Good or bad? It can be bad in a lot of ways but it can also be good depending on who's feeding them. Someone such as Words is a great person to feed the foxes because he takes good care of them as if they're his own pets but lets them wonder around and live free.

So is feeding wild foxes good, or is it bad?

well that really does depend on a lot of things but in the long run, i would say it is a good thing

I think it depends on where you are, how the foxes interact with humans, and risk: to you and to the fox.

In the UK we don't have rabies. And we have lots of foxes living in urban areas. So humans and foxes are in relatively close proximity. And most forms of hunting are banned. As result, urban foxes in the UK are relatively bold with humans and the risks are reduced on both sides.

But you still need to be aware that these are not domestic animals and need to be able to survive in their environment. So they shouldn't become dependent on humans for food. Plus some people don't like foxes (really), so may complain if they become too common and too bold. Foxes can cause minor damage to gardens as well (and people do complain about that... gardens cost time and money to create). plus they foxes carry fleas and other parasites. So not everyone will welcome foxes visiting you.

I tend only to feed a few tidbits to attract them for photos (a handful of sultanas, maybe a dog biscuit left outside). They're nearby anyway and would pass through the garden, and stay around whether I fed them or not. The food keeps them here for a few minutes, that's all. And the long daytime visits are food-free. They don't get anything then.

The only real exception is when we're treating one of them for mange. Then that particular fox gets regular food so that it gets used to coming very regularly and we can make sure it gets the medicine (one dose a week for four weeks).

So I would say very small amounts of food to attract local foxes is probably ok, but definitely don't feed them enough to replace their natural diet. And don't encourage them if it will cause you or the fox problems with neighbours. That's bad for the fox!

meh some one near where I live has drawn in a wild fox with food and too much its been fed food so much its gotten very fat and it seems to have gotten used to human food too, from what i seen it gets more food every time it visits (and it visits alot daily) then what i eat for lunch and thats a ton of food, its depressing to see and i dont know what to do.....

Me neither; maybe either Words or SittingFox would be able to tell ya something. I've been trying to contact SittingFox for some time though and haven't been able to contact him. Words stops by every now and then.

Im at a total loss the fox looks like itll have a heart attack if it ran (if it even can anymore) and i think if this keeps up itll eat so much itll die....saddening ya know?

Perhaps it is just the wrong type of food.

Its givin everything all kinds of foods but mostly truely fattening things it like the person is making the fox fat on perpous......

Hi

There's not a whole lot you can do unless you can talk to the person feeding and suggest they reduce the amount. Foxes are generally fine at finding what they need and don't need feeding daily (or at all, actually). I'm surprised that it is overeating, and not just caching any extra food.

Given the time of year is it possible that the 'fat fox' is actually a heavily pregnant vixen? Just a thought. They can look very rounded

Hi, sorry I've been a bit elusive lately

Re: feeding foxes - I'd just like to second Words on this. Foxes don't need feeding by people, and when they start actively begging they are sometimes the target of anti-fox stories in the media. Negative publicity is never a good thing when it comes to wildlife. In addition, some folks in my village put out way too much food:

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Foxes' natural diet of small mammals, berries etc is very different to the food typically provided. On the broader scale, it's also altering fox societies. Fox distribution and numbers are directly tied to distribution of food and when people start feeding them enough to replace their natural diet (as opposed to giving them a very little as photography bait, which I also do occasionally), we're tampering with ecological boundaries that are much better left alone. The territories of fed foxes might shrink, leading to higher fox densities and consequently more stressful, aggressive interactions, faster spread of diseases...the list is fairly extensive.

That's the UK. Food provided in very small amounts or as medicine doesn't hurt. However - North America is VERY different.

Coyotes, raccoons, stray dogs, even bears. There are good reasons why it is actually illegal to provide food to wild carnivores in parts of North America. Predators that become accustomed to human food can become very bold around people, leading to public fear, risk of attack, and often the animal's destruction.

Unfortunately, there is an ingrained culture is some areas that an animal that doesn't flee from people is dangerous, and normal fox behaviour like sitting watching people is taken as a threat. I had a bit of a row with the authorities in a certain Canadian national park a while ago after they "relocated" some foxes that had been fed. Sadly, while the people who provided food meant no harm, they caused massive damage to the foxes' lives. Relocation is incredibly stressful to the animal at best, fatal at worst.

For these reasons, and to protect natural ecosystems, I would advocate a blanket ban on feeding mammals in North America except for extraordinary circumstances. I've seen too many coyotes begging on the roadside to think anything else.

SittingFox is right. Well, overfeeding anything is bad but you gotta feed wildlife a considerably amount less. Do no feed them just to feed them unless it looks like they need something to give them strength to catch their own food. Otherwise just use food as a lure for camera shots