Poisoned Foxes -or Not?

 

This was posted to The Greenwich Wildlife Network:

Fox Guardians

WARNING to wildlife lovers and pet parents in Broadstairs! There is been a string of fox poisonings in the Stone Bay area (Eastern Esplanade, town centre end). So far 7 (!) cubs and 1 vixen have been found dead in the garden of a fox lover in quick succession.

The cases which constitute a wildlife crime have been reported to the wildlife officer at Kent police.

If one of your fox friends arrives and is struggling to breathe and seems wobbly, get them to a vet as soon as possible. Briar House Vets have been informed about the poisonings and Kent Wildlife Rescue Service could help getting the fox rescued.

If you find a dead fox in your garden, do not handle the body as the police would only consider collecting it for a postmortem if it was not 'contaminated' by being handled. Poisoned foxes often have a frothy discharge caming from their mouth.

I know this is challenging but do take pictures from various angles and call to police quoting crime reference number #09-1286.

Currently this case is "closed" due to lack of evidence but that could change because someone somewhere may know something.

If you know something, be the voice for foxes and speak up. If we don't show compassion, what is it that defines us?!

The vixen in this picture (not included in this post –TH) is a juvenile called Hazel. She is such a sweet little soul that I had the pleasure to look after over the last 2 weeks. She lives just a few gardens away from where the seven fox cubs that were of the same age as her were cruelly poisoned.

At 5 months old, their lives had only just begun. Their lives were not our to take. I and Hazel's guardian Jill are so very worried for her and her family. Be safe little one!

 

I responded:

Hi.

I have run the British Fox Study since 1976 and headed the onmly UK post mortem study of unusual deaths in foxes. The first question I have to ask is whether there has been a post mortem (in suspected poisoning cases you can get free PMs via the Animal Plant Health Agency) to identify poisonings?

The reason I ask is that when we started our work we had foxes that were found dead and unmarked in feeders gardens, foxes seen staggering, coughing and then collapsing. All were suspected poisonings.

As it turns out all were victims of cars -no broken bones found but all injuries were internal. Some were even found to be down to unsuspected illnesses. It can never be put down to poison until a post mortem as that will involve tests etc.

In case anyone is interested in what our study found I will include a link. https://foxandcanids.blogspot.com/.../bristol-foxes-study... I can be PM'd

I should have pointed out  that the discharge/froth from the mouth could also indicate thoracic damage. The only way you can 100% state poison is after testing.

 I also need to point out that Kent Police are talking complete and utter crap if they did say they would only handle a fox that has not been touch. I could use stronger words. Kent as a county is not known for liking foxes and I suspect the police just cannot be bothered because it was a fox.

A post mortem examines the internal organs and test samples are taken to check for poison and to identify what it was –if a crime or suspected crime the police tend to do nothing if my experience over the last few decades proves anything. If it is a rodenticide then it can become an investigation by the Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS). The person recovering the fox, the lab technicians etc all handle the fox and there has NEVER been the line “If touched we can do nothing” –a police Community Service Officer collected two foxes and a cat in a suspected poison case and that was after reportees had moved the animals to keep safe. In that case all turned out to be road casualties.

The knee jerk “It’s poison!” statement once spread, as we found in Bristol, attracts almost hysteria and local journalists love a “juicy story” – “The Bristol Fox Poisoner(s)” was a result of absolutely no evidence but people stating as fact anything they heard. 

At least three vets with different foxes stated “Its poison” –all foxes were found to have internal injuries caused by cars.

182 Recorded Fox Deaths In Bristol So Far -What Is The Actual Total?

 

I get used to the comments from morons (I am no longer polite about this) that the more foxes killed on the road the better for gardens, homes and the environment.

I am not joking. I once pointed out to a woman whowrote this that foxes were good for the environment and the best pest controllers for rats and micve that you can have. "I'd sooner have the rats!" was t6he response.

Another person who did everything possible to discourage foxes BECAUSE "I have a garden rat" ignored all the advice and told me "No one asked for your opinion -it's my garden!" About 9 months later she was posting for advice as "my garden is over run with rats".

AQt the moment we have recorded 182 known fox deaths in the City and there is a way of trying to guage from that the actual number that have died -I will upload the document on assessment to files).

