Skip to content

Fox cubs prepared for life back in the wild

An animal welfare centre is slowly reintroducing a number of fox cubs into the wild after they were rescued by volunteers.

The RSPCA Oak and Furrows centre in Wiltshire has been over-run with 16 fox cubs.

Since April, the centre has released five of them back into the wild.

Animal care technician Emily Elliott said if you have them in your garden "you will hear them calling in the night".

"It will take them a few months, about the same time they would leave mum is the same time we'll release them," she said.

Follow BBC Wiltshire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

9 May 2024

Explore More

Three lion cubs feeding from their mother

First African lion cubs born at zoo in 17 years

Beds, Herts & Bucks

BBC reporter, Megan Davies, is central looking at the camera. She in presenting the social video. On her left is are images of a dog and a traditonal fox hunting helmet. On her right is a fox. All three images have been photo edited into the shot rather than placed there. On the table is a coffee insulation cup

Are people still fox hunting?

Bernard and Twinkle the vultures perched on a log, in a cage, looking towards each other

Arthritic vulture reunited with partner after jab

Two dairy cow calves, with black and white patterns, standing in on hay and in a pen.

Cow has four calves in 'one-in-11 million' birth

Two rhinos stand close together in their enclosure, one is an adult and the other is a calf

Rhino calf with feeding issue now stomping around

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Curlew, brown bird with speckled wings, mid-flight

The curlew's return to Lower Lough Erne

Elephants wade through floodwaters at sanctuary

Watch: Elephants escape floodwaters in Thailand

A screen grab from a camera inside an owl nesting box. It shows a mother owl and her four chicks. The mother owl and one of the chicks both have small rodents in their beaks.

A bird's-eye view inside a baby barn owl nest

Northern Ireland

Maddie with the two binmen

Meet the dog brightening up a weekly bin round

Northern Ireland

Gentoo penguin chick standing sideways and looking at the camera with ice and a wall behind it

Penguin chick takes its first swim at aquarium

Hull & East Yorkshire

Thousands of dead fish are seen on the salt marsh beach in Volos, Thessaly, Greece

Thousands of floating dead fish blanket Greek port

A gold and green leopard frog peers out of some leaves

Endangered leopard frogs released into the wild

A bear eats honey off a measuring stick

Watch: Bears tempted with honey into zoo weigh-in

Beds, Herts & Bucks

Two swimmers look at an oarfish on a paddle-board with one man atop the board

Rare ‘doomsday’ oarfish spotted off California coast

Tortoise on a railway track.

Watch: Tortoise spotted walking on railway tracks

Cow and man sitting together

What is it like to cuddle a cow?

Stella the cat meows at her front door

Is this London’s most adventurous cat?

A panda is seen on screen

San Diego debuts first giant pandas from China in decades

Dog looking at mattress on fire

Moment dog sparks house fire after chewing power bank

A wildcat snuggling under a tree

Wildcat kitten caught on thermal imaging camera

Crowds gathered at Stonehenge

Timelapse shows winter solstice sunrise at Stonehenge

Crowds gathered at Stonehenge on Saturday morning to mark the annual winter solstice.

Floodwater overwhelming a weir in Chippenham.

Town experiences 'worst flooding since the 1960s'

Residents and businesses in Chippenham are cleaning-up after flooding caused by Storm Bert.

An aerial shot of a playground in Bradford-on-Avon submerged in floodwater

Wiltshire town submerged in Storm Bert flood water

Parts of Chippenham are submerged in flood water after it was battered by Storm Bert.

Funeral of Ivor Gardner

Wiltshire D-Day veteran dies aged 104

He fought his way into Germany before guarding prisoners of war, only returning home in 1946.

Salisbury Cathedral as the backdrop to illuminations

Stunning Illumination showcase returns to Cathedral

The installation explores humanity’s connection with time through soundscapes and visual display.

view from the spire of Salisbury Cathedral

Changing the bulb on UK's tallest cathedral spire

Staff climb more than 400ft to change the Salisbury Cathedral spire light bulb every four years.

Two parrots looking at eachother

Couple love showing people their 20 rescued parrots

David and Gill Vickery give a home to a host of birds after taking in two cockatiels 40 years ago.

A man and a woman dressed in Regency clothing. He is wearing a purple tunic with gold buttons, and she has a pink and white dress on with a blue frilly bonnet.

Jane Austen fans step back in time for festival

Regency costumes and afternoon tea for fans from around the world at annual gathering.

Lyneham Banks in Wiltshire. The road is wonky with fallen trees after a landslip.

Repair work begins on Wiltshire's 'wonkiest road'

The construction team working on the road say it is a "challenging" task.

Two skydivers prepare to jump from a plane above countryside on a sunny day

Skydivers take on Armed Forces Championships

More than 100 skydivers are competing for medals in the skies over Wiltshire.

Dan Thomas sitting on a tattoo couch holding the leg of his shorts up to show the tattoo, which is the Euros cup with the words: "England Euro 2024 Winners"

England fan admits Euro winners tattoo is 'bonkers'

But Dan Thomas says he is confident the Three Lions will win at Euro 2028.

Brian Matthews

New Lib Dem MP says party will be 'tail wagging Labour dog'

Brian Matthew is the new MP for the Devizes and Melksham constituency.

Man holding hand up to face while holding mobile phone and drink can

'What is wrong with you?' - Tory team object to filming

Members of the former Chippenham MP's team attempted to stop cameras filming her departure.

Robert Buckland

Former MP 'fed up with performance art politics'

Former MP Robert Buckland said he wanted the Conservatives to get back to 'doing stuff well'

A crowd watches a brass band play on the lawn of a hospice in Wiltshire.

Royal Marine musicians play for bandmate 'one last time'

The Royal Marine Band plays for one of its band members Sophie, who is terminally ill.

Doris sitting on a bench

'I'm doing it for the residents' - woman, 100, walking laps of care home

Doris Maslen, a resident at Marden Court in Calne, Wiltshire, walks up to two laps a day.

The sun visible at sunset through one of the structures at stonehenge

Stonehenge celebration takes place after powder paint protest

English Heritage say they removed the paint ahead of thousands of people celebrating the summer solstice.

Summer solstice at Stonehenge

'It's a spiritual experience, completely moving'

Summer solstice is one of the rare occasions when visitors can touch the stones.

Domenico Mazzotta is celebrating 50 years of serving ice creams to the people of Wiltshire.

Celebrating 50 years of serving ice cream

Domenico Mazzotta is celebrating five decades of serving summer treats to the people of Wiltshire.

A view of a police dashcam with a small motorbike in the distance on a rural road

Biker avoids jail after 120mph rush-hour chase

Dashcam footage shows a motorcyclist travelling down the road at speeds in excess of 120mph.