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I thought your many, many thousands of readers might like to see this fox mother and her one remaining cub.
I now leave scraps once or twice a week, and over time, I’ve had the un-believeable pleasure of watching this mother rear her three cubs. Alas, only one of the cubs remain.
Maybe it’s the red hair, the sly nature, the bouts of persecution, being chased by angry mobs, and, above all, that great survival instinct, but there’s something distinctly Irish about foxes…
Of course, as man claims more and more of nature to build houses, sports halls and palaces of fun, there’s something increasingly Palestinian about foxes these days too.
Luckily, around here, they’ve got people like Maurice Dodd on the prowl. Aiding and abetting his fellow man with his home maintenance outfit Heat Tech (really will have to change that name), Maurice is also Greystones’ answer to David Attenborough – or is he Jane Goody in a checked shirt? Either way, the lad is a noted animal lover, having a veritable mini-zoo at his Charlesland home. With pride of place going to Daisy, the hedgehog.
When Maurice recently came across some hungry foxes in Greystones, well, he did what any self-respecting animal lover would do. He befriended them, and began feeding the little fellas, on a twice-weekly basis. In a blatant attempt to impress girls.
Over to you, Maurice…
I thought your many, many thousands of readers might like to see this fox mother and her one remaining cub.
I saw a dead fox on the Farrankelly road early on in the year and figured they were in the Charlesland area – so, I had a look around and picked a spot I thought looked promising.
I’d leave out a few scraps of food once ot twice a week, until, finally, after about 3 weeks, from the corner of my eye, I spotted movement. It was the fox. My patience paid off.
I now leave scraps once or twice a week, and over time, I’ve had the un-believeable pleasure of watching this mother rear her three cubs. Alas, only one of the cubs remain.
In the same area, I’ve also seen barn owls, with one landing about 4 meters away – it’s extremely rare to see them that close-up – plus, hedgehogs, bats, all right in the heart of a busy town like Greystones. Just goes to show, nature is all around and in Wicklow we are lucky to have so much on our doorstep.
Nature doesn’t need much – just the tiniest little bit of awareness…
That’s deep, Maurice. Really deep. You hippy.
Below, two video clips from the fantastic Mr. Dodd, as he feeds his new best friends in the wilds of Greystones…