Community Corner
Letter to the Community from ACO... Foxes in Medfield
Medfield ACO Cronin has received multiple calls about fox population in Medfield....she is sharing her knowledge and advice with residents.
Letter to the Community from Medfield ACO Cronin regarding fox population in Medfield...
"I have received multiple calls regarding the fox population in Medfield.
We had a relatively mild winter which allowed wild animals to not only survive but to thrive. Combined with the increase in building in town destroying the natural habitat of these animals, people are seeing more foxes.
Red foxes are small, ranging in size from a little over six pounds up to 24 pounds, the size of a Maine Coon cat. Foxes like raccoons, are a synanthropic species and benefit from our garbage, bird feeders, pet food, pet feces, and will seek shelter under sheds, porches and decks. They are omnivorous and in the spring and early summer, when raising their kits, spend numerous hours hunting.
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For the first month of their lives the kits live on their mother’s milk. After that, the parents will leave food just outside the den to encourage the kits to eat on their own. The kits stay with their parents for about seven to ten months.
They are inexperienced and may not be afraid of humans, so it is our job to protect these beautiful animals by alerting them to the dangers of approaching people. This can be done by hazing foxes instead of taking photos or trying to get too close to them. Waving your arms above your head and yelling, throwing things in their general direction, making loud noises such as a shaker can (a soda can filled with rocks), air horns and even spraying them with a hose so they learn to fear us.
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Make your yard unattractive to foxes and other animals by securing your trash, not feeding the birds, cleaning up after yourself and your pets and by blocking any access to a potential den site.
The kits will eventually spread out to establish their own territory and they need our help to find a safe place to live. A normal territory is about 19 square miles whereas a habitat with an abundant food supply is only 4.6 square miles.
Let’s do our part to widen the range of our fox population."
Jenny Cronin, Medfield Animal Control Officer