.about the fox

Foxes are the only member of the dog family that doesn't live in a pack family unit. Living alone or in pairs most of their short lives, the fox is identified with a forest setting, prevalently. Foxes are the ultimate survivor: they are superiorly adaptive, and in a nuclear winter, I believe foxes would be the last creature standing (besides roaches.). Foxes span the globe, and when I say span the globe, I really mean it. Foxes live in the most extreme climates in the world-- Arctic foxes live in subzero temperatures, fennecs and kits are desert dwellers, living in extreme heat-- and can boast to be amongst the few creatures that can live in these conditions. It would be a cruel fate to be an arctic dwelling creature, wouldn't it? I better be good in this life, or God might send me back as an Arctic fox. (I'm an avid hater of all cold weather, in case you couldn't pick that up  from the context clues) AHEM. To boot, foxes can eat just about anything, and are extremely adaptable in hunting techniques. With a wide range of diet, it's small wonder these canines can survive. The foxes' mysterious cousin, the wolf, is endangered and is pressed nearly to extinction due to the carelessness of human-- however, foxes remain in superfluous numbers, despite much hunting and fur-trapping. A few rare types of foxes are endangered, however, and should be preserved at all costs. 

Unlike their sheltered cousin, the domesticated dog, foxes are calculated. Stealthy hunters, foxes are known to kill in excess when hunting times are good. They bury what they can't eat and save it for a day when hunting is not so well. Some people ask why a fox goes on a "blood frenzy" in hen houses, killing all the hens, the truth is that there's no "blood frenzy" at all: the fox is simply using a strategy to store its food. Some people say that the fox belongs in the cat family, which isn't true--though by some standards, they may be more closely connected to cats in behavior and housecats, in size. It's like saying that lions (one of the only felines to live in family groups) belong in the dog family. 

(Fennec Fox. Look at those ears! Which actually serve a purpose, unlike ugly humans who have huge dumbo-like ears. Fennecs' ears keep 'em cool in the desert heat. And look cute.)

So, seeing as I am a Canine encyclopedia (I'm serious, when I was about 10 I was incurably obsessed with all things Canidae and, seeing as my memory absorbs all things useless and forsakes all things I actually need (ex: Algebra)) I decided that it would be beneficial for the world to share my knowledge. About foxes at least. I'd be here for 2 months telling you everything I know about dogs. Yes, it's that sad. But, since everyone I ever talk to via the Internet is under the impression that I'm a giant blonde Fox that lives in a forest with a laptop and preys on idiots, I figured maybe I could broaden some horizons and clear up some misconceptions about this particular genus. 

Foxes are as stated prior, solo predators that prey on rodents and rabbits (are rabbits rodents? I always thought they were too fluffy to be true rodents. anyway). Foxes are one of the only canines to live alone/in pairs -- wolves, coyotes, jackals, dingoes, dholes, and wild dogs all live in pack communities that bring down larger, stronger prey through cooperation. Foxes do get together at breeding time, however, and most foxes mate for life and live in pairs. Foxes have an average gestation period that lasts about 50 days. It takes a fox approximately just under a year (10 months?) to reach sexual maturity. Foxes, in the wild, don't last very long, but spawn relatively quickly. The average lifespan of a wild fox is somewhere from 2-5 years. Though they can live as long as a dog+ in captivity, the constant threats to foxes and the dangerous life they lead hack away at the lifespan of a fox. Foxes are hunted for killing livestock, as well as killed for "sport" (i say it in quotes because game hunting is not considered a "sport" as far as I can tell, on any level. since when is chasing and murdering an animal (that can't fight back) with a gun and or/ pack of bloodthirsty hounds a "sport"? Yeah. Last time I checked, a sport was kicking a ball into a net...) as well as killed by competitors, rival foxes, loss of habitat, Rabies, and for their fur. 

Picture Credit:
PBS. June 2003.  <http://www.pbs.org/sahara/wildlife/fennec2.htm>.