Hold on to your seats:

If 182 foxes are counted as road casualties, the true number is likely much higher. Wildlife studies show that reported roadkill usually accounts for only 1/12th to 1/16th of actual casualties. This means the probable actual number of foxes killed is between 2,184\ and 2,912

That is terrifying to even think about with a national fox population that is declining at a steady rate 0thanks to humans. I would like to thyink the number is lower at 300+ which is still far too high but when drivers go speeding during the day and night and kill pets and don't stop or report and even hit people....at night it is free reign!

Want To Be Recognised As A Nature Reserve? CARE About Nature

  Last night we had a report of a badger seen dragging its back legs in the Novers Hill area. Sarah Mills has searched the fields but no sign of a sett. I have appealed on Bristol FDoxes and Badgers and here for anyone who knows where a sett is but no responses.

The Novers Hill Community group my posts to have been rejected all day and neither ofd the two moderators have gotten back to me.

THIS is standard Bristol coopperation on wildlife.

The hope is that, being tough creatures, the badger just got knocked and has bruising. The other alternative is that it is lying somewhere injured (likely a garden) or is dead.

Criticise me as being "negative" as much as you want but when it is a major fight to even get a response from one person I doubt my attitude will change.

Groups representing themselves as wanting to become recognised as nature reserves should actually CARE about nature.

Snared Fox

 

Just had to post this out to a local community group:

 Hello.

Can I warn members to be alert if they have pet cats in the area. Bristol Wildlife Rescue were called out to a fox in Rudgeway Road that was victim of a snare. This has now been reported as a wildlife crime to police.

Snares will catch hedgehogs, pet cats and other animals(including birds). If anyone has information regarding snaring in the area please contact the police."

Details:

Tuesday 30 06 2026 Rudgeway Park, Rudgeway, Bristol BS35 3RU

Male 4.6kgs   Elderly   Damage originally caught in snare.  Ruptured Lung diaphragm and liver  Slowly bleeding internally and black dark blood visible from back end

Pts at Vets4pets who are reporting this as a wildlife crime.

Bristol Is An Environmental Disaster In The Making

 Bristol is a good example of what is going on around the country. It has a Green Party controlled council that is overseeing environmental damage for development money.

Bristol Naturalist Society and Bristol Nature Network will not push or do anything because "its political". NO. It is about saving the environment and wildlife they are supposed to have a deep interest in!

2032 and Bristol's top park still attracts photographers!

We are seeing more and more green spaces in Bristol being marked for development.

A school wants a car park and txi space -dig up the green.

Council wants as much money as it can get so "unavoidably" chop down more mature trees and stick a few saplings in to replace them (not that they'll last long as they are vandal magnets.

Tenants dig up hedgerows and cut down council (therefore publicly owned) trees as they are 'desperate' for that driveway. Let them get away with it.

Territory with established badger setts and wildlife look very green and pretty -what developers are looking for. Sell it off for (non) affordable housing.

Bristol will get 5 new towns (suburbs) and guess where they will be built? One is already encroaching badger and otter land and by not responding Long Ashton Parish Council does not have to turn down any money. Bristol City Council under a very false Green Party council that daily breaks its own party's aims and promises do like wise -real examples of See No, Hear No, Speak No evil.

The odd moan does NOTHING.

Groups in Bristol should have united ten years ago but instead they operate individually and can be ignored or given the usual "Here is a lie you'll swallow until it is too late".

I can see parents in 20 years time speaking to their children: "There are no green spaces to visit or play on and not many trees or wildlife because mummy and daddy decided we would sit on our asses and watch TV and see if someone else would do anything. I know you are 8 but a 5 mile walk to the nearest park is good for you."

Here is the thing: I do not see wildlife as a hobby.

Here is the thing: I do not see wildlife as a hobby.

From picking up worms and beetles in the back garden of Sevier Street to wandering around the countryside/forests in Germany and back to the UK I have never had a day when I am not observing or checking things.

So please never ever call it a hobby to my face or I might bite.

I am known outside the UK on wild canids and felids. I have my name on technical papers presented to conferences. Why am I not more widely known (ignoring the fact I hate publicity)?

