Urban foxes have successfully colonized cities worldwide but face welfare challenges from vehicle collisions, mange, deliberate persecution, and conflicts with residents who view them negatively.
Urban foxes occupy an ambiguous position in human society — admired by some as charismatic wildlife and resented by others as pests. This ambiguity means welfare-compromising attitudes exist alongside genuine care for fox wellbeing. Mange causes prolonged suffering characterized by intense itching, skin damage, and eventual fatal weakness, and is treatable in urban foxes with appropriate medication. Vehicle collisions represent a massive and preventable welfare burden. Improving urban fox welfare requires both reducing threats and building community tolerance through education about fox behavior and ecology.