A Family of Foxes Are Terrorizing A Town in NY (rabbits, dog)

[Chava61]

This story seems to have been going on for a while and it is illegal in NY State to harm a fox.
Family Of Foxes Has Westchester County Residents On Alert After Series Of Encounters « CBS New York

Any thoughts on what should/could be done?

[lifelongMOgal]

Bean bag shot-gun rounds. The foxes need to learn fear of people if they cannot be successfully trapped. It is unusual for foxes to be so bold so the questions have to be asked if they are carrying rabies or if humans have fed them and made them unfearful.

[rainroosty]

Oh yeah.....look out! You may have salamanders too! Kill everything!

[CraigCreek]

"Oh, the fox went out on a chilly night,
And he prayed for the moon to give him light...
For he'd many a mile to go that night
Before he reached the town-o,
Town-o, town-o..."

Sounds as if this fox family (with some of the little ones, eight, nine, ten) must be taking the song to heart.

The only real problem I can see here is would be if these foxes are rabid. Since they've been encountered in the area for quite a while, and their behavior has been consistent and they appear healthy, that's unlikely, as they'd have died long ago if rabies were the problem.

The problem is more consistent with people living in the foxes' habitat.

Rainroosty, just call those salamanders "plethodons" and watch the stay-in-the-house bunch scramble! Plethodons in the creek!! Warning, watch out, guard your children!

Last plethodon I saw was about 3/4 of an inch long.

[Asheville Native]

We have foxes here, see them from time to time, and hear them frequently at night. It is rare to see them out in the daytime, but I have several times while walking the dogs. They are timid and make an exit as quickly as they can. They can carry rabies which is a worry especially for ones seen during the day. The one's I have seen look healthy, alert, nice coat, and quite skittish and quickly take off into the woods or brush.

[kitsunegames]

This story belongs in The Onion.

~Terror alert!
A fox viciously stared and savagely growled at some passerby, when the fool panicked and ran the fox horrificly gave chase until the poor sod face-planted themselves on cement. The clever fox didn't take this opportunity to tear out the fools throat or to rip off her face, the fox didn't even chew on her leg, it just quietly slipped away. So terrible is the fox that it will cause you to harm yourself, be warned!~

They terrible fox can now be placed on the dangerous-wild-animals-within-encroaching-towns list with alligators, bears, and moose which are all not only capable of killing people, but have.

[BlackShoe]

Much ado over nothing. Foxes are pretty inoffensive animals and not much of a threat to anything, except perhaps to domestic poultry and rabbits. Assuming they are not rabid, would think that they have been fed by humans and have become bolder. An average male Red Fox goes 10-12 pounds in North America, with an occasional big male hitting 15, females are smaller.They often appear much heavier because of their long fur and bushy tail. The fox in the film clip looked to be only about 10 pounds. An average sized healthy domestic cat can usually knock the stuffing out of a fox if there is any rough stuff unless there is a large size difference, a couple of quick swats is usually all it takes to send the fox on it's way. Serious confrontations between the two species are quite rare, mutual avoidence is the usual behavior.

[SCGranny]

LOL It was illegal to kill deer on Hilton Head Island, once upon a time. "But they're so pretty! You can't kill Bambi!" Then the deer became overpopulated, smashing glass doors and breaking into homes, smashing everything in sight; carrying diseases and ticks, they spread all over the island, causing wrecks, with the bucks charging children, adults and cars, even knocking people off of bicycles and motorcycles... First they hired a "professional" to trap the deer and load them into trucks to 'relocate them" - the deer, when caught at all, would die of terror in the trucks. Then they (finally) had a 'limited hunting' of the deer, thinning out the herds considerably, and making all of the other deer more afraid of humans and less likely to attack or cause property damage.

Like it or not, these foxes are doubtless in the same situation - they have an unending supply of food, no predators to be afraid of, and can do as they please. Wild animals are not the cute and cuddly, beleaguered creatures in cartoon movies - they go where there is food and fewer predators, and become naturally aggressive when they are threatened, or even just because they can. Sooner or later someone will be injured to the point where they will sue the state or local government for their refusal to protect the citizenry, and "something will have to be done". Unless, of course, someone in the neighborhood understands the theory of the "3 S"'s - Shoot, Shovel, and Shut Up. You can talk all you want about "living in harmony with nature", but when nature has teeth, horns, hooves, and claws and isn't afraid of or hesitant about using them on you, your perspective will change. An animal slinking silently a foot or so behind a person, who snarls and growls and hisses and stands its ground when they turn around and see the animal, is stalking them.

The coyotes howling the next hill over from my pasture are safe (from me, anyway); I won't go hunting them - but they mess with my cows or horse, cats or dog or chickens, it's on, make no mistake.

[cowdog]

Don't take matters into your own hands! We've learned that from the squirrels up in the northeast!

[Asheville Native]

Originally Posted by cowdog

Don't take matters into your own hands! We've learned that from the squirrels up in the northeast!

For those of us not in the NE, whats the deal with your squirrels?