed a severe case of mange. Not being able to get any help from local animal rescue centres or vets I contacted The Fox Man in Manchester who arranged for a local volunteer, Eddie, to drop off a cage trap at my home. We set up the trap that evening but it took three weeks of coaxing before Shy was finally caught. By that time he was in a very bad way, had lost most of his fur, and was probably just a few days from dying.
The morning Shy was captured, Eddie came to collect him and drove to a rendezvous point near Manchester where the Fox Man team, Paul and Carol, took Shy the rest of the way to the fox hospital. He stayed at the hospital for two weeks during which time the mange was treated and the badly infected eye was removed.
Paul, Carol and Eddie brought Shy back home on March 13th. We all stood behind the release cage as Paul lifted the door, but instead of heading off up the garden to freedom as expected, Shy decided to back-track past the humans and headed into the house through an open door. It took a few minutes for me to coax him out of the dining room and then from beneath a television in the conservatory, but he finally got his bearings and vanished into the night.
2021 March , Scar brings a vixen and Shy moves away
Shy came for food for two days after his return but while he'd been away his brother Scar had brought a young vixen into the garden, and she was obviously feeding cubs. On the CCTV camera I saw her and Shy have a minor confrontation and after that Shy no longer came for food. I guess Scar and Scarlett, as I named the vixen, forced him out of the territory. Scarlett is a very busy mother, going back and forth collecting chicken for the cubs. She's only gone for a little over a minute each time so the cubs must be nearby.
Shy came for food for two days after his return but while he'd been away his brother Scar had brought a young vixen into the garden, and she was obviously feeding cubs. On the CCTV camera I saw her and Shy have a minor confrontation and after that Shy no longer came for food. I guess Scar and Scarlett, as I named the vixen, forced him out of the territory. Scarlett is a very busy mother, going back and forth collecting chicken for the cubs. She's only gone for a little over a minute each time so the cubs must be nearby.
2021 April and a new visitor comes to the fox diner
In late April a new visitor appeared on CCTV and became a new subject for my cameras. This was the first badger I'd seen in the garden since moving here in 2006.
In late April a new visitor appeared on CCTV and became a new subject for my cameras. This was the first badger I'd seen in the garden since moving here in 2006.
2021 July and a first sighting of one of Scar & Scarlett's cubs
A cub shows up unexpected and I grab the first camera to hand. It's now over 3 months old and almost as big as Scarlett.
A cub shows up unexpected and I grab the first camera to hand. It's now over 3 months old and almost as big as Scarlett.
2021 August and the cubs are becoming more independent
At least two cubs are now coming to feed without their parents.
At least two cubs are now coming to feed without their parents.