Urban foxes are among the most visible urban wildlife species, facing significant welfare challenges from mange, road traffic, persecution and territorial competition in increasingly dense urban environments.
Urban fox welfare is complex because their welfare challenges are both environmental (road trauma, disease) and human-caused (poisoning, persecution, trap injury). Mange-affected foxes suffer intensely - the disease causes hair loss, severe itching, thickening skin and death within weeks if untreated. The Fox Project provides mange treatment through neighbourhood volunteer networks - a genuinely impactful welfare intervention. Urban foxes are not pests but part of urban ecosystems, and their welfare deserves the same consideration as urban wildlife more broadly. Public attitudes that dismiss fox welfare ('just a fox') create barriers to reporting and treating suffering animals that are no less sentient than companion animals.