To growl at a fox that is chasing me?

[ChasedByFox]

Well am I?

TLDR: I imagine a bite or scratch from a fox would require a tetanus jab and I don't have time for that, covid restrictions aside.

Full Story:
I was out running this morning at 5:30 (yes, I probably am certifiable) and a fox crossed my path. He began to follow me, so I ran a little faster. He matched my pace, so I ran faster.

By now I'm pretty much flying along, and this bloody fox is chasing me!

I'm panicking. I've only got five minutes left on my podcast, and I so want to finish it, because I'm on W9R3 of couch25k But if he attacked me, I would need to have a tetanus jab for a fox bite/scratch, surely?

So I growled at him, and he stopped in his tracks and shot away in the opposite direction

WIBU? Have I scared the poor fox for life?

Yes, obviously I've namechanged- I've been here donkeys years, and there's no way I'm going to be able to keep schtum in RL about being chased by a fox!!

YABU- you cruel animal abuser
YANBU- he could give you rabies! and tetanus, and fleas, and follow you home and attack your children

Oh, this is weird.

DS said a fox started following him walking back from the station the other day. In the end he told it to bog off and it obediently did. Perhaps human following is going viral in the foxy world?

Hmm I think the Foxes are reading too much Roald Dahl

Maybe it's the same fox @CathyorClaire - I do run near to a station

@TheLovleyChebbyMcGee Bart is not a common name in Britain, so they would be rare

@Throckmorton he could have introduced himself then!

I miss "my" fox so much. She was lovely. Her relatives, not so much.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mad_Death

You’re very brave!! I wouldn’t have risked it personally but then again, what else could you do?

I have been chased on a run by a massive fucking husky, the owner found it hilarious 🙄

I had a fox running partner (well once) in Ealing. Happily jogged next to me for about 5 mins.

I once left my car door open while I was changing from heels into trainers for driving. I was sitting sideways so my feet were on the pavement IYSWIM and in my peripheral vision I saw a ginger cat put its front paws into the footwell and look around so put my hand down to stroke it... then froze as I turned my head and realised I was about to stroke a fox cub. It looked as horrified as me and ran off.

@Frappuccinofan I 💓 you for saying that! Thank you

Horrible about the husky though. Some people shouldn't be allowed to keep pets.

@ladymalfoy45 that series sounds quite terrifying! I probably won't be watching that one.

This was our Mr Fox a couple of weeks ago. I like to think if we’d looked out the window a few minutes earlier he would have been re-enacting the John Lewis advert on the trampoline.

You are so precious.

@orangenasturtium sounds like something I'd do when I haven't put my specs on! 😱

Not unreasonable to stop and growl.
Run, you are like prey. Behave like prey you will be chased. Stop and growl, not prey- foxy doesn’t want a fight so legs it.
Actually if you’d just stopped and looked at foxy it would probably have had same effect.

@TattiePants he looks disgruntled that you've stopped his fun (or is he just sheltering from the rain?)

@TinyTornado I couldn't stop! I had to complete my run to graduate C25K. (C25kers will get what I mean!)

Maybe foxes have been watching Fleabag

I was waking home from a night out and a Fox decided to walk alongside me like we were pals which scared the life out of me! I got on the phone to dh to seek some advise and the best he could give was " cross the road he will leave you alone!" I crossed over and guess what ???? It did the bloody same and continued to walk besides me!!
I looked down and remembered I was holding a McDonald's bag filed with food! No way was he having that so I ran home and didn't look back! McDonald's made it home safe and so did I!

It probably smelled amazing to him @cherry2727, I imagine they have v good senses of smell.

Good grief OP you probably had a bogey on your face or one of your shoelaces was undone and the little guy was just trying to catch up so he could tell you. And you growled at him!

@Stripesnomore sorry- I missed your post earlier. I am very taken with the Disney Princess thing. I shall have to add a tiara to my running gear.👸

@GertrudeKerfuffle I am chagrined

Noisy buggers keep waking me up. Last week there were three of them screaming on next door's drive, and a few weeks ago I was woken by a banging noise and looked out to see a fox wrestling with our food waste bin in the street.

@ChasedByFox just had a thought - are you sure that you didn't have the infamous MNet chicken about your person?

I've stroked a swan a few times (it's a long conversation re walking to work along by the canal & a few packets of Quavers)
Swans feel like soggy duvets.

Ha- definitely no food with me of any type! I can't face food until at least 10am.

I'm amazed swans feel wet- I would have thought the feathers were sort of water resistant somehow.

You can't tell I live in a city, can you...