Safeguard our foxes and wildlife

Foxes have adapted to urban life in South Woodham Ferrers. It is not uncommon to see a fox striding confidently along Hullbridge Road in broad daylight. Various sympathetic residents leave food out to supplement foxes' natural diet, especially during cold spells in the winter when it is difficult to dig for grubs and rodents. Foxes like to eat raw chicken, eggs, cooked vegetables, fruit and dog food. Some people reckon that they also like the occasional cheese or jam sandwich. The foods that are toxic to dogs are also toxic to foxes, so no chocolate, onions or garlic please. They should also not be given chicken containing bones because these tend to splinter and harm the animal.

Any residents who keeps chickens will have to work hard to create an impenetrable chicken run because each day will be a new challenge. And there are is a handful of people who keep chickens and ducks in their back gardens.

Rodents such as mice, voles and rats are part of a foxes’ natural diet. People who feed birds sometimes find that mice and rats take up residence because of the seed that drops on the ground. Birds can be messy feeders, scattering seed far and wide. Foxes keep rodents populations under control so please feed foxes from time to time. It might be an idea to have a bowl for scraps that you can leave out, perhaps leftover omelette or eggs, cheese or even mashed potato.

Foxes have a tough existence, their main threat in South Woodham being traffic. The carcasses of run over foxes tend to be seen on the Burnham Road, especially during January, which is mating season. Foxes that live on Bushey Hill are drawn to find a mate and sadly do not always manage to make it into town. They can be quite vociferous at this time of year, calling to each other in whines, squeaks, barks and screams.

Most wildlife struggles for survival in Essex as increased numbers of homes are built and wipe out their natural habitats.  We need to take an active interest in our wildlife if we want any to survive locally.

There is a certain amount of misinformation about foxes. Some people think that a fox will attack their pet cat or dog. What tends to happen in practice is that a fox will stand back and wait until a domestic cat or dog takes food from their feeding bowl.

Foxes are wild animals and should be treated as such and not encouraged to feed from the hand. They like the food that you provide but do not need to see you.