Last winter I had been putting out my usual fare for the local wildlife and it had been disappearing as normal but as I had recently seen a feral cat nearby I wasn’t sure if the cat was the one enjoying my impromptu restaurant. Interestingly whoever it was was leaving me a little thank you after the meal by marking their territory inside the food bowl so I was hopeful that it was a fox rather than the feral cat but I wanted to know for sure.
The days gradually got longer and warmer and I had been aware that I was being watched for quite some time, but it was difficult to see who was observing me from the hedges or the long grass as I put out the daily meal so I decided to carry on with my feeding station even though winter was long gone. As time progressed my observer got more courageous and would watch me openly in the field as I went about my jobs knowing that once I had finished I would go and get his lunch. He was a lovely fox with a red/grey coat and he allowed me to get ever closer to the point that he would observe me from only 5 or 6 feet away and would often sit relaxing in my field enjoying the sun while I went about my horsey chores. I always talked to him and told him that I had to finish what I was doing before I could go and get his lunch. Once I had decanted the food into the bowl and retreated back to the stile leading to my garden I would turn around and see that he was already enjoying his meal and I felt quite proud that I had won his trust and lucky to have the chance to see one of our iconic wild creatures at such close quarters.