Ferraby the Modern Fox

The beautiful Etsy treasury collection above was created by my friend Amber of Redtilestudio who creates the most beautiful home decor art blocks as well as gorgeous treasury collections that feature items from different Etsy shops.  It's pretty close to my heart because recently I became the proud keeper of a pet fox named Ferraby.  Now there are those who do not approve of exotic pets and I do acknowledge their opinions, but I really think that most people who take the steps to acquire an exotic pet have done the homework. In my case (for my state) I needed to get a special permit and I have followed specific requirements. Ferraby is a captive born red fox. He's from many generations of captive born foxes, who in many cases originally came from fur farms.

When he first came home, he was more cat-like than dog-like and so tiny.  He was maybe a little less timid than I expected and he did bark quite a bit which surprised me. Quickly we became quite bonded, more closely than I've ever had an animal bond to me, and that's saying something.  He doesn't bark often now, but will  sob when I have to put him in his pen, which isn't all that often.  His pen is about the size of a large breed dog kennel (6 x 8 ft) and full of all kinds of toys for babies, dogs, and cats.

So now he's almost off of his formula and eating his dry food quite well, we are using Taste of the Wild which he seems to enjoy quite a bit. It actually smells quite delicious too, something I don't often notice about pet food.  The cats chewed the bag open so I think they agree.  I put some in the food processor with a bit of cooked scrambled egg and pulsed it a bit to make it easier for him to eat.

Most of the time Ferraby seems quite docile, although now he's going through a nippy puppy type stage.  I seem to be the only one he feels the need to chew on, which is good and bad. He starts out playfully mouthing but as he gets excited he gets a bit rougher. He's gentle with the kids though which is good.  I've learned the best way to get him out of a nippy state is for me to make a hiss if he gets rough. It's actually a sound somewhere between a bark and a hiss that I've heard him make.

Today we tried our first outdoor outing on the leash.  He got really excited about the leash and didn't mind it too much but he really did not like it outside.  He was only relaxed when we stayed up by the house and he sat in my lap.  We had a mourning dove land a few feet away from us and he seemed to enjoy watching it.  The dove took one look and quickly waddled to the other side of the deck.  Once we went back in Ferraby became his usual playful silly self again.

I'm adding a new coupon code for my shop: FERRABY 25% off.