So here's what ruined my morning

[Mutt]

Alright so the last few weeks I've been walking twice a day for at least an hour each time (except yesterday due to insanely hot weather) and this morning I went out walking, as I went under a tunnel I came out the other side and saw two women standing around, nothing unusual but then I saw this,



My reaction was to stop in my tracks and utter profanity, I talked to the women who were trying to get onto a help for wildlife phone number. They said the fox appeared to have a broken leg, they had seen it attempt to walk but it just couldn't and had collapsed on the side of the track. I had to be the bearer of bad news and tell them help for wildlife won't help foxes because they're in invasive species but we agreed we couldn't let it lie there and suffer where it risked being run over by cyclists, attacked by dogs or simply dying of dehydration (the next few days are going to be very, very hot) so they both tried to get onto the helpline which they'd been trying to get onto for several minuets already.

We stood there for at least 10 minutes waiting for one of the helplines to answer the phone, I offered to call home to see if one of my family was home to get the local vets phone number, my mother answered the phone and I asked her to come down with a pet carrier so we could transport the fox to a vet.

An older woman on a bike came along and told me I should take a brick to the fox's head as well as warned me to keep my dog away from it because it could have rabies, rabies doesn't exist here in Australia, except a strain in flying foxes, I tell you I wanted to give this lady a piece of my mind... I know foxes are an invasive species but to take a brick to ones head sounds brutal as well as risky for both parties. The woman mentioned she saw it there earlier that morning then rode off, a lot of people probably saw it, it's a very busy track in the mornings the fox was probably sitting by the track with a broken leg for several hours and no one had thought to stop until now. It breaks my heart that people, particularly suburban people who likely never had any conflicts with a fox in their lives can be so callous.

Long story short we manages to gently place the fox in a pet carrier and took it to the vet, I'm sure the poor thing has been put to sleep by now and it hurts to know I took it to a place where it would be put to death but I couldn't see any other option it's highly illegal to keep foxes in Australia and vets and wildlife carers by law have to put them to sleep. I feel like dirt. The red fox is without a doubt my favourite animal so I've always dreamed of photographing one and I supposed I fulfilled that dream but what an awful way to do it, I'd hoped to be in an open field with my camera observing a content animal in it's habitat not on a bike track with a crappy phone whilst I waited to transport an injured and terrified youngster to almost certain death. 

Anyway thanks to anyone who read my rant, I just had to get my anger and guilt off my chest, I'll be going to pick up the pet carrier in two hours, I'm hoping they'll let me bury the poor dear rather then toss him in a landfill but they probably can't let me do that.

[Saturnalia]

Oh, how horrible Still, you absolutely did the right thing. Better a peaceful death than one by dehydration or worse at the hands of heartless people. I'm sorry you had to deal with that, though.

[Luv007]

It may not be much, but that fox has touched many people's heart by you sharing this.  I'm sure it wasn't easy to be a part of, but at least you did something for the poor thing so that it can rest in piece.  <3

[Ryuukokoro]

Aw geez, Mutt! *hugs* I'm seriously tearing up right now and thankfully my coworker is in the other room or I'll have to explain why I'm crying while doing my morning work. >_>;; 

That's such a sad story. You had to make a really super hard moral decision but I'm glad you did what you did. There were no good choices in this situation, you had to choose the lesser of two evils. Like Saturnalia said, you gave it a more peaceful rest than it would have got either slowly wasting away or put down by some cruel passerby.

It's so hard to be powerless in a situation like this... I've had my own similar experience when I moved to the city. There was a pack of feral cats that lived in a shed behind my apartment, and they seemed to get along okay because some people left out food for them and they had the shed as shelter. Then I found another pack of feral cats living behind a nearby walmart and they didn't look to be doing very well at all. Several of them were quite tiny kittens (though their eyes were open and they were running around, so they were probably ten or eleven weeks).

With winter coming I was really worried about how the two groups would survive so I called a local shelter and was basically told they wouldn't do anything. Feral cats were considered "untameable" (which I know is bunk) and they told me if they came to pick them up, they would have to put them to sleep so they just leave them on the streets.

I did some more research and found a local feral cat help group so I called them and got told that they don't give feral cats homes, they just come to your location, catch them in humane traps, then spay and neuter them and then bring them back and drop them back off. o_0;; I was like "...huh?" They explained that it stops the feral cat population from growing, and that's all they could do. When I asked how I could help the cats that are already existing out there, they suggested I go to the walmart each day and leave food myself....

The whole process was extreme frustrating to me and leaves you with such a helpless feeling, knowing there's not much you can do yourself and there's no one in any position of authority who will help these creatures in a really positive way.

There's an old saying that the right thing to do is not always the way that feels right. Sorry you had to experience such a harsh life lesson first hand. :\ *hugs for Mutt*

[BabyKittenCandy]

Just to add to the love for you. You totally did the right thing for the animal and that is what you need to focus on. It would have been terrible to have left it there to suffer and though it meant ending its life at least it was serene and not dragged out and painful.

Seeing any animal suffer is awful and Im sorry you had to see such a special animal to you in that state.

*hugs*

[Mutt]

Thanks for the assurance guys I really felt like I made the wrong decision yesterday, I really didn't want to have to do what I did but I couldn't see another way and I guess it was the only choice I had other than walking away. I feel a bit better about the whole thing today aside from feeling awful when I had to walk past the spot where it was lying this morning as it had been on my usual walking route.

I went to pick up the carrier yesterday afternoon and the vet confirmed the fox had a broken femur and that they put it to sleep, no surprises there, but I feel a little better knowing for certain that the leg wasn't just badly bruised or something else the fox could have walked away from on its own given a little more time. I don't think I'll ever forget the terrified look in its eyes but I think I can live with my decision even though it felt like a terrible thing to do.

That's sad Ryuu it seems like very few shelters will give feral cats a chance, my grandfather fed a group of feral cats for years and he tamed two of them  and if I remember correctly had gotten them spayed/neutered with the intention of giving them to his two sons, when he passed away however his partner had them all trapped and sent to a shelter where they were put to sleep because she didn't want them around and this shelter also didn't place feral cats in new homes, it's a darn shame.

[springacres]

So hard in a situation like this where there really isn't anything you could have done different from what you did.  At least the poor dear had a more peaceful end than it would have had otherwise.  ::HUGS TIGHT::