A fox in front of a Tim Hortons in Quesnel.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Tammy Zacharias

Two young foxes are now at a wildlife rescue centre in Quesnel after spending more than a week hanging around in public places receiving handouts of food and having photos taken by residents.

Yesterday morning, Jan. 4, the second fox was found and collected by 2nd Chance Wildlife Rescue's Tammy Zacharias.

She said she is saddened that residents have been feeding the foxes and taking selfies with them, putting the wild animals at risk of being put down. There are now few options for the pups’ future that are being considered.

“They get used to humans and it gets imprinted and they can’t go back successfully into their natural habitats,” Zacharias said. “I truly think people are getting a kick out of feeding them. They send me photos of themselves with the foxes. Selfies are a problem.”

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She first started receiving phone calls about a fox hanging around the Petro Canada station in town on Christmas Eve. Working alongside a local conservation officer, she was eventually able to trap it under a trampoline on a nearby property Sunday night.

“The owner was feeding it,” she said. “It was going there for supper every evening. I brought it to the centre and it is underweight but well.”

Zacharias received several calls this morning that a second fox was being fed, this one in front of a Tim Hortons.

“The foxes outfoxed us,” she said. “The whole time we thought it was one fox we were seeing. People were feeding the fox donuts when we got there. The conservation officer netted him and we put him in a dog kennel.”

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Zacharias said the foxes are related, about two years old and come from a den that is located along the riverbank close to the downtown core. She said the city needs to “de-fox” and hopes the problem won’t get worse.

“We need to check all of the culverts around town and see if there are more foxes or more dens,” she said. “We really should put crates over the culvert openings to deter the animals.”

The foxes are currently at the rescue centre waiting for a vet to check them. It is unclear whether they will need to go to the Kamloops Wildlife Centre or if it is possible to fatten them up and relocate them into a habitat in the future.

Zacharias has been running the centre for over a decade.

“If you see a wild animal in a public space, leave it alone, walk away and call conservation,” she said.

It is against the law in B.C. to intentionally feed or attempt to feed dangerous wildlife.

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