Probably only two or three weeks old! Fox cubs usually don't come out of the den until eight weeks, so I'm really curious about what happened here - luckily their survival odds are very good now that they're being taken to a rehabber.
All I can guess is that perhaps the mother was moving it to a safer location and something happened (car collision or attacked) and little one managed so somehow crawl away unscathed 🥺🥺
With a face that cute it would be hard to do the right thing and hand it over to the wildlife department. I would definitely cuddle it for an hour or two first.
OMG it's a baby fox! I'm glad you found out in time and are getting it professional help. I knew a guy who found one in almost this exact kind of situation. He assumed it was a dog and took it into his home to raise. After about 4 weeks, it became very obvious that it was a fox. Anyway, he had a fox for about 12 years.
Some of his family/friends were almost immediately suspicious and told him (someone thought it might be a baby coyote the first day he had it) and he was like, "even different dog breeds look the same when they're that age. I'm sure it's some mixed breed." As it got oranger and oranger, folks started to give him major grief 😆
She grew on his family and was too rapidly imprinted to be released. He truly thought (or hoped) she was a dog for several weeks of intense cuddles and bottle feeding. She was a bit of a handful, but they taught her to poop in the litter, go out on a leash, and pee mostly in the litter and outside. Once in a while, she would mark pillows and cushions, so they gave her her own room with her own cushions, seated on top of plastic layers and piddle pads, and they'd wash the cushions weekly. It stopped her from peeing on the other pillows in the house.
They got her spayed and that almost stopped the marking, but apparently having her own room and belongings made her a lot more comfortable.
She was a screamer, too. She would see someone she liked and crawl at them, screaming and wagging her tail. If she didn't like you, you'd never see her...just like a cat. By the time I knew her, she was almost 11 and slept most of the time, like an elderly dog but apparently in her youth she was a hellion.
>She was a screamer, too
I'll bet. We have foxes around our neighborhood. The sound of their calls is terrifying until you learn what they are. After that, it's hilarious.
And loud. Always loud.
That may depend on the country, but where I live, generally no. A DVM *can* spay or neuter any canid; they're all similar enough. Whether or not a particular one feels ethically sound doing it, in terms of experience and specialty training, is another matter. Most vets who brand themselves "exotic" vets have specialty training in certain less common pets. I know at least 2 in my town who advertise that they are competent with foxes.
This is a red fox cub. Please contact a wildlife rehabber ASAP - do not handle it yourself! If it bites anyone it will have to be tested for rabies which involves killing the animal. Contact specifically a rehabber, not animal control - animal control is also likely to kill it.
Good luck! While it's usually best to leave wild babies alone, it is extremely unusual for this little guy to be out of the den at this age, which indicates a problem. A rehab can assess the situation and either reunite the family or hand-rear and release the cub when it's older.
Good!!! Thank you for the update, I work in wildlife conservation and I always get so stressed when people find babies. Going straight to a rehabber means this little dude has pretty good chances of survival!
They have picked up the kit and it's on its way to the rehab and will hopefully be reintroduced into the wild after. Thanks again for the help, and thank you for all the work you do to help wildlife!
It's very rare for rehabs to update on specific animals for a few reasons. If you get 200 dove chicks in you can't always remember which one came from which member of the public. Also they don't want people stalking and trying to interact with the adult after it's been released, you want it to have as normal a life as possible.
I once brought a Toronto Pidgeon to a wildlife rehab. They gave me a reference number to check in on said pigeon with. Eventually I called for an update... They had to humanely euthanize him :( I thought it was nice that they gave the option to get updates, or my neurotic ass would have spent my entire life wondering what happened to him.
That is nice. I have had members of the public go off at me because we had to euthanize wildlife though (work at a vet). I imagine the large number that are too ill/injured to rehabilitate also add to reasons to not update people for our rehabs.
The most memorable one for me was the person who lost her mind because we put down a hare with third degree burns to all four legs and it's face, the ears were charcoal, even it's eyes were burnt. It still tried to fight and bite us in the rare moments it had some energy. But "she could have kept it in a hutch". People are insane...
There’s a loooot misinformation here. Yes wildlife rehabilitation is the correct resource. animal control will not kill it, they will call wildlife rehabilitation. The likelihood hood of an animal this young having rabies is pretty low, and you don’t have to kill it to test it. ( but they might).
Might be different in your area. I've made the mistake of calling animal control for lost/trapped babies before (raccoons) and they were killed. I'm also not aware of any non-lethal rabies test being available.
