08.02 17 when the foxes are in season. Species: Vulpes vulpes = Common fox
Fox hunting, especially if well organized or conducted by an experienced lone fox hunter, is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting winter hunts. Of course, I don’t mean killing on snowmobiles, the rich catch from which today’s newly minted “hunters” are so fond of boasting. This means, of course, hunting with flags, from the approach, from a tower near the bait and other fair methods. And you need to be good at the technique of these hunts to achieve success. However, the opportunity to shoot a fox can present itself on any winter hunt, especially in late February and early March. When the foxes begin the rut, you can often find a fox wedding or single males prowling in search of a mate. These encounters can happen by chance, but you must always be prepared for them. So, random encounters with foxes.
The bullet is not stupid
This happened in one of the richest hunting grounds located near Moscow.
It was the second day of the hunt. Over the previous day, a sika deer was also caught, and I was lucky enough to take two wild boars in a doublet. I hunted with a double-barreled Markel, because... the old Browning machine gun began to exhibit delays when reloading. Two true shots are enough to stop any beast.
The second day promised to be just as interesting. We had to shoot a few more animals. In the first corral, placing the shooters by numbers, the head of the hunting farm warned that there were a lot of foxes here, and recommended putting shot into one barrel. “This is some kind of nonsense,” I thought. “I’ll be good with a gun loaded with shot if wild boars or deer come out.”
Having loaded the Merkel with bullets and disguised himself as best he could, he calmly looked around the surroundings. Winter hunting is generally very beautiful, and especially in bright sunshine. I admired the sparkling snow and involuntarily imagined how picturesque a bright red fox would look against its background.
“Perhaps we should still load one barrel with shot? - a thought flashed somewhere deep. “No, nonsense, it wasn’t enough to lose because of this serious beast.”
A shot rang out from the depths of the pen, screams were heard - the corral had begun. I stood in a narrow clearing, carefully looking through the fairly dense spruce forest located right in front of me. Turning his gaze to the right, he suddenly saw what he had imagined just a few minutes ago. Forty paces away, among the fir trees, sneaking not even a bright red fox, but a bright red fox.
“I won’t have time to reload,” flashed through my head. “I’ll shoot with a bullet.”
I know from experience that an unafraid fox will not immediately cross the clearing, but will definitely stop. When the animal hides behind a tree, I quickly direct the trunks to where the fox should appear. It happened just as I calculated. Approaching the edge of the clearing, the fox stopped and began to turn its head, looking around the clean place. I shot at the head sticking out from behind a branch. Stretching out in the snow, the animal only waved its tail a couple of times.
“Not a bad shot,” I thought, not without complacency. And then again the thought: “Maybe I should load the shot now?” “Well, no,” I laugh at myself. “The shell doesn’t hit the same place twice.” He raised his head and almost choked on his own laughter. A fox is rolling straight towards me, this time bright red. I raise my gun and wait for her to approach. You'll have to shoot the bullet again. Fifty steps, forty, thirty... the fox stops and, raising his head, looks at me carefully: apparently, he noticed a suspicious object. The perfect moment to fire shotguns. I have to carefully combine the bar with the front sight, aim it right at the muzzle, and I don’t have time to press the trigger. A split second earlier, the fox, spinning in place, shows me its tail. Of course, I shoot past him.
I scold myself last words. After all, I noticed before when hunting with flags that if the animal is looking straight at you, it means it suspects something, and you need to shoot right away; if you hesitate, you miss.
I stand for quite a long time, holding two cartridges in my hand: one with a bullet, the other with shot. “Well, this is completely stupid, it definitely doesn’t happen three times,” I brush aside all doubts and once again load the bullet. The next twenty minutes pass quietly, and I stop feeling for the shotshell in my pocket. As it turned out, it was in vain.
The beaters were already approaching when, looking to the left, I, without surprise, saw a bright yellow fox on the wings, rushing towards the clearing. This one definitely won't stop. I aim at the tip of the nose and, having chosen a clear gap, shoot. The potential collar is turned over the head. A satisfied smile is still shining on my face when the fox, jumping up, disappears behind the trees in a few leaps. Completely stunned, I run to see what happened, since the corral has already ended. On the trail there are a few drops of blood and tufts of dirty, gray fur from under the throat. So, I was only wrong by a couple of centimeters. At fifty paces this is not so bad, but there is no animal.
The huntsmen-beaters approached and congratulated me on good shot. Of course, killing a fox with a bullet is not so easy. I was terribly upset. When else will three foxes come out to the number?
Still, I think that I did the right thing by not loading the shot. Hunting for large animal You can't take risks.
Once while hunting for elk, after the signal “Ready”, a fox came out to me. She ran somehow strangely, making ridiculous jumps. The elk was shot, and I decided to shoot, since it was only about thirty steps away and the place was open. After the shot, the fox remained where it was. Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the neck and front paw were wrapped in a steel noose. My shot ended her suffering. The bullet tore open the fox's stomach without ruining the skin at all.
Recently I went to see foxes in the Moscow region. Arriving at the place, I unexpectedly met a familiar group of hunters whose elk license was “on fire.” For several weekends in a row they have not been able to implement it. It was nearing the end of the hunt for ungulates, and I was asked to help with the shooting. This didn’t make me smile at all, I dreamed of hunting a fox with flags, but it was inconvenient to refuse. Besides, all the rangers were leaving with the elk hunters, so there was no choice.
