Wolf given death sentence after killing Ursula von der Leyen’s pony: Some Comments and Notes

 

(c)2023 respective copyright holder

Back in 2016 I helped identify wolves that had returned to Germany 

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/04/wolf-identified-in-germany-in-2016.html

At the time everybody was happy and celebrating -"We are not France -Germany welcomes wolves!" and so on and so forth. Since then the progress of wolves and jackals has been monitored and advisories sent out so that people are familiar with the canids. That is eight -8- years in which to build up fencing and adequately house horses and so on overnight. Apparently only a few have bothered. No surprise then that livestock (which should be covered by insurance and when it comes to sheep are destined to be bred and slaughtered and not as family pets). 

In the 1960s and 1970s one thing us kids were told to avoid were the fences where there were yellow markers on the wire instead of white. This were electrified cattle fences and one day I accidentally touche4de one of these fences. It felt as though a horse had kicked me in the stomach and I( know what a horse kick feels like. Some farmers still had these fences in the 1980s and it seems still do even if traditional farming is declining. According to Insights into German Consumers’ Perceptions of Virtual Fencing in Grassland-Based Beef and Dairy Systems: Recommendations for Communication by Ekaterina Stampa,* Katrin Zander, and Ulrich Hamm https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7761168/ :

"The share of cattle grazing on grassland is decreasing in many European countries. While the production costs of intensive stall-based beef and dairy systems are usually lower per kg product, grazing-based systems provide more ecosystem services that are valued by consumers."

They note the use of electric fencing and here is where a solution to any wolf predation can be found. A rather robust farm dog once accidentally walked into a cattle fence and afterwards it kept a wide birth of electrified and regular fencing. That "kick" told it to keep away.  Wolves are opportunistic so moving through an area they will eat when they can. Any sensible livestock or horse keeper would have -or should have- decided to err on the side of caution and start putting in protective fences as soon as they know (and it is not a secret) that wolf numbers were growing. 

It is common sense to move horses into stables at night -this was always a common practice particularly before wolves were wiped out in Germany and France in the 19th century. One reason so many old European farms are enclosed by walls with entry gate was to protect against predation. Von der Leyen would obviously be shocked to have her horse killed and I sympathise with her there but she is a very wealthy woman so knowing full well there were wolves in her area why was the horse not securely stabled at night?  

It seems that the prevailing attitude is to not spend a penny on secure fencing or stabling. No alpha wolf coming into contact with an electric fence is going to try it again and the others would follow the example. There is even wolf proof fencing used successfully in the United States to protect against wolves, coyotes and bears

 https://www.zarebasystems.com/learning-center/animal-selector/coyotes-wolves#:~:text=A%207%2Dwire%20permanent%20high,wire%20fence%20may%20be%20necessary.

According to some with experience  the best fence for wolves is a 7-wire permanent high-tensile electric fence with wires spaced equally 6" – 8" apart and a height of 42" to 54" high is commonly recommended for deterring bears and wolves. In special situations, a 9 or 11-wire fence may be necessary.  If wolves are to be protected and livestock then this is the best solution and I have no doubt the EU representatives backed by the farmers would have no trouble securing EU funding for this.

Which wolf killed von der Leyen's horse? Shoot one...oh, the rest of the pack are a "problem"? Well, the hunting fraternity in Germany that has been decrying wolf protection  because it's something they can hunt and kill have the right connections. They can twist facts (as hunters do in most countries) to show that all livestock are in danger and (the one they all love to use) as are children and pets. 

There are plenty of wild prey animals in Germany from hares, rabbits, deer, boar, wild fowl and much more. Deterrents such as electric fencing and adequate stabling at night and perhaps investment in one of the numerous breeds of European wolf dogs that are bred to deter wolves and protect livestock are good ideas. If there are no easy pickings then the wolves will move on to where there is -hunting a more natural prey.

We are seeing far too much of this "We welcome wolves" and then the knee jerk reaction when numbers grow slightly and a sheep or horse is killed. Everyone involved in farming in EU countries knows of wolves and jackals so there is no excuse to suffer livestock losses other than not wanting to invest in livestock protection -spending money always hurts (it is what hurts when livestock are killed not the loss of the animal itself but market value). We have seen one EU country after another make excuses for wanting to kill wolves (hunters tend to have deep pockets) by using 'logic' opposite to that used in welcoming the canids.

Nothing has changed. Farmers back EU or government ministers and farmers are traditionally allied with if not actual hunters. I've lived there and have seen how it works. And no politician wants to lose their valuable and profitable job so... "KILL THE WOLVES!" 

Europe or the United States we see it all the time; "We must bring back the wolves/coyotes/jackals!" followed by "Success -the wolves/coyotes.jackals are back!" and give it a year or two and "We'll issue (sell) hunting licences to get rid of the problem animal!" Then..."Oh, more were killed than should have been" which is a bit late to realise that your 'fun' time was not monitored. It's not new and the Wolf Preservation Blog noted hundreds of wolves killed in the US in 2012

https://wolfpreservation.wordpress.com/2012/11/21/hunters-kill-hundreds-of-wolves-in-us/

And in 2016 Oregon slaughtered an entire wolf pack

https://wolfpreservation.wordpress.com/

I have also reported far too many times on this blog about countries such as Norway and Sweden who dish out licences to enable the wiping out of their wolf populations. This is 2023 in the more environmental and conservation based EU and (tongue-in-cheek) United States.

Perhaps Ms von der Leyen ought to suck it up (sorry for the loss of her horse but sick of what is going on) and set an example to the European community she heads and invest money in anti-wolf deterrents rather than push for the types of scenes we see (proudly photographed) from the United States because this is the end result of beginning the killing of wolves in Europe.

But what would I know? I've only studied canids for 50 years and cannot offer "sweeteners" or hunting licences.

