Cat living with Foxes...
Posted: Mon Aug 02, 2010 3:26 pm
Has any-one heard of a cat living with a family of Foxes?
I have not heard of It nor has the national Fox Association but I have seen It with my own eyes and want to document It some-where but not sure where.
It all began some months ago when we were asked If we had seen a stray Kitten missing from 2 streets away. The description of the markings were quite distinct so I knew It was the missing Kitten as soon as I spotted her In the lane when I went out to the Foxes late at night. She was 14 weeks old at the time she went missing. I did not want to grab her as It was around Midnight and It would have meant that she would have had to spend the night In my house and the thought was always that I may be taking some-one else's cat.
We Informed the owners that she was showing up with the Foxes at Midnight but they were unable to catch her.
To cut a long story short.... She Is now around 6 months old and her behaviour Is Identical to that of the Foxes.
The first outstanding sign was that she refused the cooked chicken that I offered her and the other strays and always grabbed a raw chicken drumstick or quarter. On getting It In her mouth, she would then do exactly what some of the foxes do and Immediately bolt with her quarry but I noticed she was bolting towards the Foxes earth. At first I thought this was co-Incidence but It went on.
Last week there was an Incident where as per usual, the Vixen went straight to the eggs which she gets one In her mouth and runs to earth with It to cache returning for the chicken. The Kitten as usual grabbed a raw chicken leg and as the Vixen ran to earth, the kitten was right on her heels and they dissapeared Into the same bush by the earth.
That more or less had me convinced that the Kitten was living with the Foxes but last night I was astonished at her behaviour.
I went out at around Midnight and 4 of the family of Foxes were In the usual spot waiting for their food playing and grooming. I took no notice at first as that is a common sight but realised that In between the older cubs grooming the Vixen was this Kitten
I am going to try my hardest to get some night-time shots of this but I really feel this needs to be documented... Just not sure where and how.
I have not heard of It nor has the national Fox Association but I have seen It with my own eyes and want to document It some-where but not sure where.
It all began some months ago when we were asked If we had seen a stray Kitten missing from 2 streets away. The description of the markings were quite distinct so I knew It was the missing Kitten as soon as I spotted her In the lane when I went out to the Foxes late at night. She was 14 weeks old at the time she went missing. I did not want to grab her as It was around Midnight and It would have meant that she would have had to spend the night In my house and the thought was always that I may be taking some-one else's cat.
We Informed the owners that she was showing up with the Foxes at Midnight but they were unable to catch her.
To cut a long story short.... She Is now around 6 months old and her behaviour Is Identical to that of the Foxes.
The first outstanding sign was that she refused the cooked chicken that I offered her and the other strays and always grabbed a raw chicken drumstick or quarter. On getting It In her mouth, she would then do exactly what some of the foxes do and Immediately bolt with her quarry but I noticed she was bolting towards the Foxes earth. At first I thought this was co-Incidence but It went on.
Last week there was an Incident where as per usual, the Vixen went straight to the eggs which she gets one In her mouth and runs to earth with It to cache returning for the chicken. The Kitten as usual grabbed a raw chicken leg and as the Vixen ran to earth, the kitten was right on her heels and they dissapeared Into the same bush by the earth.
That more or less had me convinced that the Kitten was living with the Foxes but last night I was astonished at her behaviour.
I went out at around Midnight and 4 of the family of Foxes were In the usual spot waiting for their food playing and grooming. I took no notice at first as that is a common sight but realised that In between the older cubs grooming the Vixen was this Kitten
I am going to try my hardest to get some night-time shots of this but I really feel this needs to be documented... Just not sure where and how.