Standing at the number, I sadly put the cartridges with shot away and loaded the bullets. And, as always happens, a red fur flashed in the distance at absolutely the wrong time. The drive had been going on for about forty minutes, but there had not yet been a shot at the elk, so I had no right to shoot the fox. There was a strict agreement on this matter. Before the elk is shot, neither the fox nor the hare is shot. Having paraded in front of me in the pen, the fox went back. After another 10 minutes, a doublet was heard in the chain of shooters, and immediately followed by a cry: “I’ve reached it.” And at the same moment I saw the fox again. This time she flew towards me as fast as she could. I no longer had time to reload the shotgun cartridge. I had to shoot with a bullet. Taking aim with a slight lead, he fired. This was one of my most successful shots. The bullet hit the fox in the head and did not ruin the skin at all. So, with a successful combination of circumstances, the bullet is not stupid.
Triplet
This happened at the end of winter. In the area where I often hunt fox, I had a bait laid out and a tower built. Foxes visited her regularly. But terrible bad luck followed me all season. To make it even more attractive, my partner and I threw in herring heads and chicken bones like a delicacy. All this was eaten with pleasure by the foxes. But there was no way to get even one. Firstly, the redheads got into the habit of wandering around the field near the hiding place all day long. At first I tried to sit on the tower at five in the evening, but the animals were already right there. Then he settled down at two o'clock in the afternoon or early in the morning - also useless: one or two patrol animals did not allow him to approach the bait secretly. Besides, they were just making fun of us. One day we saw a girl sledding down the mountain, and literally a hundred meters away from her a large male dog was quietly mousing. But as soon as we showed up, the tramp was immediately washed away. If I sat down, having first scared them off, it was all in vain, even if I was freezing half the night, the animals would not come.
We used all the recommendations we read in books and the advice of experienced fox hunters. They approached the hiding place, talking loudly, and then the partner left, singing songs, already alone. Nothing helped. My friend had a lot of fun, standing on a hillock and watching from the side as the fox poked its muzzle out of the bushes, then walked around my ambush and went into the neighboring field. That's probably how it would have ended if it weren't for chance.
That day I took my wife into the forest to show me the tower I had built and my “tame” foxes. It was the middle of the day, but to my surprise, both visible fields They turned out to be empty, although it was quite cold. After looking for a few minutes, we, without hiding, moved across the field to the tower. I showed my wife the bait, chewed by foxes, many tracks and animal trails. Before you go home last time looked around the field. I still can’t understand where it came from, but in the direction of the forest, on the edge of which we were standing near the bait, a fox was walking in large strides.
There were bushes in the middle of the field, but from our side they were visible right through. I had a gun, but the fox entered the forest about a hundred paces from us. While he was wondering where she had come from (a shot at such a distance was out of the question), and his wife was chattering enthusiastically about the beauty of the fox skin, the animal jumped out from the same place where it had disappeared and rushed to the bush. Literally a couple of seconds later a second one ran out after this fox and immediately a third one. Both rushed to catch up with the first. Without moving, clinging to the trees, we watched this picture - my wife was fascinated, and I was feverishly wondering what could be done. Finally the animals stopped among the bushes and began to play. Obviously, it was a female in heat and two males, since both pursuers were constantly squabbling among themselves. It was February - the time of the fox rut. An ideal situation was created: I ran 100 m through the forest and stood on the entrance tracks of the wedding party. It was clear that after the beater, going around the field, pushed the animals, they would rush into the forest in their wake, and you just need to go around them unnoticed.
The blow came from where I didn’t expect it: in response to my offer to go into the pen, my wife said that she wouldn’t go anywhere, because the foxes would pounce on her, bite her to death and eat her. Can you imagine my despair? My colorful pictures of three fiery red skins thrown at her feet did not help. The only thing that saved me was a categorical ultimatum: either go to jail or get a divorce. Wailing something through her tears, she still went on a mission. As best I could, trying not to make any noise, I rushed towards the expected course of the beast.
I just made it. There were about a hundred steps to the bushes, and from this point the animals were not visible, but as soon as I stood behind a lonely fir tree at the edge of the forest, all three beauties appeared. A small bitch ran ahead, and behind her, about twenty paces, were both males, noticeably larger than her. When making an oncoming shot, it is very important to choose the moment when the animal or bird, having seen the hunter, or after the first miss, no longer has the opportunity to turn around and go back or slip behind the hunter. In my situation, when shooting at the head fox, one or both males had a chance to go back into the pen, so I decided to start with them.
Having let the red-haired couple take thirty steps, I hit first one and then the other. Without looking at the result, he threw the gun at his feet, expecting to see a twig breaking through. If she had not changed direction, she would have had a chance to slip into the forest. But to my luck and his own misfortune, the fox shied away from the shots and, as the tank crews say, exposed the side. With the third shot I killed her, not allowing her to reach the forest. Both males remained lying a couple of meters from each other.
Hunting with decoy
Several years ago, while sorting out hunting belongings that had accumulated in a box for years, I came across a plastic decoy. He lay there for at least twenty-five years. The nostalgic inscription “price 40 kopecks” amused me, and I put it in my pocket, going to the dacha at the beginning of winter.
He uttered a plaintive meow, presumably imitating the cry of a wounded hare and, therefore, was a decoy for a fox. For two years it served me and my constant partner and neighbor in the country as great entertainment. As soon as he got off the bus and went deeper along the path into the forest, he shouted at him 2-3 times, as all the nearby jays, magpies and crows, grunting, chirping and croaking, rushed to his call. The young hunter assembled a gun and practiced shooting before a serious hunt. At the same time, we cleared the forest of all this hooliganism. But that year the decoy showed itself to be a professional precisely in the business for which it was, in fact, intended.