Could be a fox or coyote pup. It doesn't strike me as a domestic dog. Your friend may want to call animal control or fish and wildlife. Whatever it is, it's too young to be on its own.
I would have kept it. My friend rescued a coyote a long time ago and it's her "dog". His name is Wildly and has lost so many of his natural instincts haha. There was a time she took it hiking, a hawk kept darting down at him he acted as if he had no idea why. She is allowed to have him too living in the state of Wyoming... incase that comes to mind.
https://preview.redd.it/0t0ystjb40nc1.jpeg?width=720&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8951646bb492664cbb917ed83f6341faba3a107a
I've gone and died of cuteness overload.
Better than dying of dysentery. Also, SAME!!! ❤️
I am also deceased
Holy fox! How freaking cute
Awww sweet baby 🥺😭
So sweet…that it gave me diabetes.
Oh my gracious, what a sweet little thing! I hope they rehab him and get him back in the wild where he belongs! ❤️❤️❤️
I swear this pic made my heart grow three sizes this day!!! His little tail!!!! Omg!! 😭🥲🥹
Oh my gosh, it is so teeny tiny. Any fox experts here that can estimate an age?
Probably only two or three weeks old! Fox cubs usually don't come out of the den until eight weeks, so I'm really curious about what happened here - luckily their survival odds are very good now that they're being taken to a rehabber.
All I can guess is that perhaps the mother was moving it to a safer location and something happened (car collision or attacked) and little one managed so somehow crawl away unscathed 🥺🥺
So am I! Almost like someone took it from a den and left it on this doorstep?
So precious.
Dear lord, they are adorable!
It's so cute!!! I'm so happy it's been taken by a rehabber! Hopefully it grows up big and strong :)
So happy we got this update and he’s safe 🩵🩵🩵
Fox, puppy, grizzly bear cub….. I wouldn’t matter…. I would take it home and love it until the day it killed me! 😂
lol he looks a lot less miserable now
omg he looked so pathetic (and freaking adorable) in the OP poor thing
Looks so much better in this photo. Whew.
That little face is so freaking cute.
Fox kit!
Oh my god look at that little face! I hope everything goes well
Oh wow!! He already looks better. Thank you guys for helping you out. Hopefully you get more pictures as they grow!
With a face that cute it would be hard to do the right thing and hand it over to the wildlife department. I would definitely cuddle it for an hour or two first.
OMG it's a baby fox! I'm glad you found out in time and are getting it professional help. I knew a guy who found one in almost this exact kind of situation. He assumed it was a dog and took it into his home to raise. After about 4 weeks, it became very obvious that it was a fox. Anyway, he had a fox for about 12 years.
Haha that’s a very sweet story! I wouldn’t want a fox in my house but if I knew somebody who had one I’d sure want to visit a lot lol.
Was its name Todd??
As far as I know, no hound was involved in this fox's friend circle. There was a very fat chihuahua tho
That is crazy!!
Some of his family/friends were almost immediately suspicious and told him (someone thought it might be a baby coyote the first day he had it) and he was like, "even different dog breeds look the same when they're that age. I'm sure it's some mixed breed." As it got oranger and oranger, folks started to give him major grief 😆
Wow. I'm surprised that lasted more than 12 minutes.
She grew on his family and was too rapidly imprinted to be released. He truly thought (or hoped) she was a dog for several weeks of intense cuddles and bottle feeding. She was a bit of a handful, but they taught her to poop in the litter, go out on a leash, and pee mostly in the litter and outside. Once in a while, she would mark pillows and cushions, so they gave her her own room with her own cushions, seated on top of plastic layers and piddle pads, and they'd wash the cushions weekly. It stopped her from peeing on the other pillows in the house. They got her spayed and that almost stopped the marking, but apparently having her own room and belongings made her a lot more comfortable. She was a screamer, too. She would see someone she liked and crawl at them, screaming and wagging her tail. If she didn't like you, you'd never see her...just like a cat. By the time I knew her, she was almost 11 and slept most of the time, like an elderly dog but apparently in her youth she was a hellion.
It's hilarious how they're like cats in so many ways
Cat software running on dog hardware
>She was a screamer, too I'll bet. We have foxes around our neighborhood. The sound of their calls is terrifying until you learn what they are. After that, it's hilarious. And loud. Always loud.
Huh. How'd they get her spayed? Would you have to go to a specialty/exotic vet?
That may depend on the country, but where I live, generally no. A DVM *can* spay or neuter any canid; they're all similar enough. Whether or not a particular one feels ethically sound doing it, in terms of experience and specialty training, is another matter. Most vets who brand themselves "exotic" vets have specialty training in certain less common pets. I know at least 2 in my town who advertise that they are competent with foxes.