--------------------------------- Article---------------------------------------------------

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/wolf-given-death-sentence-killing-165138525.html

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen (PA Wire)

Hunters have been given permission to shoot a wolf that killed Ursula von der Leyen’s beloved pet pony after a permit to kill the animal was issued.

The European Commission president, a keen equestrian and mother of seven, said her whole family was “horribly distressed” after the predator killed Dolly at her home in Lower Saxony in September 2022.

The wolf, known only as GW950m, remains at large and leads a “problem pack” in the forests of Hanover’s Burgdorf and the Beinhorner Waldchen areas.

A permit to kill the animal comes into force next week and lasts until February 2024. It allows hunters to use night vision devices and sights to shoot if the wolf pack reappears within a 150 metre radius of a previous attack.

GW950m is believed to be involved in the killing of another five horses, 47 sheep, four cattle and three goats.

In recent months Ms von der Leyen has signalled a willingness to relax EU protections against wolves, which she says are a “real danger” to livestock.

She has been accused of waging a personal vendetta against the wild animals following the death of her 30-year-old pony.

Leonie Vestering, a Dutch MP from the Party for the Animals, said: “Are we going to allow [her] to abuse her power for a personal payback because one of her ponies fell victim to the wolf?

“If the wolf is no longer protected, there is a good chance that it will be exterminated by hunting, as it was in the 19th century.”

An Overview And What We Have Discovered and Future Work

 One of my usual probably too long posts (I promise I will try to keep this short) and some links.

Firstly to the post on what the British Fox Study (it really ought to be changed to wild canids study but after all these decades I might get confused 😟) has achieved and that with no funding of any kind. I once tried to total up what I had spent on the work between 1976-1996 but seeing the preliminary figure panicked and decided not to proceed -I could have purchased a house is the best way to describe the amount. 

Mystery canid reports from outside the UK I look into and some I have solved but after a lot of work. Considering that no museum was able to identify the extinct Hong Kong fox species I spent five years and finally identified it -one of the most viewed (but uncommented on) posts to date).  The "Killer canids of Cavan" (Ireland) -solved. The persistent mystery of the "Great dog of Ennerdale" (1810)  was suitably solved after a great deal of research -the latter two cases can be found, obviously, in The Red Paper 2022: Canids.

British Fox Study -Have We Achieved Anything?

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/02/british-fox-study-have-we-achieved.html

Perhaps the biggest breakthroughs concern the Old British Foxes. As a young naturalist I heard from the more experienced field naturalists who studied old books and publications in the many decades before the internet (anyone born after 2000 who is now feeling on edge realising that cut and paste is not the only way to research please seek psychological assistance 😕) spoke of old fox types that were lost in the 19th century. 

It is interesting to learn that from the 1960s on the attitude of authors was that "these are tall tales equivalent to the fisherman's 'one that got away'" And why? Because they had not seen such foxes. The ignorance shines through because it is evident that the spreading of dogma that today's "little red dog" is the fox we have always had is far easier to write about than going through the volumes of hunt and natural history books and publications and finding facts. 

Even the 1950 post mortem examination of bones from a large (19lbs) fox killed in 1948 in Scotland was far too late and it was without doubt just a very large fox since it was clear that the Old fox type known as the Mountain or Greyhound fox was extinct by the 1860s (rather like the Scottish wildcat and red squirrel).  Where was the evidence? I had traced the history of foxes in the UK and Ireland, something never done before, and I had all the information to make a strong case that would be impossible to challenge but it needed physical proof.  No UK museum had any foxes from prior to 1900 (exactly the same with wild cats).

There was a book by the famous "naturalist/sportsman' John Colquhoun (The Moor and The Loch, 1841) wrote on what would be amongst the last of the Scottish wild cats that he had killed and this included an illustration. Likewise he noted on the "prime example of a mountain fox" that he had chased and killed in the early 1830s. There is an illustration in the book of this fox as well as the smaller type fox. I knew that some book illustrators were not the most accurate so I took it with a pinch of salt. Then, out of the blue, my colleague LM sent me photographs of the Colquhoun fox that was going to be sold. The illustration was actually 100% accurate.  We both realised that the item would fetch far more than either of us could afford but LM put in a bid. She won with no competition!  So we had a specimen of one of the last mountain foxes and it was big. See this post for a discussion

Some Thoughts On The Mountain Fox -Was It A Jackal or Coyote Like Canid?

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/09/some-thoughts-on-mountain-fox-was-it.html

We knew, it was a matter of historical record and fact that was reported on in hunt books, publications as well as newspaper items, that many thousands of foxes were imported from Europe to replenish hunting territories where foxes had been wiped out. We know that before this mass importation and unhygienic conditions the foxes were kept in, mange was not known in the UK which is a discovery in itself.  Again, The Red Paper 2022: Canids goes into far more detailed (and fully referenced) detail. We also learnt about the kenneling and release of canids such as jackals, Coyotes and wolves for hunting in the UK and although the cost of buying such examples as mounted masks (heads) we do have the photographic record and experts in the field have identified the species. The Extinct Fox and Wild Cat Museum owned by LM has some great taxidermy examples.

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/06/extinct-fox-and-wild-cat-museum.html

The research has taught us much and LM has become very good at spotting certain characteristics in Old fox types.  We also learnt that foxes were imported from Scandinavia that were "larger" and faster or as fast as the Mountain/greyhound fox. I contacted experts in Scandinavia and all they could offer was the suggestion that "these reports might be exaggerations" as they were "not aware of any large foxes" -this is exactly what I heard about the UK but  it seems based on there being no well known sources to check -hunting books by "naturalist-sportsmen" are a good source. We know that the foxes were imported and reported on in newspaper items and by the 'sportsmen' themselves.

Swedish and Norwegian Foxes Were Imported Into The UK:What We Know

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/06/swedish-and-norwegian-foxes-were.html

The other discovery, initially through old art examples, was that Western Europe probably had their own Old fox type. In fact, considering t5he Scandinavian situation it seems certain. The red fox (Vulpes vulpes) probably followed the various waves of human migrations from the East over centuries and as the Old foxes were killed off so the red took over.