It all happened by accident. The weather was nasty. The bar has been at the plus mark for the second week. The snow that covered the ground in a decent layer melted and squelched disgustingly underfoot. The branches were dripping, and as soon as I entered the forest, within ten minutes I was soaked through. Suffering from idleness, a neighbor suggested going out to the edge of the forest and shooting, as the Germans say, black game. I agreed, but since I, with my 40 years of hunting experience, didn’t seem to be able to shoot forty, I didn’t take the gun with me, deciding that I would only beckon. How I regretted it! Slowly moving along the edge of the forest, I periodically uttered the cry of a hare in trouble. Those who wanted to feast on the free hare were found very soon. From the depths of the forest, the chirping of at least 4-5 magpies was heard, but, apparently, our silhouettes were projected against the background of snow that had not completely melted into the field, and the cautious birds did not fly up to us. Noticing a forest road, we turned onto it. My partner began to hide the chattering birds through the forest, and I leisurely walked along the road, occasionally shouting into the beacon.
Suddenly, something flashed in the forest, and ahead, about a hundred meters away, a real fox rolled out onto the road and moved towards me at a confident, easy gallop, apparently also counting on hare meat. Having managed to take a step to the side and pressing against the edge of the road, I froze like a pillar. Having run up about 35 steps, the fox stopped. Moreover, she was not looking at me, but in the direction of her partner, who continued to steal forty and had no idea about the guest. The moment for the shot was perfect, and I once again cursed myself for not taking the gun.
Finally, the fighter with the magpies cracked something especially loudly, and the animal instantly disappeared into the bushes. Having grieved enough about the missed opportunity, we went home without drawing any conclusions. What happened seemed to me to be a pure accident. I am a materialist and I believe more in red flags and a bait tower than in some kind of decoy for 40 kopecks.
The next day we ran out of bread, and in the late afternoon we went to the store along the same forest path where they usually shot the mob on the way from the bus. This time I took a gun, intending to shoot a few things for bait, while my partner, meanwhile, would run off for bread and back. He ran ahead, and I, reaching the nearest clearing, began to beckon. But since it was late in the evening and it had gotten noticeably dark, no one responded to my plaintive meow. Apparently the birds had already gone to bed. There was nothing to do, and after blowing into the decoy several times to clear my conscience, I sadly wandered off to meet my friend. He walked like this for several minutes, looking at his feet, until he raised his head and was dumbfounded again. A fox was again rolling towards me along the same path.
We noticed each other almost simultaneously and froze, looking eye to eye. The gun is on the shoulder, and the Browning is loaded with seven dispersants. Actually, it was because of her that I grabbed the gun.
A novice hunter, having missed magpies and pigeons several times with the “dispersant”, declared that it was impossible to shoot anything with this cartridge at all. I argued that for 15-20 steps sisar and magpie can be taken with anything, even buckwheat porridge. To prove this to him, I loaded a cartridge intended for close range. But the beast is not 15 steps away, and seven is too small a fraction. IN best case scenario will be a useless wounded animal. Therefore, when the fox jumped to the side, I didn’t even raise my gun. But I thought about it seriously. The second case in two days is no longer a coincidence, but a system.
The next day, they tracked the hare in the neighboring areas to no avail. The rogue crawled under some barn and, coming out on the other side, calmly disappeared, leaving us in the cold. It seemed that luck had finally run out. Nevertheless, towards evening we decided to try the option with semolina. We prepared seriously. We dressed warmly, left our cigarettes at home to avoid temptation, and set out “to follow the fox.”
They decided where to keep watch in the afternoon, during the hunt for the hare. One corner of the field was completely trampled by old fox tracks. Besides, the remains of cows were once dumped here, so there were chances. Frankly speaking, I still didn’t really believe in the decoy and therefore positioned myself at the very edge of the field, taking a carbine with me this time.
The hope was for an idly staggering or mousing fox, which could be reached a hundred meters or more away. My partner walked deeper into the forest and stood with his back to me, controlling the approach. When everything calmed down, I began to beckon.
At intervals of 5-7 minutes, the evening silence was broken by the plaintive cries of a dying hare. Time passed, but nothing happened. The field remained depressingly empty, and darkness was inexorably approaching. Finally, I stopped distinguishing the front sight and lowered the carbine (I hadn’t shot the optics yet and went without it). Still he continued to beckon, because... The shot was not yet hopeless. At that moment, when I thought it was time to give the all clear signal, a shot rang out, immediately followed by another and, finally, a cry full of triumph from the forest: “Killed! Lying down! Fox!!!"
Three seconds later I was at the scene. The hunter's face shone with triumph even in the darkness. Of course, this was his first fox, and she lay about eight steps from the place where he stood. From the lucky man’s confused story, I understood that he saw the beast only twenty steps away. The fox ran strictly to the call of the decoy. The hunter was in her way. About 15 meters away, the “redhead” stood up and began to carefully examine his figure. The gun barrels were pointed in the other direction, but he could not move. At that moment, I once again shouted into the decoy, and the fox, rushing to the call, found itself three meters from the shooter. He missed with his first shot, at point-blank range, and only caught the animal with the second.
The return was truly triumphant. Neighbors flocked to us all evening to look at the trophy. Unfortunately, we had to leave for Moscow in the morning, but there was a whole winter ahead, and most importantly, we were armed with a miracle decoy for forty kopecks.