I chose foxes, jackals, coyotes and wolves as well as badgers and wild cats (I don't think it was ever a choice). Had I gone for otters, beaver or some other popular animal I'd probably be better known and have some funding!

Do Rodenticides Kill Hedgehogs? Is That A Silly Question...

 

Avon Wildlife News (24:26) carries the following:

"Helping Hedgehogs

Isabella Clark is a researcher based at the University of Reading currently recruiting volunteers across the UK for a citizen science project investigating how urban hedgehogs may be exposed to rodenticides (rat poison) in gardens.    One potential route of exposure involves hedgehogs occurring in the same gardens as rats and mice, where rodenticides may be used to treat infestations.    As a result, hedgehogs in these areas may be more likely to encounter these toxins.

Isabella is looking for volunteers with access to a garden and a motion-activated wildlife or security camera.    Participants will be asked to monitor a leaking tin of sardines in their garden for 1–2 weeks.    No prior experience is required, and full instructions will be provided.

The findings from this project may help improve understanding of the risks rodenticides pose to urban hedgehogs and inform more wildlife-friendly pest control practices.

The project is planned to begin in July 2026, with additional surveys taking place in winter 2026/2027. For more information and to apply, please visit https://sites.googlr.com/view/gardenwildlife-org/home and contact isabella.clark@pgr.reading.ac.uk if you have any questions."

I laughed.  Sorry....monitor a leaking can of sardines for two weeks?  How will it be made to leak? 

1.   An open can leaking poses a risk to foxes, badgers (yes hedgehogs and badgers do frequent the same gardens) and while either might carry the can off.

2. what about rats?  If rats are nearby why would you want to attract them to your propperty? I have first hand experience of what just what damage one lonbe rat can do in a fedw minutes. 

3. I can see a few good cat fights over this leaky can. 

Not sure how this will show hedgehogs will be attracted to rodenticides. I found two dead in my garden early last year after rodenticides were used in three adjacent properties and his have been seen for the first time in the last week. 

I ought to point out that no one was interested in carrying out post mortems on my two hogs and, although there is no exact national figure for the total number of UK hedgehogs killed by rodenticide research shows that nearly all (up to 100%) wild British hedgehogs are exposed to anticoagulant rat and mouse poisons, primarily through secondary poisoning from eating contaminated slugs and insects. (The Telegraph  26 08 2009) A Bristol University study by Dr Claire Dowding who stated that:

""This high figure really is of concern and might be one of the reasons why the British hedgehog population is thought to be declining.

"It's difficult to tell exactly how these animals are exposed to the chemicals.

"They may be eating them directly, scavenging on dead rodents that have been killed by the poison or eating their favourite diet of slugs and snails that have fed on the poison bait."

The study provided the following detailed findings:

• Exposure Rate: Out of 120 hedgehog carcasses examined, 67% (80 hedgehogs) showed direct exposure to rat poison.
• Urban Vulnerability: Hedgehogs in urban environments have significantly higher concentrations of toxic chemicals in their systems.
• Lethality: While secondary poisoning can cause fatal internal hemorrhaging, many die from chronic, compounding toxicity rather than immediate acute poisoning. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

For context, this threat exacerbates severe population declines. By comparison, human-related hazards like road traffic kill an estimated 100,000 to 335,000 hedgehogs every year in the UK -not to forget the deer5, foxes, badgers, otters and birds. Our roads arte the new "Killing fields".

Well, maybe Ms Clark has not heard of the Bristol study -it was in 2009 after all.  It should also be pointed out that for over 20 years I have stated and challenged rodentiocides available to buy in shops.  There ARE alternatives to rodenticides.

Also, tut tut.... only the public are to blame? In the Bristol Fox Study two of the foxes that were necropsied died due to rodenticide -NOT the one available to the public but second gen as used by Bristol City Council and although the Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS) told us that the report was considered "not for the public" as it covered up misuse of rodenticide and lack of regular checking by Bristol City Council.

You have regular visiting hedgehogs for over 20 years. Rodenticide is put down (by BCC)  and two dead hedgehogs and the rest not seen again. After a gap of almost a year new hogs have appeared. There is your science.