Wildlife Alert - from the Hillsborough Health Department

There have been recent reports of peculiar behavior of a fox in the western portion of town.  Typically, foxes are friendly and do not pose much of a threat to humans or house pets and will often scurry away from human interaction, except when they are rabid, which is very rare, or when they are captured and handled. (Rabies is a deadly disease caused by a virus that is found in the saliva and central nervous system fluid of a rabid animal and can be passed onto humans or another animal.)  Even then, a fox's natural tendency is to flee rather than fight.


As a reminder, please do not feed the foxes or any wildlife (deer, racoon, squirrel, etc.).

Avoid touching wild animals.  . While most foxes are solitary creatures and keep to themselves, others, such as urban foxes, have learned to live alongside humans. Foxes make a variety of sounds and also communicate using their tails and other methods.


If you encounter a fox, stay silent, stand well away from the animal, and give the fox an escape route, and just leave it to run away.  If in their curiosity they approach you, clap and shout to scare them away. You want to teach them that humans are a danger and to avoid us. For pets, keep them on a leash to avoid any encounters. Keeping pets under our control while outdoors is always our advice to avoid conflicts with wildlife.


If you see a fox or other wildlife behaving unusually, please call the Hillsborough Police Department 908-369-4323 or Animal Control Solutions at 908-722-1271.