National museums in Germany and France have been contacted and while Paris was just downright uncooperative nothing was heard from Berlin. This echoes  the reactions )or non reactions) from the national museums in the UK. Is it just that continuing to push dogma is easier or just lack of interest in foxes? 

https://foxwildcatwolverineproject.blogspot.com/2023/06/old-british-foxes-old-western-european.html

We have discovered so much but not just about canids (two examples that should be of high historical interest to the French natural history museum were not really dismissed as given the attitude of "We don't really care"). There are the wild cats that we have proven did exist in Ireland up to the early 20th century.  We have proven that the reason the current Scottish 'wild cat' has DNA similar to the European wild cats is because they were also imported -for travelling and static menageries and much more and we now know that some English hunting territories released these cats for shooting and we have the evidence. 

The Colquhoun foxes are now in LMs museum and they and other examples look nothing like the wild tabby that was released and shot into extinction then protected, killed again and now being replaced by European wild cats! In fact, in 1897 a meeting of very learned Scottish naturalists and zoologists which included a man who had studied wild cats for over 40 years, declared that the true Scottish wild cat had become extinct circa the 1860s (as so many other species did). That is fact totally ignored by zoologists today who carry out no original historical research and the "Scottish 'wild cat'" is a big financial concern back by "reputable" experts who have a lot to lose in standing if the truth is promoted.

Obviously one thing we really want to do is carry out DNA studies on the wild cats and Old foxes we have but that is well beyond anything we can afford.  Of course "just foxes" do not draw in financial backers or interest from DNA labs.  We will try but currently -no funds.

The other thing we want to do is acquire more taxidermy examples of pre 1900 wild cats and foxes -the old the better.  Not financially valuable but they are scientifically valuable and very important to completing our knowledge of lost British species and to educate and help people understand why current species in the UK need protecting not to head for extinction.

The idea of a short documentary on the subject is a good one, however, no one is really interested.  We are providing a glimpse of species that humans wiped out just for the sake of 'fun' and knowing full well that the species' were heading to extinction (rather like the Hong Kong fox wiped out by British colonial 'sportsmen').  And we can see how the 'protected' British badger is being pushed into extinction "legally" with over a quarter of a million having been killed over very bad science and scape-goating for bovine TB.

We need to discover. We need to educate. And we need to preserve.

Extinction is FOREVER

65,000+ Badgers and 65,000+ Foxes Killed Each Year -Is Anyone Bothered? We Are NOT A Nation of Animal Lovers

 We are NOT a "Nation of animal lovers" 

One online source states that: 

"Badgers are also killed by being involved in road traffic accidents. It is thought that up to 50,000 badgers are killed every year by traffic on Britain's roads and railways."

Firstly I believe that to be an under estimate. Back in 2000 when I was writing some technical papers I had to look up badger deaths. At that time it was estimated that up to 65,000 were killed each year on UK roads. Road traffic has increased since 2000 and roads have been built over over wildlife corridors. The resulting deaths of badgers, foxes and deer is evidence of how bad the death rate is.

Above: Otters protected in the UK are also killed on roads as well as in illegal shrimp nets. According to the Cardiff University study Road traffic accidents cause a significant number of casualties. We typically receive around 200 otters per year, of which 80-90% have been killed as a result of road traffic accidents.

https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/otter-project/conservation-and-education/mitigation#:~:text=Road%20traffic%20accidents,result%20of%20road%20traffic%20accidents.

As with badgers up to 65,000 foxes (actually it seems that this is also an under estimate) are killed by cars each year.

Now if we look at the number of badgers (a supposed 'protected species' since the 1970s) culled over the very bad 'science' on bovine TB (it is widely recognised even amongst naturalists that the badger was just a convenient scapegoat for bad animal husbandry on the part of farmers) we have around 250,000 -one quarter of a million- so far so adding in the 65,000+ =315, 000 and that makes sustaining a population near impossible in England (the only culling country in the UK). The number of badgers shot on private and royal estates and land as well as snaring and poisoning we have no figures for as they can be hidden easily. A sensible total for badger deaths would be around 400,000.

The British government and all of those involved are succeeding where from historical times up to the 1970s an ongoing campaign of melecide failed. They are wiping out a 'protected species' and making sure that6 it becomes extinct in England. It almost seems that this is a deliberate plan to totally wipe out badgers in England and what animal will be scapegoated once they are gone -the dormouse?

Above:Deer of various species are also killed on roads each year

Bad animal husbandry we have a very good example of and the results are still remembered today. To quote Wikipedia: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdom_BSE_outbreak#:~:text=The%20United%20Kingdom%20was%20afflicted,in%20the%201980s%20and%201990s.

"The United Kingdom was afflicted with an outbreak of Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, also known as "mad cow disease"), and its human equivalent variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (vCJD), in the 1980s and 1990s. Over four million head of cattle were slaughtered in an effort to contain the outbreak, and 178 people died after contracting vCJD through eating infected beef. A political and public health crisis resulted, and British beef was banned from export to numerous countries around the world, with some bans remaining in place until as late as 2019."

"The outbreak is believed to have originated in the practice of supplementing protein in cattle feed by meat-and-bone meal (MBM), which used the remains of other animals. BSE is a disease involving infectious misfolded proteins known as prions in the nervous system; the remains of an infected animal could spread the disease to animals fed on such a diet."

At that time I was a UK police forces advisor and I spoke to many people in the country and that included farmers. We know that certain farmers were moving cattle at night to beat the various zones set up to prevent the spread of the disease. I was aware that one farmer was "cautioned" after assaulting another who had endangered his cattle by moving cattle out of an isolation zone at night.  The matter went no further as neither wanted to press charges and the farmer at fault should have been prosecuted but simply had to move his cattle back into the isolation zone.