S. Losev. Magazine "MASTERGUN" No. 156
Read the author's essay: Red-haired cheatand essays: Common fox: ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
FOX BIOLOGY: Reproduction Yu.A. GERASIMOV(Zagotizdat, Moscow, 1950)
On South Soviet Union at the end of winter, usually in January and February, and in mid-latitudes in February and March, foxes begin mating season- gon. At this time, you can often hear a kind of hoarse barking. It's the foxes barking.
By listening well to the voices of several animals, you can notice differences in them. Three abrupt howls ending in a drawn-out monophonic howl belong to the female. The barking of males is more frequent, abrupt, does not end with a howl and is very reminiscent of the short-term barking of a small mongrel. Such barking by foxes characterizes the beginning of the rut.
At large numbers foxes and under favorable conditions of their existence you can regularly hear the barking of one, and sometimes several foxes at once, every night for 2-3 weeks. This indicates that the animals have wintered well and their rutting is proceeding smoothly. In such a year, with a favorable spring, one should expect numerous fox litters with a large number of healthy puppies in each.
During the mating season, foxes often gather in groups and run in a line, forming so-called “fox weddings.” Such a wedding is usually headed by a female, followed by several males. Fights break out between males, which sometimes become violent. From the tracks left in the snow, one can imagine how fiercely the animals gnawed, sometimes standing against each other on their hind legs, sometimes grappling, how they rolled in a ball, leaving tufts of fur in the snow. If rivals meet in a hole, an equally fierce struggle ensues underground, usually ending in the flight of the weaker.
Mating in foxes, as in dogs, is accompanied by bonding, as a result of the formation of a bulb in the male - a thickening at the base of the genital organ due to the rush of blood to the cavernous bodies. The male and female can remain in a bound state for up to half an hour. If the foxes are suddenly frightened at this time, they will run away.
After mating, some pairs sometimes separate for a short time. In such cases, before whelping, males again compete with each other over pregnant females. After this, the foxes finally break into pairs, and the male, together with the female, actively participates in preparing the burrow and raising the young.
Foxes most often build pores in elevated, dry places with a deep level groundwater, digging them in a wide variety of landscape conditions. The burrows are fairly evenly distributed among fields and arable lands, in forests and forest edges, among hayfields and grazing meadows.
In steppe and desert zones with extensive open spaces foxes prefer the slopes of ravines, river and stream valleys, overgrown with bushes, where they usually dig holes or occupy free badgers.
In the spring, a pair of foxes sometimes clears several holes in their hunting area. This can be easily seen by the freshly raked heaps of sand and the animal tracks left on them.
In damp and swampy areas with a limited number of suitable places for burrowing, fox broods are often placed in adjacent burrows located at a distance of 100-200 meters. There are even cases of two broods settling in one burrow.
How often fox holes are found in various zones of the Soviet Union can be judged from the following data. In 1939, in the Spitsovsky district of the Stavropol Territory there were up to 50 burrows in an area of 40 square kilometers, and in the Arzgirsky district there were up to 100 burrows in the same area. In the Ural-Emben desert in 1935, only 3 burrows were discovered in the same area.
According to our research, in the Brovary district of the Kyiv region there were 8-9 burrows per area of 40 square kilometers in 1948/49, and in the Moscow region (Losinoostrovskoe farm) in 1938 - 12 burrows.
In the taiga regions Eastern Siberia(in the upper reaches of the Ushmuna, Boruna and Zund-Jila rivers and beyond the Yablonovy ridge to the valleys of the Gunda, Bulugunda and Chubuktuya rivers) in 1945/46 there was one fox hole per several hundred square kilometers.
Thus, the number of burrows in different areas is very different. This can serve as an indirect indicator of how suitable certain areas are for foxes to live.
When building burrows, foxes use small hillocks, slopes of ravines, crevices in rocks, embankments of ditches dug to drain swamps, and even trenches and basins left after military operations. Burrows are less common on the gentle slopes of swampy depressions.
The underground labyrinth of a hole, as a rule, is located in the most pliable layer of sand, sandy loam or light loam, the depth of which can vary from 50 to 250 centimeters. The steepness of the passages, the structure of the underground labyrinth and the depth of the nesting chamber - the lair - depend on this.
In the case of subsoil layers reaching the surface (in ravines, trenches, ditches), foxes dig 1, less often 2 entrance holes directly in the slope of a ravine or ditch and make a short, 2-3 meters long, corridor at a slight angle to the surface of the earth. Burrows of this type apparently serve as temporary shelter, since animals do not visit them regularly and puppies are not usually bred in them.
More often, foxes dig more complex underground passages with 2-3 holes and a nesting chamber - a lair located underground at a depth of more than a meter. The underground labyrinth of such burrows consists of 2-3 corridors with a diameter of 25-30 centimeters and a total length of 6-10 meters, which serve as passages to the lair. In some cases, underground passages are complicated by blind (without access to the surface of the earth) burrows 1-2 meters long, dug away from the nesting chamber or corridor. Usually, fox holes, contrary to the opinion of many hunters, are very simple in design and have 2-3 straight or slightly curved corridors - passages to the lair, which are located underground at a depth of 1-2 meters.
Old foxes or badger holes occupied by foxes turn out to be more difficult. In these cases, up to a dozen snouts come to the surface of the earth, and the underground labyrinth is dug at a depth of 2-3 meters and can consist of several corridors and many blind snouts with a total length of up to 30-40 meters.
