A fox kit fitted with a dog harness and discovered walking through a residential neighbourhood in a Toronto suburb is now in the care of an animal welfare group.
Procyon Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Centre of Beeton, ON said it received a call about a wayward baby fox spotted in Richmond Hill on April 12. The wild animal was brought in from Vaughan animal service. It was wearing a blue, small dog harness.
“It is unclear how this happened to this poor boy, but what is clear is that at some point humans were involved and made the wrong choice,” Procyon explained in a Facebook post.
The case has been reported to Ontario’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry.
“Keeping wild animals for the purpose of domestication is illegal,” the rehab facility said. “Not only that, this is not what is right for you or for the animal. He is very confused, surely missing his mother and siblings.”
Anyone with information about this case — or anyone attempting to keep a wild fox kit — should be reported to the province.
Kylee Hinde, an animal care assistant at Procyon, posted an update on the social media site responding to questions about what happened to this baby fox.
“We are unsure how long this baby was with humans. So far, he is showing normal behaviour for a fox of his age. To ensure he will have the best chance of a wild release, he was transferred to another centre that has several fox kits his age,” Hinde wrote.
Meantime, officials are worried about any other fox kits in the Richmond Hill area, which could be being kept as pets or sold.
The MNRF’s tip line is 1 (877) 847-7667.
“It is possible there are more out there,” Procyon added.
Baby foxes are certainly floofy and cute. But they are not pets.
