Please call our wildlife hospital hotline (541-441-7193) if you have found an injured or orphaned fox.

Understanding Foxes: When to Help

• There is only one species of fox that lives in southern Oregon: the Gray Fox. Gray Foxes are curious, elusive, medium-sized mammals that are primarily gray, with red accents and a black stripe down the back of the tail. One of the most unique traits about Gray Foxes is their ability to climb trees up to 30 feet or higher!

Found a Baby Fox?

• Fox parents often leave their babies alone for hours at a time while hunting, so a baby fox found alone is not necessarily orphaned. Watch from a distance for several hours before intervening unless the baby fox is in immediate danger.

Reuniting a Baby Fox

• Do not move the baby fox from where it was found. If it was moved, return it to the location in which it was originally found. Try to locate the den. Monitor from a distance for at least 24 hours to see if the parents return. If it is cold outside, supply a box with a heating pad set to low underneath half of the box, a warmed water bottle, or a warmed rice sock. If the parents do not return, please call our Wildlife Hospital hotline at 541-441-7193 for further advice.

Injured Foxes

If you come across an injured fox (e.g., bleeding, or visibly hurt, or acting unusual), it will need medical attention. 

When to Intervene

Call our wildlife hospital hotline at 541-441-7193 right away if you find a fox that has any of the following symptoms:

• Obvious wounds, actively bleeding/swelling/bruising
• Respiratory distress (barely breathing or labored open-mouth breathing)
• Neurological symptoms (head ticking back and forth, falling over, stargazing, etc.)
• Shivering or trembling
• The den was destroyed and cannot be rebuilt in the area
• The mother is deceased and baby is too young to live alone
• Mother was trapped and relocated
• Entangled in barbed wire/fencing/netting
• Hit by car
• Caught by a cat or dog
• Reuniting strategies have been tried and failed

Before attempting to contain the fox, please call our Wildlife Hospital hotline (541-441-7193) for further guidance. Only attempt to contain the fox if instructed to do so by clinic staff.

How to Contain an Injured Fox

• DO NOT HANDLE FOXES WITH BARE HANDS! THEY ARE RABIES VECTORS.
• Capture the fox with a live trap, large sturdy well-ventilated box, or kennel. You can use a broom or other long pole to usher the animal into the container.
• Wear thick, heavy gloves! 
• Bring the fox to our wildlife hospital during patient intake hours (9am-4:30pm 7 days a week). We prefer if you call ahead so we can prepare for the animal’s arrival, and to ensure that our clinic is able to provide rehabilitation services.

***Do NOT offer food or water to an injured, sick, or orphaned animal unless instructed to do so by clinic staff. Many species require a specialized diet or formula, and young animals and birds can be easily aspirated without proper training and equipment.***