There are no sharp temperature fluctuations in the depths of such pores. It was found that when the air temperature on the earth's surface changed from -8 to +27°, the temperature in the burrow's den (at a depth of 120 centimeters underground) varied from -2 to +17°, and in the passages at a depth of 250 centimeters - from 0 to +14°.
It should be noted that hot weather in residential fox holes at a depth of 1.5-2 meters and in the presence of an animal, the temperature did not rise above + 17°, and in winter cold did not fall below 0°.
It is also important to note that the concentration of water vapor in fox dens usually approaches saturated humidity even in steppe arid regions.
The nesting chamber is never penetrated Sun rays. In a complex underground labyrinth, even the smallest amount of scattered light enters the lair.
Consequently, old, deep underground holes turn out to be not only a reliable refuge for fox cubs, but also a unique habitat for them, where on a hot afternoon they can hide from the heat, and on rain and cold - from bad weather. In this regard, it becomes clear why foxes and their litters primarily occupy deep and complex burrows.
Foxes become very attached to their holes. If they are not disturbed, they breed puppies in the same places year after year.
Often, in old, extensive holes with numerous dens, a family of foxes settles together with a badger. In winter, a fox that is wounded or pursued by a dog very often takes refuge in a hole where a badger sleeps.
Hunters know of cases where a fox survived a badger from its hole. Some attribute this to the fox's cunning tricks, others - simply to her untidiness. However, in areas with a limited number of places for denning (for example, in northern Ukraine), we observed the opposite picture: badgers and raccoon dogs survived foxes from the holes they constantly occupied.
There are cases when completely helpless fox cubs are found in a hollow or under the snags of a fallen tree, in a crevice between stones or under a haystack. Such cases can be explained by the flooding of a burrow chosen by an inexperienced young female, or the relocation of a disturbed brood. Old females usually give birth in pre-prepared, secure burrows.
Fox- the first object of fur farming, which has been carried out since the end of the last century in Canada, and then in other countries. High prices for fur and breeding stock stimulated the development of the industry. With the development of mink farming, foxes began to be gradually replaced by them everywhere, and now fox farming has an insignificant share, although the demand for fox skins is international market there is also.
Silver-black foxes are mainly bred. The average size of males ranges from 66 to 72 cm, females - 63 - 68 cm. The average live weight of males is 6 - 7 kg, females - 5 - 6 kg. Sexual maturity in foxes occurs at 9 - 11 months, they reproduce normally until 6 - 7 years, with maximum productivity at 3 - 5 years of age. The lifespan of foxes is 10 - 12 years. Average fertility is 5 - 6 puppies per litter. A litter of 14 puppies was registered. The fruiting period is 51 - 52 days.
Currently, the following color forms of foxes are known: silver-black, black-brown, white-faced-platinum, white-faced silver-black, snow and other forms with various shades.
The peculiarity of fox reproduction is that it is monoestric, that is, they go into heat and hunt once a year, and if during this period the female is not covered, offspring from her can only be obtained the next year. Foxes are prepared for the rut from August-September, when their follicles begin to grow weakly. Insufficient and inadequate feeding of foxes during this period can lead to underdevelopment of the genital organs, which will negatively affect the reproduction of foxes.
Like other predatory animals, foxes begin to decrease their basal metabolism from the end of July, and reserves accumulate in their bodies. nutrients, as a result of which live weight by December increases by 35 + 40% compared to the summer period.
From approximately January 15 to 25 and later (February 1 to 15), individual females begin estrus and the state of sexual heat. Estrus usually lasts 5-10 days, and in young and old females up to 15-20 days. During the period of estrus, changes begin in the uterus, the walls of which thicken and prepare to receive embryos. The outer edges of the vagina swell, the loop “cleans” and becomes clearly visible even with a superficial examination. With the onset of heat, it becomes almost round and elastic, and during the period of heat it softens.
The state of hunting in foxes lasts 2 - 3 days, during which ovulation occurs. After the end of the hunt, a period of rest begins, the ovaries shrink and mature yellow bodies, the loop again becomes almost invisible in the hairline. The state of heat can only be repeated the next year. Only in very rare cases does the heat state repeat (even in coated females) after 5-7 days, and sometimes after 17 days. After secondary mating, the offspring in some cases appears from the first mating, in others - from the second. This is possible as a result of the non-simultaneous development of follicles in different ovaries.
Before the female comes into heat, the male usually does not pay attention to her. With the onset of estrus, the female and male become hostile to each other. Such animals should be connected 2-3 times. If the hostile attitude does not change, another male is selected for the female, otherwise she may remain uncovered.
When the female comes into heat, the male stays close to her and periodically sniffs her. In the following days, characteristic games begin between them, and even before the onset of sexual heat, some males make attempts to mate, but the female snaps and does not allow mating. The female, who is in a state of hunting, as the male approaches, takes a characteristic pose, turning her tail to the side.
During the rutting period, males are quite active and many of them can mate with females 2 times a day. Some males cover up to 25 females during the rutting period with normal polygamy 1:5 - 1:6. If a male is not placed with females in heat for a long time, the function of his testes fades.
If a female needs to be covered only by the male attached to her, and the latter does not pay attention to her, despite obvious signs of sexual heat, then they resort to “inducing jealousy.” The female is taken to another male for 10 - 20 minutes, not allowing mating with him. After the female returns, the male usually covers her immediately. Blowing off steam is carried out in the morning, when the animals are most active. During morning feeding, the connection of males with females begins half an hour after feeding. It is most effective to cover the female on the second day of the hunt.
