Salthaven West 'hoping for the best' for foxy new friend

Weak and dehydrated, a female fox curled upnear the Jack Hamilton arena in Regina on Saturday morning, with several people calling Salthaven West to rescue the sick animal.

"Once it gets to a certain point, they just get so sick, they're not able to hunt for themselves," said Megan Lawrence, director for the Regina-based wildlife rehabilitation centre, about the fox suffering with mange. While foxesoften keep hidden in the outskirts of the city or in green spaces, she speculated this one was trying to get close to warmth, and out of the snow and wind.

"They start losing fur, so they can't keep themselves warm in the winter."

After hearing reports of the sick fox on the weekend morning, Lawrence teamed up with a couple of volunteers to stage a rescue.

Foxes can be skittish and hard to capture, but more than one person said they had gotten within a few feet of the animal, and that it had barely moved, she said.

In this case, the volunteers were able to corner the fox and get a net over her, even as she struggled to get to her feet and escape.

The fox was taken to the Animal Clinic of Regina for treatment. After a bath, a heavy dose of antibiotics, and fluids, she was starting to move around in her cage, and has begun to eat, said Lawrence, lending volunteers cautious optimism that she would pull through a critical period.

People who want to support the food and care of the fox, or any other animals at the centre, can make donations to do so, she said, noting that Salthaven West depends on those volunteer contributions.

"We're going to give her food and water and hope she's still able to fight," she said.

"We're hoping for the best."