Wednesday, Aug. 05, 2009

Wake leaders ponder fox trap

Two Wake County commissioners say they're interested in the idea of establishing a fox-trapping season after hearing residents' concerns about the animals.

In North Carolina, it's up to counties to decide whether to set a fox-trapping season, and there is none in Wake.

"It may well be something that we do need to do some research on," said Joe Bryan, an avid bow hunter. "We are frankly continuing to encroach on where the wildlife used to be."

Commissioner Betty Lou Ward has seen foxes in her own neighborhood.

"We need to look at the safety aspects," she said. "If you had a very small child and a fox walked into the yard, that's not a comforting thought."

State officials say they've seen an increase in calls about foxes in Wake this summer, though they don't blame it on more foxes. It's not unusual to see foxes out all day in the spring and summer, as they search for food for their pups.

Reports of rabid foxes in the county also have gotten attention in the news media, including The News & Observer. State officials have counted three rabid foxes in Wake County so far this year.

Wake, Wayne and Nash counties are the only three counties in the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission's 11-county District 3 without a trapping season. Wayne officials were scheduled to hold a public hearing Tuesday to consider one.

Trapping seasons typically run for several months in the winter, when fox pelts are at their best, Folta said. Trapped foxes typically are killed because state law says they cannot be relocated given their risk of carrying rabies.

"Counties have gone to setting the season ... to help manage that population so that it can reduce some of those incidents with damage and human health and safety threats," said Todd Menke, a U.S. agriculture department wildlife biologist and recreational trapper.

But Folta also says residents shouldn't fear foxes. To help keep foxes away, residents should clear their yard of possible food sources, including pet dishes and bird feeders, and ask their neighbors to do the same. When people see a fox, they can scare it away by spraying it with a hose or making noise. It takes repeated attempts to scare a fox.

Scaring foxes is the last thing Karin Boston wants to do. The North Raleigh resident said her two five-pound Yorkies have made friends with foxes that run on the other side of her fence.

"I'm just upset and afraid that people will trap and kill them," Boston said. "People are much more of a threat to the foxes."

Margie Schwartz also doesn't want to see any foxes hurt, but she's troubled by those that roam her neighborhood, Gresham Trace. A fox recently jumped out at her, she said, baring its teeth and snarling as she walked her two large dogs one morning. It chased her home.

Folta recommends that Schwartz carry a stick to keep the fox away. He said the foxes' behavior likely would meet the qualifications required to get a special permit to trap an animal when it's a threat or causes more than $50 in property damage.

But Schwartz said she's an animal lover who wants the foxes relocated, not killed.

"They're beautiful," she said. "But when one chases you baring it's teeth, snarling and making gutteral noises, that's not a friendly one. That's a sick animal. And they're just all over."