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Incredible Photos Show Men Reuniting With The Fox That They Raised When She Was Still A Cub (20 Pics)
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Incredible Photos Show Men Reuniting With The Fox That They Raised When She Was Still A Cub (20 Pics)

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Foxes are heavily intertwined with human settlements. While interaction with humans has its disadvantages, these two Scottish wildlife photographers’ story shows how they did their best to help a beautiful fox that had been orphaned by one of these dangers.

Photographers Peter Lewis and Mark Strachan were getting some nature shots in a field near Petershead, on the northeast coast of Scotland, when they found three red fox cubs last summer. They returned a few times to photograph the wild animals from a distance, but when they found a fox dead on a nearby road and made the connection, they felt like they had to step in. Feeling a duty to help the orphaned cubs, but not wanting them to grow up without the skills to take care of themselves, Lewis says they ran through the field with bits of chicken on a string teaching the cute foxes to hunt.

For six months, the two photographers have been occasionally visiting Black Paws, as they called the most outgoing member of the litter who has stuck around in the same area. These beautiful animal photography shots show that, while the young fox was excited to see the photographers again, the beautiful animal has been flourishing on her own.

The photographers had a photoshoot with the juvenile fox they helped raise

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Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

“We turned up and used our way of letting her know we were there, and she was out like a dog that had been waiting for its master all day,” Lewis said. “We became her foster parents. There was one month I had to rely on Mark to feed her as holidays in the highlands stopped me from getting out seeing her. When I saw her again I was not let down as the cub that once looked so vulnerable was blossoming into a very beautiful vixen and she hadn’t forgotten me.”

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

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Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

“She was bolder than ever coming right up and sat yards from me,” said the photographer of the emotional reunion. “This is a wild fox and it amazes me as to how much this she let us into her life, maybe she was relying on us to help her into adulthood.”

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

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Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

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Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

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Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

Image credits: Mark Strachan and Peter Lewis

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Foxes are controversial in cities in the UK, where people are divided between considering them pests, and being charmed by them. Some people can’t resist feeding city foxes on their back porches, while their neighbors resent them for enabling animals that make a mess of their gardens. BBC Wildlife takes the position that there is little danger of foxes becoming dependent on human handouts, should people choose to feed them, as they are always on the move in the area where they hunt and scavenge, and do not wait to look for food. People should be warned against trying to tame foxes, though, as foxes that boldly approach humans and their houses can be a nuisance. Living in rural Scotland, Black Paws, unlike city foxes, likely has a wide territory and comes across humans less frequently.

People admire the photographers’ kindness

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Lili North

Lili North

Author, BoredPanda staff

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Lili ended up in Vilnius, Lithuania out of her curiosity for studying languages, and stayed here out of sheer willpower. She loves cats maybe even a little more than the internet average and enjoys cooking videos despite only fantasizing about being able to make anything more complicated than fried rice.

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Lili North

Lili North

Author, BoredPanda staff

Lili ended up in Vilnius, Lithuania out of her curiosity for studying languages, and stayed here out of sheer willpower. She loves cats maybe even a little more than the internet average and enjoys cooking videos despite only fantasizing about being able to make anything more complicated than fried rice.

Mantas Kačerauskas

Mantas Kačerauskas

Author, BoredPanda staff

Read more »

As a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, I indulge in the joy of curating delightful content, from adorable pet photos to hilarious memes, all while nurturing my wanderlust and continuously seeking new adventures and interests—sometimes thrilling, sometimes daunting, but always exciting!

Read less »

Mantas Kačerauskas

Mantas Kačerauskas

Author, BoredPanda staff

As a Visual Editor at Bored Panda, I indulge in the joy of curating delightful content, from adorable pet photos to hilarious memes, all while nurturing my wanderlust and continuously seeking new adventures and interests—sometimes thrilling, sometimes daunting, but always exciting!

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Lola
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Foxes are such beautiful animals. I have a family of them living in my backyard. Unfortunately, they are so elusive and I rarely get to see them. One night very late, I saw all of them from my window playing. It was so amazing. The babies are soooo cute.

Troux
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy the story of Christian the lion. He was born into captivity and acquired as a pet by two Londoners before the realized he was bigger than they could take care of. They gave him to a lion conservationist for his first integration into the wild. After over 1 year they heard he was doing well, and was the leader of his pride, so they decided to visit him. Meeting with their friend - now much, much larger - is shown in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvCjyWp3rEk

Cat
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember watching the video! Quite emotional seeing the reunion

Load More Replies...
Ashley Nell
Community Member
4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Foxes are so adorable!! I want to be one when I die.

Tia Hansen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don’t get why you were downvoted... I’ll probably get downvoted to but I wanna be a Fox when I die too!

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Lola
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Foxes are such beautiful animals. I have a family of them living in my backyard. Unfortunately, they are so elusive and I rarely get to see them. One night very late, I saw all of them from my window playing. It was so amazing. The babies are soooo cute.

Troux
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy the story of Christian the lion. He was born into captivity and acquired as a pet by two Londoners before the realized he was bigger than they could take care of. They gave him to a lion conservationist for his first integration into the wild. After over 1 year they heard he was doing well, and was the leader of his pride, so they decided to visit him. Meeting with their friend - now much, much larger - is shown in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvCjyWp3rEk

Cat
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I remember watching the video! Quite emotional seeing the reunion

Load More Replies...
Ashley Nell
Community Member
4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Foxes are so adorable!! I want to be one when I die.

Tia Hansen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don’t get why you were downvoted... I’ll probably get downvoted to but I wanna be a Fox when I die too!

Load More Replies...
Load More Comments
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