At the same time hunts were reported breaching the BSE areas to continue their 'sport' and they still do similar in BTB areas. Warnings and cautions but that was it.  Any horse or hound infected in some way was easy to dispose of "out of sight".

I mentioned deer so a good statistic comers from the RSPCA:

https://www.rspca.org.uk/documents/1494939/7712578/Road+traffic+accidents+and+deer+-+2022+update.pdf/8c38ccbd-6220-0547-a114-9326bd76f32e?t=1673451012014#:~:text=Recent%20research%20indicates%20that%20up,population%20of%20over%20a%20million.

"Recent research indicates that up to 74,000 deer may be involved in vehicle collisions each year in Britain. Six species of deer live in the wild in Britain with a combined population of over a million."

And our Spikey red-listed garden friend the hedgehog is far from "recovering" and they pay a heavy price. According to Wildlife Online:

https://www.wildlifeonline.me.uk/questions/answer/what-impacts-do-roads-have-on-hedgehogs#:~:text=Summary,Britain's%20road%20network%20each%20year.

"Summary. The most obvious impact of roads on hedgehogs is direct mortality. Hedgehogs, like many animals, are susceptible to being runover and a recent estimate suggests as many as 335,000 are killed on Britain's road network each year.

The public are never distracted by any of this as it is always a case of "someone else will deal with it" or "nothing to do with me". The bleating starts when it does affect them and I would not be surprised to find badgers in England extinct by 2035.

Foxes, as we are learning with each new case submitted for post mortem examination, have a number of health issues that affect them from canine pneumonia which seems fairly common, babesia, worms -heart worm being the "silent killer" and much more. In a city such as Bristol hundreds are killed on the roads each year -we have the data to prove that.

 Nationally the figure probably exceeds the 2000 estimated total of 55-65,000. We see foxes killed singly or in pairs or even threes as they try to cross traditional wildlife corridors. As of 22nd  September, 2023 Bristol has had 200 fox deaths (these are only the ones reported) and the actual figure is likely around the 300+ mark. 

To this we can add snaring -and that has happened in two local cases and although banned now in Wales (seen as the "national capitol of snaring") it is still cliami9ng many foxes and although fairly secretive just going by the photographs shared by these people they account for hundreds of foxes each year.

Officially, foxes can be "humanely" taken out by farmers if their livestock is threatened. Again, if you keep chickens then you need to know what you are doing. Foxes will gladly pass up chicken for a rabbit any day (and the whole chicken stealing fox was proved false a long time ago -by huntsmen themselves). But what threat is a fox (the size of a domestic cat) to even a lamb? None and, again, this was proven by the fox hunting fraternity who did field work and found that foxes were ignoring lambs and eating the nutrient rich afterbirth and sheep droppings. A still born lamb was still a free meal but foxes tended to avoid them as the ewes were still very protective.   A fox a threat to cows and horses? Hardly.

So why is it that there are many people with high powered rifles and the latest night gear going out killing hundreds of foxes a month?  They even share photos of themselves proudly displaying all the foxes they kill in one night in shooting publications, online and in Face Book groups were they are cited as "a credit to the sport'.  Yes, they admit this is all sport shooting but under law that is illegal as you are killing a wild animal with no just cause or reason other than that it gives you "pleasure". 

The police in the UK can easily find all of this evidence online -from the shooter posing with rifle and dead animals and even open discussions about how many foxes they have killed. It is an open and shut case. Why is this not being stopped? If you know any RSPCA inspectors ask them and they will tell you the same they told me; shooters include some serving police officers among them. 

We have seen the fox population drop drastically and adding all the ways that foxes die in the UK (including poisoning and illegal lethal traps) then you can see the reasons why.

The first thing that needs to be done is the protect established wildlife corridors and that involves following the example of European and countries further afield; build wildlife over or under passes and that would save thousands of animals each year from badgers, foxes, deer and others. Simple solution but it would cost money and those in power would sooner have species go extinct than fork out money to save it (and upset some rich donators).

Begin protecting foxes by prosecuting illegal shooting especially when it involves the killing of a high number of adult and cub foxes. This hunting with no concern or ramification is how the Old British fox types became extinct in the 1860s. So long as these people have their 'fun' they do not care.

Rather like Chris Packham I think that I long ago gave up the idea that protesting will make changes. I have studied wildlife history as well as the wildlife itself for 50 years now and all I have seen is the legislastio0n to protect the environment and wildlife in it flouted or disregarded and even driven over when money is involved. Even now Bristol City Council, despite promises, are trying to find ways to get developments on green sites of importance -and, no, they do not like me.

Just the figures given in this post total 874, 200 in a year.

Why is no one organising large protests to stop the killing of wildlife and calling for wildlife corridors to be made safe with over and underpasses? Is that too much of a bother to save species and the environment? Is watching Eastenders or Coronation Street on TV while guzzling down a pizza far more important?

Apparently the answer is yes. 

Foxes and Parvo Virus (and other viruses)

 

It should be remembered that parvovirus is common in the UK.  Occasionally the UK experiences periods of higher numbers of reported cases. Untreated in an unvaccinated dog, it can often be fatal. I have seen several such peaks in my time and it is important that if you own a pet do or working dog that it is vaccinated against parvo.

I can already see the huffing and puffing amongst the social media fox groups and "Well, my little fluffy visitor is the picture of health" -so were the foxes that then had babesia, leptospirosis, canine pneumonia etc. etc. etc. There will also be the usual silly claims bordering on hysteria that this post is "anti-fox".  Having dedicated myself since 1976 to wild canids and particularly the British fox and its history as well as writing on wildlife (fox) welfare and health such an "anti-fox" claim would be silly in the extreme.

When I set up the Bristol Fox Deaths Project over two years ago there were two reasons why I felt foxes found dead in and around the City needed to be officially examined via post mortem:

1)  Was the growing and often hysterical claim that there was organised poisoning of foxes in Bristol. This claim was featuring on a number of Face Book fox groups and the fact that Bristol City Council refused to help us gather dead foxes increased that hysteria. I was informed on a regular basis of groups of local foxes "vanishing" (outside of dispersal season) but no carcasses were found.  When a brace (pair) of foxes were found dead on several occasions the hysteria started again.

