London – the big city. Home to historical palaces, a thriving theatre district, the seat of government… and thousands of urban foxes!
That’s right, foxes. One of the most surprising things about moving to London has been walking down the street and foxes strolling right down the street next to you. It's strange to be living in such a metropolitan area with these woodland creatures living among you. But I guess with large amounts of open spaces and parks in London, they have plenty of places to live and plenty of garbage and scraps to eat. In our area, we've nick-named each one our "friendly neighborhood fox.”
We have had quite a lot of run-ins with foxes in the 16 months we've been here. Before Kirby moved in, they were fearless and practically camped out in our backyard. They’re a bit more hesitant now but they still come around quite a bit. And Kirby goes nuts!
One of David’s first up close and personal experiences with a fox was while I was away. He was sitting in the living room watching TV one night when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He looked out the window and saw a fox sitting on top of Kirby’s doghouse watching him watching TV. What a creepy fox!
Another time, a fox came through the yard and jumped from Kirby’s doghouse over the fence into the neighbor’s garden. We noticed him struggling in the bushes, so we thought he hadn’t made the jump and was falling. Nope. Instead the fox had grabbed a pigeon sitting on the top of the fence. He fell back onto the doghouse and started eating the pigeon… right in front of us! It was horrible! I felt like I was on an episode of ‘Animal Planet: When Foxes Attack.’ The pigeon struggled for a while, and then I jumped up to grab my camera. Unfortunately the fox saw me through the window and ran away with his food before I could get a video or pic.
Outside the city in Bracknell, where the Dell office is, the foxes run rampant. One day I was leaving the office and there was a fox walking across the parking lot with a goose hanging out of his mouth. Another time, while waiting for the shuttle at the train station, a flock of birds was taunting an injured fox. The poor guy ran across the street and then tried to get through the fence onto the train platform… maybe to get to the fox doctor. He didn’t make the train, though, and headed off down the street instead.
Foxes are very mischievous too. We learned this lesson the hard way. One day after working in the yard, David left his gardening gloves on the patio table. The next morning, they were gone. A fox had taken them for his nest. David could just imagine little baby foxes curled up inside his nice warm gloves. Last season, they ate David’s tomato plant so we put a little fence around the vegetable garden. This year, they developed an appetite for strawberries instead. The tomatoes were fine but the strawberries were non-existent.
Kirby is usually too busy hangin' out on the couch watching me work…
or sleeping half in/half out of his doghouse…
to notice the foxes in our backyard, but sometimes he does catch the scent and then he’ll just run laps around the backyard with his hair raised up on his back. When he does see one through the window, he will bark and bark until he’s let out. He never manages to catch them… we don’t even know if he would actually bite one, or just lick it to death. Chances are he'll never get that close because foxes are soooo fast and they can jump really high! We’ve seen them leap from the ground over the fence like it's nothing! This drives Kirby nuts and usually for two days after, he’ll OCD-it-up sitting next to the back door on full alert.
During the winter, when it gets dark around 4 in the afternoon, the foxes come out a lot earlier. So we see them a lot more on walks with the pup. And If Kirby sees one, he’ll chase after it like he does with cats (pulling David or me down the street with him). But again, they’re way too fast for him. Overall, we think this a good thing because we don’t want an epic battle to go down. I don’t want Kirby to get mauled or anything, but I also think he could handle his own… or they could become best friends just like "the fox and the hound!"
That’s right, foxes. One of the most surprising things about moving to London has been walking down the street and foxes strolling right down the street next to you. It's strange to be living in such a metropolitan area with these woodland creatures living among you. But I guess with large amounts of open spaces and parks in London, they have plenty of places to live and plenty of garbage and scraps to eat. In our area, we've nick-named each one our "friendly neighborhood fox.”
We have had quite a lot of run-ins with foxes in the 16 months we've been here. Before Kirby moved in, they were fearless and practically camped out in our backyard. They’re a bit more hesitant now but they still come around quite a bit. And Kirby goes nuts!
One of David’s first up close and personal experiences with a fox was while I was away. He was sitting in the living room watching TV one night when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He looked out the window and saw a fox sitting on top of Kirby’s doghouse watching him watching TV. What a creepy fox!
Another time, a fox came through the yard and jumped from Kirby’s doghouse over the fence into the neighbor’s garden. We noticed him struggling in the bushes, so we thought he hadn’t made the jump and was falling. Nope. Instead the fox had grabbed a pigeon sitting on the top of the fence. He fell back onto the doghouse and started eating the pigeon… right in front of us! It was horrible! I felt like I was on an episode of ‘Animal Planet: When Foxes Attack.’ The pigeon struggled for a while, and then I jumped up to grab my camera. Unfortunately the fox saw me through the window and ran away with his food before I could get a video or pic.
Outside the city in Bracknell, where the Dell office is, the foxes run rampant. One day I was leaving the office and there was a fox walking across the parking lot with a goose hanging out of his mouth. Another time, while waiting for the shuttle at the train station, a flock of birds was taunting an injured fox. The poor guy ran across the street and then tried to get through the fence onto the train platform… maybe to get to the fox doctor. He didn’t make the train, though, and headed off down the street instead.
Foxes are very mischievous too. We learned this lesson the hard way. One day after working in the yard, David left his gardening gloves on the patio table. The next morning, they were gone. A fox had taken them for his nest. David could just imagine little baby foxes curled up inside his nice warm gloves. Last season, they ate David’s tomato plant so we put a little fence around the vegetable garden. This year, they developed an appetite for strawberries instead. The tomatoes were fine but the strawberries were non-existent.
Kirby is usually too busy hangin' out on the couch watching me work…
or sleeping half in/half out of his doghouse…
Ouch!
to notice the foxes in our backyard, but sometimes he does catch the scent and then he’ll just run laps around the backyard with his hair raised up on his back. When he does see one through the window, he will bark and bark until he’s let out. He never manages to catch them… we don’t even know if he would actually bite one, or just lick it to death. Chances are he'll never get that close because foxes are soooo fast and they can jump really high! We’ve seen them leap from the ground over the fence like it's nothing! This drives Kirby nuts and usually for two days after, he’ll OCD-it-up sitting next to the back door on full alert.
During the winter, when it gets dark around 4 in the afternoon, the foxes come out a lot earlier. So we see them a lot more on walks with the pup. And If Kirby sees one, he’ll chase after it like he does with cats (pulling David or me down the street with him). But again, they’re way too fast for him. Overall, we think this a good thing because we don’t want an epic battle to go down. I don’t want Kirby to get mauled or anything, but I also think he could handle his own… or they could become best friends just like "the fox and the hound!"
I am thinking he has already become best friends with the foxes, which is why they have been convincing him to follow them through the hole in the fence to join them on their adventures in the neighborhood!
ReplyDeleteI thought we saw a fox when we were there this past summer. Be safe, they might be cute but you never know.....
ReplyDelete