There is a fox having a nap in my garden right now...

[Startingagainandagain]

I was in my kitchen and just saw that there is a fox having a nap in the middle of my garden.

Any suggestion of what to do?

We used to have urban foxes living in our communal garden and they just went about their lives when I was in London but I have never had the pleasure of finding one in my own garden....

I don't want to chase it away but I also am wondering if it might be injured (and who to call if it is?) or if it is planning on squatting my garden from now on...

Any advice on how to deal with this?

Pic of the fox below.

I have a cat but it is staying indoor at the moment as I have only had her for a couple of weeks so I am not worried about her being at risk.

Do people have foxes in their garden? do you feed them?

No advice but I'm quite jealous, that is one gorgeous fox. I'm not an expert but can't imagine day time napping in an open space like that is normal.. hope he's ok. Do you have a wildlife rescue center nearby? Ours has a FB page and is very good at answering queries like this.

Aww good pic, I’d leave him to it, if he hasn’t moved in a few hours try going out

Oh, he looks like a love. Maybe he was up all night on the prowl and is just having a rest.

Hope he's OK and not poorly. From the photo, he doesn't look obviously unwell (no immediately visible signs of injury at least, and looks comfy)

Hopefully he will just potter on off once he's had his nap.

Thanks everyone. I will leave him in peace if I notice that it looks unwell I will look at the options to get him help.

I can't see any blood or anything on the fox so I am hoping it just wanted a quiet break.

I will post on the local Facebook community page if it looks in discomfort for advice about who to contact.

I really don't mind the fox being there I just want to make sure it is OK.

Day time napping in a safe open space is perfectly normal fox behaviour. He’ll move on when he’s ready. Foxes are nocturnal so mostly sleep during the day but if there’s a bit of sun they quite like doing it in the open.

if you feed him (they love monkey nuts) he will be back which might be awkward for your cat, although some rub along quite happily.

To add: we have a local fox who likes to sleep in the sun right by the railway tracks with trains thundering past all day. I mean, actually on the track bed. Foxes are weird. I suppose he has figured out it is a safe place where he won’t be bothered by people or dogs.

I don’t think I’d say anything on a community Facebook page. You’d be surprised by how much hatred there is for foxes. You might be putting him/her in danger.

@MaryActsLikeSheDontCare

''I don’t think I’d say anything on a community Facebook page. You’d be surprised by how much hatred there is for foxes. You might be putting him/her in danger.''

Good point.

There are no dogs in my home so yes It is a safe and quiet space.

Is there anything they like to eat? someone mentioned nuts?

Ham sandwich. Sausage roll.

but she’ll be back if you feed her once. Or he …

They come for several hour naps in both mine and an aunts city garden.
Almost certainly just getting some shut eye rather than injured. May well be being fed relatively near by and has done the early morning territory rounds and found a good quiet place to doze for most of the day now it's busy.
Ours are quiet brazen, they know were there are and aren't dogs etc, and make no attempt to not be seen.

If you move around the window or open back door it should open an eye to check your behavior towards it. The more confident only open one, and don't lift their heads unless you come out. You only need to be concerned if it doesn't react cautiously to possible danger.

Over many years of this behavior from a few of them quite regularly, I did have have one die. It had curled up under a rosemary bush on a warm summer day, and just didn't wake up. It didn't appear ill and was a good weight, but a very grey muzzle spread to ears and chest, and missing a few side teeth. Just came to the end of its days in a comfortable warm spot that it had frequented on and off for years.
Don't feed unless you want it to move in!

Don’t feed it. They can look after themselves and you can get aggressive behaviour if you start feeding them.
If I walk down the street here after 8pm I will see dozens of foxes, at least one in every driveway if not more. They are not scared and just share the street with humans with no drama from either side at all (except them chewing brake cables and eating football goal
nets)
I will see them trotting along in groups, moseying down the road, curled up on top of cars. I mean I literally see multiple foxes every single day and I have to say I had assumed that would be the case everywhere in the UK! But some of you seem to see foxes a bit less? Are foxes not absolutely everywhere as I had assumed?

I give my visiting fox dog food

I live very rurally and only see them occasionally, maybe 5 times a year. I actually see them more often at this time of year, by day in broad daylight, which I guess is because it’s too cold to come out at night (it’s minus degrees after dark). Some of them appear quite tame - can be walking along a country road just like a dog would

Lots of foxes here. We currently have one who sits on the shed roof tormenting my dog and sleeps on the garden sofa.

Don't feed it!

I once had this exact situation and after a few mins he just got up and went about his day. No obvious injury and no intervention required.

In my neighbourhood, I would say we are halfway between the OP’s experience and yours — we do see foxes very regularly, but maybe not in the numbers you describe. They are out and about on our quiet street nightly. We definitely don’t feed them.

We’re in a calm leafy suburb of a medium-sized city, fwiw.

We have one who regularly naps in the sun patch at the bottom of the garden!

He's just having a nap, no reason to think he's injured.

I'm in a flat but we have foxes who nip in for a little sleep in a sunny spot around the development.

Never fed them but I know people in houses who give them little meat scraps.

mum lives down the road and one neighbour with a garden had a fox give birth in hers. I think it's cute.

Many years ago we had a vixen who would regularly come and sunbathe at the bottom of our very suburban garden. For 3 years in a row she also brought her cubs with her, it was such a privilege to watch them play in the sunshine.

I'm very jealous of all your urban foxes. Don't see many round my way, do get the odd pheasant that wanders through and has a sit on our shed roof.

I know they can be problematic for some, but I do think foxes are beautiful.

OP, I reckon he or she is just having a nap, as others said.

My last house was alongside a large common. Workman called round to fix something and said 'I had a spare half an hour the other day and I knocked your door to see if I could do the job then instead of waiting for today but you were out. There was a fox sunbathing in your front garden, stretched out like he was on the Riviera. He didn't so much as blink an eye when I walked up the path. He was completely relaxed. Is he a pet? Do you feed him?" No to both. I expect he was taunting my dog on the other side of the fence. Just out of reach. There's lots of foxes around, especially in towns where killing them is looked on as sadistic psychopathy rather than a picturesque country sport.

We get foxes in our garden but I don't feed them. They are pretty well fed as they have the energy to play with any dog toys etc left in the garden.

I'm quite rural and don't see them often, either. This time of year is the only time I do.

It's actually fox mating season right now, so he / she may be exhausted after a busy night!

Completely normal to find a fox asleep in your garden where I am. Don’t feed it though

I would just leave him be. They are very busy at this time of year having noisy all-night sex parties outside my house, so they need to rest in the day or they might not be able to make quite so much noise the next night.

I will be extremely glad when their mating season concludes.