Blue Ridge Wildlife Center Patient of the Week: Red Fox

A quick turnaround for this lucky fox!

Patient 24-426 recovering in a BRWC pre-release shelter. @BRWC 2024

As the only wildlife-dedicated hospital in the Northern Virginia area, we rely on a variety of other organizations to get orphaned, injured, and ill wildlife to us for treatment from various locations.

Big thank you to the Animal Welfare League of Arlington and their skilled officers for responding to a call about a fox in distress with a trap on his neck. Their quick thinking got this fox contained, the trap removed, and the fox transported to us for further evaluation and treatment.

Patient 24-426 at intake. @BRWC 2024

On intake, this fox was relatively quiet but required sedation to be fully examined. While there was initially blood seen on the fox’s paw, the only major injuries found were wounds on the neck caused by the trap. The blood was likely from the fox using his paw to scratch at the trap in an attempt to remove it.

Conibear trap removed from patient 24-426. @BRWC 2024

With a long-lasting antibiotic on board as well as pain medications, this fox bounced back quickly and was moved outside to a pre-release shelter for continued healing. He quickly began digging, eating, and acting appropriately towards staff.

A few good days of food and rest, this adult fox was cleared for release by our veterinary team! We are overjoyed we were able to get this beautiful guy back to the wild:

[spacer height=”20px”] Thank you to ALL involved in this animal’s rescue, care, rehabilitation, and release. It truly takes a village and we’re so thankful to have an amazing community dedicated to the well-being of wildlife.

It’s important to note that trapping within Arlington is illegal – if you have any information on anyone setting illegal traps in Arlington, please contact the AWLA to report information!

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