2) my main concern was that there might be a virus/disease at play and this stemmed mainly from my own paranoia having grown up in a village in Germany where rabies was endemic and having seen the results first hand. There had been no rabies outbreak in the UK since circa 1929 so that was not my concern but rather that some other disease may have hit foxes.

In my view 2) was the likeliest and as Bristol has the largest urban fox population outside of London that was concerning. 

What we have found out thanks to the hard work of the pathologist we have there have been a number of discoveries and what is found in Bristol should well be found across the country. It was through the pathologist that I got a number of papers dealing with parvo virus in foxes in the Netherlands, Germany and Turkey as well as connected work.

The first paper, very briefly summarised below was an eye-opener.  

Identification of Multiple Novel Viruses, Including a Parvovirus and a Hepevirus, in Feces of Red Foxes

 Journal of Virology p. 7758–7764 July 2013 Volume 87 Number 13

Rogier Bodewes,a Joke van der Giessen,b Bart L. Haagmans,a Albert D. M. E. Osterhaus,a,c Saskia L. Smitsa,c Department of Viroscience, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlandsa; National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), Centre for Infectious Disease Control, Bilthoven, The Netherlandsb; Viroclinics Biosciences B.V., Rotterdam, The Netherlandsc

"Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) are the most widespread members of the order of Carnivora. Since they often live in (peri)urban areas, they are a potential reservoir of viruses that transmit from wildlife to humans or domestic animals. Here we evaluated the fecal viral microbiome of 13 red foxes by random PCR in combination with next-generation sequencing. Various novel viruses, including a parvovirus, bocavirus, adeno-associated virus, hepevirus, astroviruses, and picobirnaviruses, were identified."

 "In addition, various viruses were identified that are close relatives to human viruses based on phylogenetic analysis, suggesting that these viruses may have been transmitted from foxes to humans,or vice versa in the past. The newly discovered viruses of the present study are examples of the diversity of viruses that are present in wildlife. Since foxes often live close to humans, the opportunities exist for cross-species transmission to humans or their pets. Since multiple recent outbreaks of viral disease among humans are caused by viruses that originate from (wild) animals, expansion of the current knowledge of viruses that circulate in these animals is needed. A timely identification of reservoir animal hosts in case of novel outbreaks of disease in humans is crucial in mitigating infectious threats"

 We had concerns that dead birds infected with the Avian Flu Virus (AFV) might spread to foxes and it did to a low extent and was one of the reasons why the Wildlife Network for Disease Surveillance brought in a rule that no fox submitted for post mortem could be handled until it was tested for AFV.

The next paper was from Germany and to show that this is not all just guesswork but based on science I have kept the full accreditation.

Survey on viral pathogens in wild red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Germany with emphasis on parvoviruses and analysis of a DNA sequence from a red fox parvovirus

Epidemiol. Inf e c t . (1998). 121, 433440

U. TRUYEN (1), T. MULLER (2), R. HEIDRICH (3), K. TACKMANN' AND L. E. CARMICHAEL (4)

1. Institute for Medical Microbiology, Infectious and Epidemic Diseases University of Munich ;Veterinaerstr. 13 ; 80539 Munich, Germany' 

2 Federal Research Institute for Viral Diseases of Animals, Seestr. 55, 16868 Wusterhausen, Germany 

3 State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Fuerstenwalder Poststrasse 73, I5234 FrankfurtlOder, Germany 

4 James A. Baker Institute for Animal Health, New York State College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA

 (Accepted 6 April 1998)

“The main aim of this study was to examine the seroprevalence of parvovirus infections in a European red fox population. This was based on the hypothesis that CPV most likely emerged in Europe and that the red fox may have been the host of an ancestral canine parvovirus. The study was designed in a way that we could compare fox populations in suburban areas with those in more rural areas which should allow us to estimate the possibility of interspecies transmission among domestic and wild carnivores. An average estimate of 13% seropositive foxes in a random population indicates that parvovirus is widespread among red foxes in Germany."

 How widespread is parvo virus? A paper from Turkey shows that it is very widespread.

First isolation and molecular characterization of canine parvovirus‑type 2b (CPV‑2b) from red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) living in the wild habitat of Turkey

Virology Journal (2023) 20:27

Hanne Nur Kurucay1, Cuneyt Tamer1, Bahadir Muftuoglu2, Ahmed Eisa Elhag1,3*, Seda Gozel1, Yasemin Cicek‑Yildiz4, Sadik Demirtas5, Emre Ozan2, Harun Albayrak1, Semra Okur‑Gumusova1 and Zafer Yazici1*

Abstract

“Background The canine parvovirus, with its many variants, is responsible for a pivotal and common viral infection affecting millions of dogs and other carnivore species worldwide, particularly the wild ones, which are considered as the main reservoir hosts. To that end, this study investigated the presence of canine parvovirus (CPV) in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) living in wild habitats of several regions of Turkey.

“Methods We randomly collected 630 archival fox stool specimens from rural areas of 22 provinces and used realtime PCR to detect CPV. Results Two of the 630 (0.3%) stool samples were positive for CPV-DNA, named Tr-Fox/128(Aydın) and Tr-

Fox/159(Manisa). We attempted to isolate the virus in a MDCK cell line, and cytopathic effects were observed four days post-inoculation. Three regions corresponding to the CPV capsid protein VP2 gene from extracted DNA of positive samples were amplified by conventional PCR, and the products were visualised, purified, and Sanger sequenced. Three overlapping DNA raw sequence fragments, were read, assembled, and aligned to obtain approximately  1.5 kb-long regions that cover most of the VP2 gene, then deposited in GenBank. After comparing the isolates with parvovirus sequences data of domestic and wild carnivores by BLAST processing, our isolates’ similarity rate with each other was 99.40%, with base differences in 9 nucleotide positions. They were classified as 2b variant closely related to isolates from dogs in Turkey, Egypt, Iraq, Italy, Thailand, and China.

