22 April 2024 , 13:00
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A wildlife fan has struck up an extraordinary friendship with a young fox after he noticed she was ill.
Bob Dunlop, 69, spotted the fox had developed mange on her tail on wildlife cameras he had set up near his home in Littleport, Cambridgeshire. Mr Dunlop worked out where the animal was living and began to treat the fox by feeding her bread with a homeopathic remedy.
Their heart-warming friendship blossomed as the young vixen began to greet Mr Dunlop on his daily walks through the forest. Mr Dunlop said he knows he must let her re-wild and is slowly cutting down amount of time he visits and has stopped feeding her. The retired health and safety manager, said: "She's such a special animal, it will be hard to let go.
"I'm going to cut down the amount of time I spend with her. I do not intend to make her tame as she is a wild fox." In the videos, the young vixen, affectionately named Ms Fox, can be seen rolling on her back and affectionately biting at Mr Dunlop's trousers for his attention.
Bob spotted the fox had developed mange on her tail on wildlife cameras (Robert Dunlop/SWNS)She also greets him as he approaches, yelping and whining in excitement. Mr Dunlop, originally from Fife, Scotland, noticed the fox with mange on her tail - a skin disease that is caused by microscopic mites that burrow into skin - back in December. After curing her of the mange, Mr Dunlop has shared videos of their unique bond - with the fox acting more like a dog than a wild animal.
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He said: "It was a labour of love but I monitored and fed her on a daily basis. I could put the drops of the remedy on some bread and I would go and feed it to her alongside some dried food. I think she's coming up to a year old because I believe she is the last remaining cub of a previous fox family who lived there.
"My view is that if she'd been dumped and was already tame, she wouldn't naturalise herself in a rural area. The mother of those cubs have some mange on her tail too - I think that's where she got it from." Mr Dunlop was unwilling to leave the mange untreated and sought advice from the National Fox Welfare Society.
Their heart-warming friendship blossomed as the young vixen began to greet Bob on his daily walks through the forest (Robert Dunlop/SWNS)They sent Mr Dunlop an arsenicum and sulphur 30c homeopathic remedy to treat it, free of charge. Mr Dunlop, who lives with his wife Sue, 75, visits the fox almost every day to keep an eye on her progress. He added: "Back in January, I lost my dog. All the time my dog was with me on my walks, Ms Fox would hide.
"Once my dog had passed, I noticed her mange was gone and she became less withdrawn and more attached to me. The day I first put the food down and she showed her belly, it was just wonderful. I know at some point I've got to stop and let her rewild. I think she was just a lonely animal that was ill, has recovered and is showing her appreciation."
"She hides when she hears other people approach and is hunting at night which I see on my camera so I'm not concerned she's at risk of being too tame." Mr Dunlop said his plan is to let Ms Fox re-wild completely and hoped she might have her own cubs one day.