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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To growl at a fox that is chasing me?

160 replies

ChasedByFox · 09/10/2020 18:35

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

OP posts:

FiveGoMadInDorset · 09/10/2020 23:24

Can you growl at my fox who sits outside my window waiting for his cat biscuits

BigChocFrenzy · 09/10/2020 23:31

Foxes are canines ...

So maybe he wanted to do the canine thing and hump your leg

You did the right thing to warn him off
You can't make your C25k time very well with a randy fox humping your leg

Meadowland · 09/10/2020 23:31

We have a family of foxes who we feed each night. They are extremely timid, but we love watching them, they do no harm and certainly keep the rodent population at bay.

Nenevalleysigns · 09/10/2020 23:33

I once slept out in a country park and woke up to snuffling around my head. It was a fox. We both surprised eachother and he jumped away, but I lay still and he slowly edged back towards me. He was curious, like a cow is, not aggressive.

SkiingIsHeaven · 10/10/2020 00:14

At least he wasn't on a horse blowing a bugle.

DollhouseBurglar · 10/10/2020 05:19

Yanbu.

Same thing happened to me and DD (2 at the time) when we were walking the dog late at night on the common. I picked up her and ran. Dog was off somewhere else so couldn't help us.

MrsCatE · 10/10/2020 05:51

We have loads of urban foxes here and they are - for want of a better word - 'bold'.

A big dog Fox ambled into the reception area of where I worked and proceeded to nibble delicately on one of the leather sofas.

MrsCatE · 10/10/2020 05:52

And he didn't even have a Visitor's Pass - the cheek.

lovelemoncurd · 10/10/2020 06:29

We live in a city but back onto a wood. My daughter routinely walks back home with a fox following her. They are just hoping she will give them some bits of food. Which she does every now and again. I think you slightly over reacted.

monkeyonthetable · 10/10/2020 08:02

I got off the bus once, late at night. A fox was waiting by the bus stop. It trotted ahead of me, around the corner and into my street and then waited by my front door, as if escorting me home. Very courteous.

Original poster

ChasedByFox · 10/10/2020 08:40

Well @monkeyonthetable I think he was just hoping to come in and chew on your furniture, wasn't he?

OP posts:

HunkyPunk · 10/10/2020 11:16

Can you growl at my fox who sits outside my window waiting for his cat biscuits

That looks like a dramatic stand-off, Five! How does your cat normally react to having a fox so close?

Florencex · 10/10/2020 11:25

@HunkyPunk

Can you growl at my fox who sits outside my window waiting for his cat biscuits

That looks like a dramatic stand-off, Five! How does your cat normally react to having a fox so close?

A cat should easily see of a fox, it would just have to hiss at it. Well certainly a rural fox anyway (I live rurally and my cat would not stand any nonsense from a fox). I know urban foxes are a bit bolder. I once passed an enormous one sauntering casually past Aldgate East tube station when I worked in the city.

YetAnotherSpartacus · 10/10/2020 11:30

Last week I met a badger- but he harrumphed and ran off

I'd love to meet a badger! I've never seen one properly. Most I managed was in a wildlife park in the New Forest - I saw a grotty grey badger bum.

JosiePyeTheOriginalMeanGirl · 10/10/2020 11:30

You did it a favour by helping it understand that it should keep a safe distance from humans. Better for the fox and better for the people it might encounter in the future.

Ponoka7 · 10/10/2020 11:33

I was also going to say that it's best they don't see everyone as a friend.

Gumbo · 10/10/2020 11:36

I was walking through a field of sheep and turned to find a ram with his head down charging at me! Having been very lucky not to have been trampled in a different field by some cows that charged me just 2 weeks prior to that, I saw red and turned and ran towards the ram with my arms waving wildly as I yelled "WWAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHHH" at it ! It spun around and ran away . DS was enormously impressed!

I think this sort of approach works with several animals although I probably wouldn't try it with a lion/elephant/hippo etc

Imissmoominmama · 10/10/2020 11:42

I love this thread .

We used to have a fox who hung around near our garden. One night I heard a group of lads who had come out of the pub, tipsy, trying to round it up. I went out, tapped my thigh and said, ‘come here’ to it and it came. Drunk lad said, ‘Is that your fox?’
‘Yeah’ replied I, casually.

HeronLanyon · 10/10/2020 11:46

Central London here. Have large healthy foxes who use my road as a rat run between their big park den place and restaurant/rubbish scavenging haunts.
I would be wary of a fox getting too close parti one chasing me (what an image).
Few nights ago I was woken in the dead of night by ‘Someone putting bottles out’. Went on for a bit. Looked out and blow me was a huge fox rummaging through bin bags. Made such a mess. Strong and determined.
I remote country I sometimes surprise strolling foxes on tiny hidden tracks and am always relieved when they decided not to front up to me.
I think your growl was perfect. I wish I had seen it. Reminds me of time I did a lot of Very loud threatening grunting at a pig who had escaped and was being rather threatening charging at me as I tried to herd it up a lane. Those who were there still say it’s one of the funniest things they’ve ever seen but honestly I was frightened.

pigsDOfly · 10/10/2020 13:32

Does make you wonder as these modern day foxes become bolder and more used to being around humans, who often feed them, if some of them are attempting to do what dogs did thousands of years ago and get themselves adopted by humans and thereby become domesticated.

Perhaps they see dogs being fed and housed by humans and like the idea of it as an easier life.

AmIACowBag · 10/10/2020 14:18

I hiss at my cats when they fight / claw my sofa / rip up the carpet trying to claw through closed doors to lay on my bed.

battlestargalactica · 10/10/2020 14:43

yanbu & congrats on graduating c25k - saturday long runs here you come

Taikoo · 10/10/2020 15:15

After reading about what happened to Alexandra Shulman, I don't blame you OP.

ManOfPies · 10/10/2020 15:17

Badgers are actually part of the weasel family, which I speculate is why they're so nails. Mustelids are usually very tough pound for pound, like wolverine and honey badgers which can take down animals the size of a moose and will fight bears/wolves for food.

Soubriquet · 10/10/2020 15:20

This would be my dream

He was probably only chasing you because you was running

If you stopped, he would have gotten bored and walked off

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