“Conclusion This study presents evidence of interspecies transmission of CPV, of which there are no reports on prevalence in wildlife carnivores of our country. Identification of CPV in red foxes threatens local and hunting dogs, which may contract the infection or disseminate it to other wild animal species or vice-versa."

A point to make is that, yes, we are separated from Europe by the English Channel and so people might counter that this means parvo or one of the other viruses could not possibly be found in their "fur babies". That would require a clear response.

As I have shown through my historical research, of the past five decades, in some areas of England foxes were becoming rare in the 16th century. It was probably around this ti8me that the first importation of foxes occurred. We do know that by the 17th century various masters of the foxhounds (hunts) had perfected construction of artificial dens to place foxes in. They had also  each developed their own formula for feeding up kennelled foxes before release. From the 17th century to 1912 there were thousands of foxes imported by animal dealers to be sent off the hunt masters and this gave us two things and the first was mange that had not been seen in the UK prior to importation of foxes -as foxes were sent around the country so mange spread.

The second thing it gave us was, of course, New foxes that replaced the Old British fox types. The foxes you see today are the descendants of foxes introduced by hunts -and there have been a number of near extinctions of the New foxes but they survived through further importing.

This means that while the Old British fox may not have had mange or parvo or any of the other viruses the New ones very well could have. In fact it is likely since they introduced mange into the UK. So the work that was carried out in Europe where foxes were basically ignored for anything but hunting before is significant. In the UK the amount of resistance to even looking intro fox health issues meant that rumours such as "adenovirus is endemic in the UK fox population" began and continue and yet 60 (I think it may be more) and no adenovirus.

The findings are important because as wild animals foxes (and badgers) should not be coaxed into houses with food or hand fed. If they are going to be fed then observe them from a safe distance -coaxing foxes into homes where there are pet dogs (albeit locked in another room at the time) is creating a risk of a virus hitting the dog let alone the humans involved. I have repeatedly warned about the risk of viruses jumping from host to humans (hence the AFV concern) and that has a lot of implications.

Feeders need to feed from a distance because a virus jumping from fox to human could result in foxes being seen as a threat and large scale culls of urban foxes being carried out. That is not an exaggeration; these are wild canids and not garden pets or "fluffies" to invite into homes.

There are also implications for wildlife rescues and more stringent biohazard rules and procedures. I have already discussed wildlife rescues in a previous post but care should be taken that people with weakened immune systems etc are following strict handling guidelines if they have to handle foxes, etc.

I doubt that rescues will listen to advice as that might bruise egoes,

But anyone handling foxes in particular need to be aware of the risks.

 

Do Something. NOW!

 

UK Wildlife Rescues -The Problems

 

I suppose I will need to write this first otherwise the wild accusations will fly. Rescues that help and treat wildlife whether foxes or otherwise are all we have and those that function well do a reasonably good job. The following is based on my communications with wildlife rescues and those running them over the past five years. 

No apologies for making this post long as it all needs to be out in the open and discussed.

We have the people who see or read something and decide "I am going to set up a small wildlife rescue!" And there we have the problem.

There are some small and medium sized rescues that look after and treat hedgehogs. As a protected species and endangered species they need all the help they can get. So long as those dealing with hedgehogs know what they are doing and do seek veterinary advice when needed no problem.

The same applies to pigeon and dove rescues with whom I have had a lot of dealings in the past. In many cases those running the rescues had no idea what they were doing and some were basically using their rescues as cash grabs. I will give an example: I had a pigeon that could not fly and that may have been down to an injury. I tried vets in Bristol and all told me the same thing: "Bring it in and we'll put it to sleep" and that was also the RSPCA reaction. There was a pigeon friendly vet but as a non driver the distance to get to him was a problem. Here is where the pigeon and dove rescues come in.

I contacted those on Face Book and there was one reason after another as to why they could not take the pigeon. In fact the one that was willing to help I was told by two rescues not to deal with as "they are a bigger threat to the birds". Then I found one willing to take the bird and their rescue looked okay if a little cramped. They would arrange for an animal courier to pick the bird up and overnight it would be fed and watered before the journey to the rescue. The cost would be £45 and they would cover that but I told them I would send that amount and some extra the next week.

The rescue involved immediately posted about their valiant efforts to get a pigeon from Bristol to their rescue and the person who had the pigeon was unable to pay for the courier. At that point I was going to say that I would cover that cost as well. Then I found out it was the pigeon I rescued that they were talking about!   Ooh how the rescue followers were annoyed that the rescue was having to pay out (they never said on the page how much) because they were "angels" and "saints". My post explaining that I was going to pay never appeared on the page. By the end of the day the rescue had over £300 in donations to help for this one pigeon. The rescue refused to tell me how the pigeon got on or answer any questions.

Now pigeons with PMV cannot be released back into the pigeon population after they recover as it will spread the virus. Any and every vet will put the bird down and that is it. I have discussed PMV here

https://athomewithwildnature.blogspot.com/2021/12/paramyxovirus-pmv-and-pigeons.html

I have had two such pigeons and -again- a rescuer who was willing to take on the bird as they had other isolated PMV pigeons was "not capable of taking care of the birds. Doesn't understand PMV" so that would mean the vet and put it down. At that point I was contacted by a trainee vet under the very clear understanding that she could help but I must not name her as policy was strictly to put such birds down. Six student vets turned up and checked the pigeon and then it was off to a sanctuary that had isolated PMV recovered pigeons -in Sussex and that was it. 

You see the good and the bad and often not even from sanctuary/rescue owners. The fact that this is still all "by the fly" came recently when a number of injured wood pigeons and pigeons were rescued or left on the ground as "pigeon rescuers" operating from their homes were unable to take the birds on or rescue them. "Leave them where they are" and "Can you get a ladder to put it back in the nest" -30 ft 9m up by the side of a busy road. Not likely.