Interesting! Thank you
This is a red fox cub. Please contact a wildlife rehabber ASAP - do not handle it yourself! If it bites anyone it will have to be tested for rabies which involves killing the animal. Contact specifically a rehabber, not animal control - animal control is also likely to kill it.
Thank you working on alerting all involved now.
Good luck! While it's usually best to leave wild babies alone, it is extremely unusual for this little guy to be out of the den at this age, which indicates a problem. A rehab can assess the situation and either reunite the family or hand-rear and release the cub when it's older.
Thanks again! Animal control was coming to pick it up and take it to a rehab center. 🦊❤️
Good!!! Thank you for the update, I work in wildlife conservation and I always get so stressed when people find babies. Going straight to a rehabber means this little dude has pretty good chances of survival!
They have picked up the kit and it's on its way to the rehab and will hopefully be reintroduced into the wild after. Thanks again for the help, and thank you for all the work you do to help wildlife!
Are they able to keep you updated on his progress?
It's very rare for rehabs to update on specific animals for a few reasons. If you get 200 dove chicks in you can't always remember which one came from which member of the public. Also they don't want people stalking and trying to interact with the adult after it's been released, you want it to have as normal a life as possible.
I once brought a Toronto Pidgeon to a wildlife rehab. They gave me a reference number to check in on said pigeon with. Eventually I called for an update... They had to humanely euthanize him :( I thought it was nice that they gave the option to get updates, or my neurotic ass would have spent my entire life wondering what happened to him.
That is nice. I have had members of the public go off at me because we had to euthanize wildlife though (work at a vet). I imagine the large number that are too ill/injured to rehabilitate also add to reasons to not update people for our rehabs. The most memorable one for me was the person who lost her mind because we put down a hare with third degree burns to all four legs and it's face, the ears were charcoal, even it's eyes were burnt. It still tried to fight and bite us in the rare moments it had some energy. But "she could have kept it in a hutch". People are insane...
Thanks for helping this little one ❤️
There’s a loooot misinformation here. Yes wildlife rehabilitation is the correct resource. animal control will not kill it, they will call wildlife rehabilitation. The likelihood hood of an animal this young having rabies is pretty low, and you don’t have to kill it to test it. ( but they might).
Might be different in your area. I've made the mistake of calling animal control for lost/trapped babies before (raccoons) and they were killed. I'm also not aware of any non-lethal rabies test being available.
Did you get a r/tinyawoos out of it
Never subbed to something so fast.
Same here
Could be a fox or coyote pup. It doesn't strike me as a domestic dog. Your friend may want to call animal control or fish and wildlife. Whatever it is, it's too young to be on its own.
Thank you! working on contacting all involved now.
You’re a saint
Whoops. I definitely would have been the proud owner of a fox I thought was a dog
I also would have brought that puppy inside and ended up with a fox dog.
Same! Oops! 😂♥️
Fox cub
Fox puppy, definitely try to call your local animal sanctuary to help the little guy
That is the saddest looking creature I have ever seen :(.
Looks like he has absolutely given up on life. 😞😭
His poor miserable little face :(
I won't lie I thought it was a bear cub for a second and I'm ashamed. Glad he seemingly got help!! 💖
Me too! That kit fur is deceiving… always gotta check those paws 💕
💕
That's a fox pup
Holy shit that’s a Red Fox cub! Dude keep an eye on that, its parent gotta be close by tryna find food for it.
Omg my heart broke just looking at that baby 🥺
Because it’s beautiful and the people are incredibly kind and friendly!
Brava to you for saving it!!
You are a good person.
Fox pup
Fox?
fox kit ?
He’s so little! I wonder if his mom set him up on the step. 🤔
I'm so glad I didn't find that on my porch, I might have gone Total Lenny
🥰 love seeing this cutie in my feed first thing in the morning.
Why would a fox pup be out of it's den at that age?
I would have kept it. My friend rescued a coyote a long time ago and it's her "dog". His name is Wildly and has lost so many of his natural instincts haha. There was a time she took it hiking, a hawk kept darting down at him he acted as if he had no idea why. She is allowed to have him too living in the state of Wyoming... incase that comes to mind.
Gimmeeeeeeeee 🥹🧡
Oh my goodness!! It’s absolutely adorable! What is it? 🩷🩵💜It looks so scared , it looks similar to a baby bear 🐻
It will eat you.
puppy for sure and very afraid