Fox has to be killed after woman ‘kidnaps’ it, makes Instagram account, CO officials say
A Colorado woman kidnapped a fox and made it Instagram famous — and that’s not a good thing, officials say.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife said Saturday that officers confiscated a wild red fox from a woman in Colorado Springs and were “forced to euthanize the animal.”
Wildlife officials first came across an Instagram page for the fox where the woman had posted dozens of photos and videos since May 2018, Parks and Wildlife said.
The animal was young when the account started. The first Instagram post said the woman “rescued” the fox. After that, she posted photos of the fox wearing a dog collar, on a leash and eating human food, officials said.
“It is a crime to possess wild animals in Colorado. Illegal possession of live wildlife is a misdemeanor punished by a $100 fine,” Parks and Wildlife said in a news release. “And it’s potentially dangerous. Red fox are known to carry diseases such as canine distemper and rabies.”
Frank McGee, CPW’s area wildlife manager for the Pikes Peak region, said in a news release that taking a wild animal and raising it in a human home is “kidnapping.”
“Wild animals belong in the wild. Period,” McGee said in the news release. “People cannot take care of wildlife better than their parents. It is selfish and irresponsible to take these animals from the wild.”
It takes special education and training to rescue wild animals, McGee said. People often think they are helping an animal when they pick them up, but they are not meant to live in captivity, he said.
Because the fox lived with the woman for longer than two years, officials did not think it could survive in the wild and euthanized the animal.
“This was so unnecessary and sad for the fox and our officers,” McGee said. “If you see a wild animal, especially a baby animal, leave it alone. Call us if you believe it’s orphaned or abandoned and needs to be rescued. We’ll assess the situation and get it to a licensed rehab facility, if necessary.”