When it comes to larger animals the problems are bigger especially if you cannot get any rescued animals to a vet for first response care.  There have been rescues in peoples homes/gardens that declined into such a state that they were banned from rescuing legally -one started up again. Conditions in a rescue have to be clean and hygienic and for those who set out with good intentions the stress and financial costs plus handling a number of animals can lead to mental health issues and in one case it led to a mental breakdown.

It is not a Disney film and animals need care -food, water, cages cleaned and and eye kept on their conditions. That adds up to a lot of money -more than some realise and volunteers soon lose interest in mucking out cages and it becomes a burden on just one person. Also there is the problem that when people who donate material (newspapers, sawdust, blankets) and feed stop...you hit a bigger financial problem.

This brings me to wildlife rescues in the UK of which there are only a few small ones and recently a couple have packed up altogether but still care for the animals they have. These people are rarely qualified in any way and while they can take care of a leg or wing injury they hit a block in treatment when it comes to vets and costs. UK Vets have been highlighted as the most expensive in Europe and, yes, I have first hand experience of that. Even a quick check-up on a dog or cat is expensive so treating wildlife such as foxes is hit or miss.

Rescues like to show before and after photos of manged foxes they have treated at their rescues to try to raised funds. In Bristol we have a fox lady, Sarah Mills,  who treats the foxes in the wild very successfully  and with less stress such as being confined to a cage for a long period. Rescues should be pro-active in educating the public so that if a fox is seen with onset mange rather than say "Contact so-and-so for free homeopathic drops" they advise what the fox feeder can buy over the counter -the same with wormer as there seem to be very few foxes without worms and heart worm is a silent killer yet worming should not be a major problem for a feeder.

There are problems in misinformation from rescues also. I was told by a large fox rescue as well as smaller ones that all I would find in the Bristol Fox Deaths Project would be adenovirus "adenovirus is endemic in UK foxes" I was told. Where had they heard this? Was it in a published veterinary paper? No, they just heard and knew it was endemic.  After almost 60 (it may actually be over 60 -I depend on my colleague Zoe Webber to stop me getting confused!) post mortem examinations we have not found one case of adenovirus and with a claimed second largest urban fox population next to London that seems odd.

This is misinformation and to say that you heard it from someone who was told this is just rumour mongering.  We then come to "The Bristol Fox Poisoner(s)".  In short foxes found dead in Bristol, even close to a road and displaying no twisted limbs or pools of blood were 'victims' of one or more poisoner targeting foxes. It is what led to (after many months, sleepless nights and arguing)  The Bristol Fox Deaths Project. Out of all the foxes submitted only one was a victim of poison and that was secondary poisoning -it probably ate a poisoned rat. We find that most deaths from being hit by a car are internal so the explanation for no external wounds was solved. 

Here is another problem. If a rescue takes in a fox that collapsed, convulses or is in some way ill but seems to recover then relapses the obvious thing to do is get it to a vet. Some only get a quick check up on the fox as tests are expensive. The fox dies. Is it a disease or illness that might spread to other foxes or some injury that caused the problems? The fox is handed over to local authorities to dispose of. No post mortem or tests which under certain circumstances you can have done for free. One such fox after dying I asked the rescuer whether they had a post mortem carried out -"Oh no. I couldn't do that to it. It suffered enough"....I write no more.  Others have told be straight out that they patch up and release and have no interest in post mortems -but they will spread a falsehood about adenovirus being endemic. Figure that one out.

There were a number of rescues in England claiming that vets had  pronounced a fox death was due to poisoning -"possibly car anti-freeze" etc. One rescue I explained my work to and asked about the fox and whether a post mortem was carried out? No response. A phone message -no response. A request to be given the vet  details -no response.  So we have a rescue (adding an appeal to keep their work going) stating that "our (unnamed) vet" had pronounced the fox died of poisoning.  

This is not a one off and when I did get a response from other rescues it was a case of "Our vet should know" but no tests were carried out. Why do I doubt many of the poisoning claims? In Bristol there have been around eight foxes pronounced victims of poisoning by different vets. Not one of the foxes after PM were found to have been poisoned. recently foxes, a badger and local cat were announced to have been victims of poisoning in an area of Bristol. It made the news. What did not make the news was that PMs on the foxes showed they had been killed by cars. Likely so was the badger (Health and Safety will not allow badger PMs) and cat -the roads in the area are not safe. I even explained this to one woman who was shouting about silence on these deaths. I told her the PM findings and...she went on to Face Book groups to state the animals were poisoned and if I recall it was a cover up.

Next we come to the release of rescue foxes.  Here I have faced lies, refusals to answer and some very bad practices. Firstly, one large fox rescue told me that it was "impossible to say" how many foxes it had treated and released the previous year. You have to pay for food, veterinary treatment and much more but you keep no records of any kind? Perhaps there is a need to regulate rescues. I was even given a figure of probably150 foxes having been rescued and treated in one year yet on the rescues Face Book page they stated 300 -discrepancy there; was it 150 or 300 and they were asking for donations to help keep paying for the work. That raised questions.

Other rescues had similar responses but not a single one, large or small, could give even an estimate of the number of foxes they had rescued and released. That is troubling.

Equally troubling was the response to my question about foxes released by rescues. Firstly, I will note that fox releases by rescues is probably the only thing sustaining the fox population in the UK.  I know that Secret World in Somerset microchip foxes they release -I assume that they still do. I believe they are also given preventative meds before release. One o9f the biggest UK fox rescues actually responded to my question about microchipping foxes they released as sounding a bit stupid -"What good would that do?" As for anti-wormer or anti parasite treatments before release only a few did that. Were foxes checked by a vet before release to make sure there was no health issue? No.