Mating in foxes lasts from several minutes to two or more hours.
Pregnancy of foxes lasts from 49 to 56 days. Pregnancy is delayed due to insufficient diet, especially vitamin B deficiency. With appropriate skills, on the 18th - 20th day you can determine pregnancy by palpation; on the 25th - 30th day, pregnancy diagnosis becomes easier. When palpated, single females are identified, which, if they have good pubescence, are killed. In pregnant females, molting begins earlier than in unfertilized ones.
On the 51st - 52nd day of pregnancy, maternal instincts arise in females, and a slight release of colostrum is observed. 10 - 15 days before the expected whelping, the female's house is prepared. The house must be protected from the cold, disinfected, and the nest must be lined with insulating material.
It shouldn't be hot in the house. Sometimes the entire house is filled with clean straw and the females make a nest in it themselves.
2 - 3 days before whelping, females begin to shed hair around their nipples. The females remove it and at this time you can see foxes with fluff stuck to their faces - one of the sure signs of imminent whelping. On the eve of whelping, females refuse food and do not leave the nest.
Childbirth usually begins in the morning and lasts 1.5 - 2 hours. The time between the appearance of the penultimate and last puppy can sometimes be up to a day. After the birth of each puppy, the female licks it, clearing it of the placenta, which she eats and places it on her nipples. Milk usually begins to come out during birth, and the puppies begin suckling immediately.
After whelping, the nests are inspected. Healthy puppies lie in a pile, dry. Weak pups are scattered throughout the nest. It is necessary to examine everyone and, if necessary, place the weaker ones with nurses and feed them with a 3 - 4% solution of ascorbic acid with glucose in a dose of 1 - 1.5 ml.
Newborn puppies weigh 80 - 100 g, are covered with short dark pubescence, their eyes are closed, there are no teeth, their ears are covered with skin.
To warm frozen puppies, “incubators” are built, where the temperature is maintained at about 20 - 25 ° C. The warmed puppies are placed near the nipples of the mother, who is held on the table with her muzzle tied up by two people. You can feed puppies with goat's milk heated to 30 - 35°C.
If the female cannot give birth on her own, she is provided with obstetric care, pulling up the emerging puppies in time with the attempts.
Sometimes women in labor exhibit cannibalism when, after eating stillborn puppies, they also devour living ones. In such cases, the surviving puppies are placed in an incubator, and the female is discarded. The cause of death of all puppies is determined and conclusions are drawn about the further use of the female.
Puppies grow and develop quickly. Until two weeks of age, they are completely helpless and feed on their mother’s milk. The eyes open on the 14th - 17th day, at the same time teeth begin to erupt, which all grow by the age of one month. With teething, the muzzle, which until now was dull, stretches out. From the age of 3 months, the replacement of baby teeth with permanent ones begins; by 5 months, molars are formed.
In the first 4 - 5 months, significant changes occur in the puppies' physique. From being short-legged, they become long-legged, grow in length, and by 6-7 months the physique of the young animals approaches the physique of adult animals. By 7 months of age, the live weight of fox cubs reaches 5 - 7.5 kg. slight growth of foxes continues after the onset of puberty. Males are 5 - 10% heavier than females.
Summer pubescence of fox cubs after birth is black without silver coloring. With the growth of winter pubescence, the silvery coloration increases.
For the first 2.5 - 3 weeks, fox cubs feed only on mother's milk. When milk production is low, they are fed with heated goat's milk, and then cow's milk with the addition of egg yolk or good minced meat.
As soon as the puppies begin feeding, the female stops eating their feces and cleaning is necessary to maintain cleanliness in the cage.
At 45-50 days of age, the puppies are separated from the female. With a sharp decrease in female lactation, puppies can be separated at 35 - 40 days. A gradual placement of puppies is practiced, when the weakest puppies are left under the mother for 2 - 3 days.
When transplanting, if possible, fox cubs of the same age and temperament are placed in the same cage. Breeding young animals are best kept in lighter cages. This promotes the timely development of genital organs in animals. They are fed in hopes of being well prepared for reproduction.
Culled young animals and adult animals are slaughtered in mid-November. Breeding young animals are transferred to a common diet with the main herd.
Breeding young animals can be purchased at the Obodovtsy collective farm in the Vileika district, the Baranovichi fur farm and other farms.
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Briefly about the fox.
Ordinary or red fox- the most common and largest species of the fox genus. An individual plot occupied by a pair or family of foxes must provide them not only with a sufficient amount of food, but also with places suitable for making burrows. Meanwhile, foxes usually use permanent shelters only during the period of raising cubs.
Like the wolf, the fox is a monogamous animal that breeds once a year. The time of the rut and its effectiveness depend on the weather and the fatness of the animals. There are years when up to 60% of females are left without offspring. A female is often courted by two or three males, and bloody fights occur between them.
Let us also note that foxes - good parents. Males accept equally with females Active participation in raising offspring, and also take care of friends even before the cubs appear. They improve the burrows and even catch fleas from females.
The litter contains from 4 to 12 puppies, initially covered with dark brown hair. Outwardly, they resemble wolf cubs, but differ in the white tip of the tail. They begin to see and hear at two weeks of age. In general, from the time of the rut to the final exit of the fox cubs from the hole, about six months pass. At the same time, young animals that leave the parental den are usually located at a distance of 2 to 30 km from it.
Among the fox's senses, the most developed are smell and hearing; vision is much less developed - therefore, for example, a fox can come very close to a motionless sitting or standing person from the windy side.
