Urban Foxes
Although there are cases of them attacking cats, this is extremely rare indeed. Foxes are prevalent throughout North-America. Over the years they have adapted well to urbanization and have learned to take advantage of their new environment. They feed on a variety of foods, including carrion, rodents, fruits, vegetables and the like. Although there are cases of them attacking cats, this is extremely rare indeed. Both foxes and cats are active at night and meetings between the two are probably a nightly occurrence. Observations of such meetings show that for the most part they either ignore each other or else the foxes are nervous of the cats.
Foxes tend to be solitary animals and are generally only found in pairs during mating season. They are not known for their speed, and although they generally move about undetected and silent.
However, because of their prevalence in urban settings, they are from time to time observed, particularly during the late fall and winter when there is less ground cover to hide them. Foxes are rather nervous animals and generally fearful of people. They take every opportunity to avoid humans. It is inconceivable that a healthy fox would attack an adult or child unless cornered and an attempt was made to grab it.
Some problems will solve themselves in the course of time. For example, a litter of fox cubs will disperse as summer progresses irrespective of any action taken. Although a healthy fox is generally not a threat to humans, people will often panic when they see one and demand that it be removed. On the other hand, when a fox is diseased or injured, then there is a good argument for its humane destruction.
Trapping can solve the problem, but only temporarily, as other foxes from surrounding areas quickly move into the vacant territory and replace the animal that has been removed.
The size of the fox population in a municipality is held in natural balance by the foxes’ own system of spacing themselves in territories.
Although altering the habitat to make it less attractive to the animals, live catching of foxes are commonly seen as the only humane solution to problems of urban foxes where exclusion methods have been found unsuccessful.
Because of their suspicious nature, foxes are not easily trapped in live traps, and disguising or covering such trap may be necessary. There are many types of cage traps on the market that are used to live-trap foxes, but all work on a similar basis. The traps are baited, the fox will enter the trap to get at the bait, and it will either tread on a trigger plate or by pulling at the bait, release a pin which in turn triggers a door.
The main advantage of cage-trapping is that it allows non-target species such as pet dogs and cats to be released unharmed.
However, unless there is some evidence that a fox is ill, it is best left where it is.
More Information
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