With a microchip it is easy to see where a sick or injured or even dead fox came from originally as it might be that the population it came from had a problem. there are other benefits to micro-chipping. One response I got was that microchipping cost money and the fox might be knocked down within a week or so of release. 

We then cam to where rescued and where released. This again is important as it is quite clear that UK foxes no longer have any local or regional types due to foxes being released in safe, no-hunt areas.  If a released fox was suddenly to die and it was found to have a genetic problem causing health issues then a microchip would tell us where it came from and the population there could be checked and, where possible, treated in advance of any problem developing.

No. Allegedly, no records were kept of where sick or injured foxes were rescued. Now if you get a call out surely you keep a record of where the fox was and how you took it to a vet for the once over?  Every rescue was the same and all claimed that they did not keep records on this which is either a lie or incompetence.  

Where are the foxes usually released?  "In safe areas" -in the areas they were rescued from or further afield? "Depends".  

Do you keep track of the foxes you released in case there are future problems?  Here is where it got complicated and downright being awkward. Rescues generally have people in an area where the foxes are to be released who keep the foxes until they are acclimatised to an area and then let go. They put out supplementary food afterwards in case the foxes are finding it hard to catch food. These people are the ones who would see the foxes after release.

I asked whether I could be put in contact with some of these (strictly confidentially) to see whether they had noticed any problems over the years or how newly released foxes coped? No. "It would be up to them whether they wanted to talk to you about that"  So I asked whether they could let these people know of my interest and who I was? "No. We are far too busy at the moment. You need to ask them"  So I asked for contact details -"We can't give that information out".

You can probably see where this leads. We are talking about rescues who keep no records of where animals were picked up, how they were treated and what for, who hardly ever gave a serious health check to foxes to be released and they were downright unwilling to even cooperate on how many they treated or where they were released.  no records at all? 

I keep getting accused of being "more interested in animal welfare" and from 1977 and on and off until this very year I operated the Exotic Animals Register and worked with UK police forces, farmers groups, wildlife parks and so on and, yes, I checked to make sure that animals reported as being sighted were in good health. Even contacting a zoo or wildlife park )mainly wildlife parks) over a mundane matter and the panic from the other end of the phone line could be heard -"All our animals are fit and healthy and accounted for".  You cannot be involved in any type of wildlife work without keeping an eye on animal welfare and health. My work with the EAR is a public record (I was a member of the Partnership Against Wildlife Crime) and working with UK police forces meant I was regularly checked to make sure I was "clean".  I have run the British Fox Study since 1976 and have written more about wild canids and found out more about their lost history in the UK than anyone else (my colleague LM is getting more knowledgeable by the month). I set up the Wild Cats, Ferals and Hybrid Cats study in 1980 and, again, have written and discovered a great deal on the subject. 

In short it is quite easy to find my public and personal stance on hunting and wildlife preservation in the UK and elsewhere. I am not a Bryan May or Chris Packham but I have spent five decades studying and researching and out of the many hundreds of people I have interviewed not one has ever been named by me and none of my raw data revealed. If you see me as a threat to foxes then  you need to see a psychiatrist. There is no reason to be coy or lie or block information -it is not destined to go online.

We need to maintain a watch on foxes not just to protect them but to make sure we can keep an eye out in case a disease emerges so it can be treated -hence the microchip question but if I am to believe the fox rescues they keep no record of where foxes were rescued, no vet check-ups before release and they cannot give details of what areas foxes were released in. That goes against animal welfare.

Can I just point out that Bristol may be fox friendly but its roads are not and the current death toll for 2023 on Bristol roads is 200 (and those are only the reported ones). DO NOT release foxes into Bristol or its outskirts -they will not live long.

The other major problem is that fox/wildlife rescues do not seem to want to cooperate with each other or exchange information. A rescue that recently closed its doors asked other rescues whether they could take on the animals they had -no. Pure and simple and I have seen this over and over again. You see it involves clashes of personality as well as the fear of losing donations. Mention another rescue and people might send donations there. Add to this the fact that England is not a "nation of animal lovers" -getting members of fox or wildlife groups on Face Book who number in their thousands to sign anti-hunt and anti-snaring petitions online and it is a losing struggle. 

Why? Because the members only want to see fluffy animal photos and give social media likes and not actually help the animals they supposedly love. Rescues have asked fox feeders in an area to help them trap, treat and release foxes with severe mange and...the feeders refuse to cooperate and, yes, I have first hand experience of this. Also, a nation of animal lovers would have done more than sit on their backsides over 250,000 badgers being killed to the point that the population may not survive. Far easier to do nothing.

Again and again I have asked that people look up their local wildlife rescue and donate or help if they can because if they go then the best your sick or injured fox can expect is a lethal injection at the vets. Nothing. Well, complaints that they reported a bird or other animal they thought was injured "an hour ago" and no one from the rescue has turned up  -"they can't care that much about wildlife".

We need rescues that do cooperate and exchange information (even if the opinion of the other rescue owner is that "She's a right cow"). We need rescues that keep accurate records and give out accurate information and  facts.  We need rescues where the animals -foxes or whatever- can be given a thorough check by vets -even if as part of a vet training course. We really need rescues to be open about their facilities (it is not a "security risk" to show your animal holding area).

And above all we need the public to show some support for rescues because without them there will be bigger problems.  Materials such as animal foods, blankets, old newspapers, straw, hay -just check with the rescue involved- and above all financial help. Donations are always needed and whether you are a rescue for pigeons and doves or wildlife in general you have to be open and honest to get that support to continue.  In Bristol we have no wildlife rescue because, despite trying, no one is interested so the nearest rescue is more than 30 miles away.

Wildlife rescue needs funding and it also needs to get more organised or else face , at some point and I can see this happening, face legislation and having to conform to strict official regulations that will send costs sky-rocket.  

That is a discussion and I am quite sure I will be called a few names by rescues who will also no doubt ignore what is written -as will 95% of the public. Wildlife in the UK is really ****