During the rut and simply in a state of excitement, the fox emits a sharp, loud bark. The male barks, almost like a dog, without howling, the female makes a triple “bark”, which ends with a short howl. IN wildlife Foxes rarely live more than seven years, often life expectancy does not exceed three. In captivity, animals live up to 20-25 years.
Source: http://www.viptrophy.com/
Fox hunting.
Many people hunt foxes here. This is one of the most popular hunts. The methods of prey are literally inexhaustible in terms of imagination - from corralling on horseback and hunting with a golden eagle to luring by a mouse squeak and lying in wait at the bait. With flags, a fox is hunted in much the same way as a wolf, but it is much easier to hunt it this way, because it diurnal cycle much shorter than that of its gray brother. If hunters know fox dens, then the hunt can begin right from the salary.
The fox walks around the most likely places for its day in a circle, sticking to clearings, sight lines, paths and roads, i.e., the most open places, so as not to frighten off the animal prematurely. If it is known that there are badger or fox burrows in the hunting area, they must be “cut out” from the frame or surrounded with flags, otherwise during the rut the fox will be denuded and it will be impossible to get it without burrowing dogs.
When staking, you need to especially carefully inspect old tracks and hare trails, using which the fox can get out of the staking before being flagged. If, after the salary, the number of input tracks exceeds the number of output tracks, the animal is considered taxed. It is more difficult to resolve the issue when equal number input and output traces. In this case Special attention pay attention to the freshness of the traces. If the morning entrance trail is fresh, the salary must be flagged.
To attract foxes, bait is laid out - usually the carcass of a dead domestic animal. It is best to place it in a high and necessarily open place, but not far from forests, bushes and other areas favorable for foxes to spend their day. If the bait has tall, single trees, magpies and crows fly and land on them, helping the animals detect the bait. In addition, it has long been noticed that a fox is more willing to take bait that has been pecked by birds than one that has not been touched. Having had enough, the fox settles down for the day at a relatively short distance from the bait. For fox hunting, a two-kilometer set of flags is usually sufficient. In those places where they did not hunt with flags and the animals are not frightened, it is possible to make small frames, up to 1 km long. The flags are hung so that their ends touch the surface of the snow. It is advisable to conduct the hunt in a closed circle, and two people are enough to participate in it: the shooter and the beater.
You need to chase the fox calmly, without shouting. Started from her prone position, she walks along the line of flags looking for a way out and eventually stumbles upon the shooter.
Hunting can be simplified with some experience and in places where the animal is not frightened. When laying down the animal, the cord with flags is not hung on the bushes, but placed directly on the surface of the snow. You can hunt with flags until the end of the hunting season. For a hunter, fox hunting with hounds is of great interest. For this hunt you need a dog that is fast enough and, most importantly, sticky, capable of not leaving a trace, even if the animal has taken it far from its owner. They go out hunting before dawn to catch the fox feeding. A fox raised from a bed or intercepted on the move often goes in a straight line for a considerable distance, sometimes up to 5 km, leading the dogs with it. As a rule, after some time the fox returns back to the area of its permanent habitat, which is more familiar to it, and here it continues to walk in small circles.
The size of the fox's circle depends on the terrain conditions and the quality of the dogs. Frisky or, as they say, “paired” dogs force the fox to make large, regular circles, and “foot” hounds allow the animal to walk for a long time in a small volume, in small irregular circles.
Hearing the approaching rut, the hunter must quickly stand on the supposed hole of the animal. Such a hole can be a road intersection, the intersection of a road and a clearing or two clearings, or narrow valleys. If the hunter “re-saw” the fox, but she is out of range, you should carefully move to the place where she just passed: the fox likes to follow its own trail. The fox avoids open, clean places during the rut. It crosses the clearings in the narrowest places, taking advantage of the cover of individual bushes and uneven terrain: ditches, depressions and even road ditches.
When choosing a hole, the hunter should leave as few traces as possible on the rutting areas. You must stand quietly on the manhole and not make sudden movements; you should even raise your gun when an animal approaches only when it is already within a sure shot.
Often during such a hunt, a fox takes refuge from the hounds in its hole, if the entrance to it has not been previously blocked by hunters. In order to catch a burrowing fox, some amateur hunters use burrowing dogs - dachshunds and terriers.
The duration of a fox hunt with a hound depends on the conditions of the year. It begins with the opening of the hunting season for fur-bearing animals, and ends when deep snow makes it difficult for the dog to work.
Stealth hunting is a difficult, but interesting and very sporting way. Before the snow falls, it is almost impossible to notice a mouse-like fox against the background of yellow-brown vegetation, so the hunt begins with the appearance of a white trail. The most convenient places for such hunting will be open lands with soft terrain: meadows and fields interspersed with small copses, islands of bushes, ravines and lowlands overgrown with weeds, wide floodplains big rivers and so on..
You should go hunting at dawn, when the fox is still feeding. Carefully examining the area, the hunter moves around the land, trying to stay against the wind. Field binoculars and a camouflage robe can be of great help here. When a feeding fox is discovered, the hunter must determine the general direction of its movement and, depending on the terrain conditions, either hide the animal using natural shelters, or try to go forward and wait for its approach.
When hunting a fox from the approach, some hunters use a decoy, with which they imitate the squeak of a mouse, or imitate its squeak by sucking in air and pressing back side palms to lips. The fox can detect the squeak of a mouse at a distance of up to 300 m. You need to voice infrequently, at intervals, and freeze when the animal becomes alert. The success of this hunt depends entirely on the endurance and skill of the hunter. In some areas, they use a decoy to imitate the cry of a hare.
