An adorable and innovative approach to animal care is grabbing hearts at the Richmond Wildlife Center in Virginia. Their unlikely hero? A red fox mask!
The center recently took in a tiny, orphaned newborn red fox kit – a helpless creature weighing a mere 2.8 ounces. The challenge for wildlife rehabilitators is to provide critical care while ensuring the kit can return to the wild. This means avoiding imprinting, where young animals raised by humans develop a bond that hinders their ability to survive on their own.
The kit had been found by a Good Samaritan, who originally thought is was a kitten, but the Richmond SPCA soon realized it was a neonatal fox kit.
Enter the fox mask! Center staff, including founder Melissa Stanley, donned the furry disguise while feeding and caring for the kit. This minimized human visual cues, helping the kit maintain a wild mindset.
It’s important to make sure that the orphans that are raised in captivity do not become imprinted upon or habituated to humans. To prevent that, we minimize human sounds, create visual barriers, reduce handling, reduce multiple transfers amongst different facilities, and wear masks for the species. We were able to locate fox kits of the same age and weight as ours and are working to determine what is in the best interest of the foxes
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The fox mask, along with other techniques like minimizing handling and scent, aims to create a more natural environment for the kit’s development.
The story, complete with heartwarming photos and videos of the masked feedings, quickly went viral. While the effectiveness of the fox mask itself is debated by some experts, the center’s dedication to innovative rehabilitation methods has sparked a valuable conversation about wildlife care.
The ultimate goal for the Richmond Wildlife Center is to release the healthy kit back into its natural habitat, fully equipped with the skills to thrive as a wild fox. And who knows, maybe a glimpse of that friendly red mask will bring a smile to a passing coyote!
Check out the video: (Someone was definitely hungry!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZm4xVbue7A
To support an animal, you can donate in any of the following ways:
*Venmo – @rvawildlife (last 4 of phone 1037)
*Cashapp – $rvawildlife
*By Mail to Richmond Wildlife Center P.O. Box 14694, Richmond, VA 23221
*Directly on our website at:
https://www.richmondwildlifecenter.org
By credit card – https://square.link/u/dfcOK4am
If you make a donation through Venmo or Cashapp and would like a tax receipt, please email [email protected]
Thank you for your support!
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