During years of abundance of mouse-like rodents, foxes feeding in daylight are rarely seen: they are quite content with hunting at night.
At the end of winter, in February, when the foxes begin the rut, approach hunting is the most productive. During this period, foxes often walk during the day, and are found not only in pairs, but also in groups of 3-5 individuals. Hunters call such groups a “fox wedding.” They usually consist of a female and several males pursuing her. Having noticed the foxes, the hunter tries to identify the female by their behavior and, having dispersed the animals, pursues her, driving her away for 1-1.5 km. Then, camouflaged near the female’s trail, the hunter waits for the males to return.
They also hunt mouse foxes together, combining the approach with a drive. At the same time, one of the hunters tries to quietly move forward along the path of the animal, and the other carefully points it at his comrade.
Experienced hunters successfully catch a fox by tracking through fresh snow. By the nature of the legacy, they determine the fox that has finished the hunt and is heading to bed. In the forest, a fox lies down near a tree trunk, on hummocks, stumps or under a root inversion, and in open places among the fields - in ravines, in bushes and weeds. Well-fed foxes sleep very soundly and often allow a close shot. It is easier to approach them on soft snow in warm weather and on windy days.
Foxes are also shot while lying in wait at a specially placed bait - carrion.
In nature, foxes can most often be heard during the rutting season, which in mid-latitudes occurs in February and March. Under favorable conditions, it is possible to regularly, every night, for two to three weeks, listen to the voice of one, and sometimes several foxes at once. Foxes are especially vocal on cold nights. The signal characteristic of this period of fox life is a series of sounds consisting of four to eight barks. To the ear it is perceived as a fast, melodic “ko-ko-ko-ko-ko”. Some naturalists believe that a series of three abrupt barks ending in a drawn-out monophonic howl belongs to the female. The bark of males is cleaner, abrupt, without howling. However, it should be noted that experts in the field of sound communication do not find a connection between the nature of vocalization and the gender of foxes. Judging by the sound behavior of other canines, in particular domestic dogs, then this opinion should apparently be considered fair.
The rutting signal of foxes, often called a barking strophe in specialized literature, serves to establish contact between males and females located at a great distance. If a male comes into close contact with a female, he emits a rhythmic stanza of grunts. With strong excitement during the rut, the barking stanza takes on a strictly defined form and consists of a typical number of individual sounds for each individual.
During the mating season, foxes often gather in groups and run in a line, forming so-called fox weddings: usually there is a female in front and several males behind her. Fierce fights often break out between males, which are accompanied by threatening signals typical of the agonistic behavior of these animals - piercing screams, similar to the wail of a siren.
During agonistic behavior, foxes emit warning cries, which serve as a signal for restructuring the partner’s behavior. Most often this is a low-frequency, long-lasting growl, which in some cases can be mixed with barks, squeals, yelps and snorts. An increase in the animal's excitement in alarming situations that cause it to growl causes its breathing to increase and, at the same time, the sounds it makes to break up - an intermittent bark occurs. But barking, compared to yapping, is still a longer sound. Yelping is perceived as a louder sound. The spectra of these signals also differ significantly. Barking is a sound signal accompanying the moment of an attack, but it can also serve as a warning to other animals about danger; in the latter case, its duration increases.
The agonistic behavior of foxes is also associated with various other signals: squeals, trills, trembling or trembling sounds, whining and screams. Often in this situation, yelping is combined with elements of squealing, which indicate the subordinate nature of the relationship: the signal of subordinate individuals sounds louder than the yelping of the dominant animal. Sound signals are combined with corresponding body movements: the subordinate animal wags its tail, presses its ears, and stretches its lips.
The spectra of most sound reactions characteristic of the agonistic behavior of foxes are close, having common feature- wide-bandwidth. The differences relate mainly to the duration of the signals and the presence of certain high-frequency components in them. The appearance of the latter is apparently associated with an increase in the level of arousal of the animal in the event of a conflict. The squealing and whining of a subordinate individual at the climax of a fight has such a wide range. The spectra of trills and trembling sounds are characterized by the presence of the same two well-defined maxima. But these sounds differ sharply in their duration: the longer sound is the trill. The shortest sounds of foxes are yelps. It is known that a loud yelp is produced by a subordinate animal, and a dull yelp is produced by a dominant animal. Depending on the social status The frequency characteristics and whining of foxes change: in the dominant individual the frequency of this sound is lower than in the subordinate.
Fights between foxes die down only at the end of the rutting period, and peace and silence reign in the forest. In the repertoire of sounds of these animals, the barking stanza is retained only for a while. But now it serves for communication within the couple. It often sounds like a weakly articulated "coo-coo-coo-coo-coo" and is different from the "co-co-co-co-co" tone. greater height. At the end of the rut, some pairs separate, and before whelping, individual males again compete over pregnant females. Only after this do the foxes finally break into pairs, and the male, together with the female, takes an active part in preparing the burrow, and then in raising the young. A month after mating, the male begins to bring prey to the hole. At the same time, he grumbles and whines. The stanza of barking is still combined with these sounds, but then it gradually disappears. Increasingly, the inviting grunt of the male is heard at the time of delivery of food to the hole: a low, frequently repeated “oof-oof-oof”. Hearing this sound, the female, busy with the newly born fox cubs, comes out of the hole.
