Hi everyone!

Thanks for joining us. I’m  Jessi, and this is Seraphina the red fox.

She’s in a pretty frisky mood right now and  she actually doesn’t really like the camera,   so she’ll probably be running around being  curious and rowdy while we’re in here with her. I’d like to give you an update on how  Seraphina is doing because not too long ago,   her life companion, Cas the Arctic fox,  passed away, leaving Seraphina on her own. [CHEERY INTRO MUSIC]. So this is going to be a story, it has ups  and downs, and because this is real life,   it doesn’t have a nice tidy ending.

I’m sharing  the story with you because it sheds some light   on some of the struggles of caring  for animals at a rescue center. So Seraphina is just about 10 years  old, and she’s been at Animal Wonders   since she was a really young kit. She was originally born at a fur farm and  came to live here so she could become an   ambassador for her species instead of being  turned into a fur coat for someone to wear.

A few months later, she was joined by a  young and feisty Arctic fox kit named Cas,   and the two of them became fast friends.  They had many adventures together, playing,   running, and giving educational presentations  in schools and to the public. Life was good. When they were around eight years old, we learned  that Cas had cancer in his leg, so we knew we had   to think ahead for Seraphina’s well-being,  while we did everything we could for Cas.

Foxes often live mostly solitary  lives in the wild, but can have   positive interactions with others. Now in  captivity, foxes will often enjoy the company   of other foxes. And since Seraphina showed a  strong attachment to Cas, we thought it was   in her best interest to make sure she didn’t  end up living alone if Cas were to pass away.

So, we kept an eye out for any foxes  that might be a good companion for Sera,   and when we learned of Tigli, a young Arctic fox  who was in need of a safe and knowledgeable home,   we made arrangements to have him come  to Animals Wonders and meet Seraphina. Unfortunately, after a promising introduction,  . Tigli ended up not liking our sweet girl, and  he bit her causing serious damage.

Tigli also   didn’t like to interact with humans, and we  knew he could be much happier somewhere else,   so in the spring he moved to Texas  and is doing great in his new home. Shortly after, we were contacted  and asked to take in a young red fox   that was severely ill and needed  immediate medical attention. When she came in, Ariel had a broken leg and  was very sick, but she surprised all of us when   she pulled through and started gaining her  strength back.

As we got to know her more,   we had high hopes that she could be just the  right personality to be a companion for Seraphina. Now often two female foxes, or vixens, can have  trouble getting along, but due to neurological   impairment, Ariel was gentle and calm, which would  make her even more likely to get along with Seraphina. Unfortunately, while Ariel seemed to have overcome  her illnesses, she unexpectedly passed away in the   early fall before she was introduced to Sera and  Cas.

We were heartbroken, but at the same time   I’m so, so grateful that we were able to give  Ariel a really good life while she was here. A few months after that, Cas also passed away.  Our hearts have been heavy but again, I’m still   grateful we were able to give Cas a wonderful life and he had Seraphina as a steadfast friend through it all.   So, even though the loss of an animal  hurts, I’d do it all again if I had the choice. After Cas's passing, Seraphina was noticeably different. She did get to say goodbye to him   so she was hopefully not  expecting him to come back.   She spent a few days with less activity  than normal, but soon she perked up again.

It’s been a few months since Sera has been on  her own, and the biggest changes in her behavior   are that she spends quite a bit more  time lounging on her favorite perch   looking out the window. And she gets  really excited when we come to visit. She used to greet me with tail wags and a few  happy screams, but now she runs around screaming   more enthusiastically and for longer.

And then  she follows the happy screams with coming over   for lots of neck and face rubs and is  overall very interested in being social. Now I could make a guess and say that she’s  lonely, but I don’t want to put that human   emotion label on her because we can never  tell what an animal is really thinking.   She could also be more bored, or she could  be simply enjoying the space to herself. To make sure she was transitioning  to living alone in the best way,   we immediately increased the time we spent with  her each day and gave her new engaging enrichment.

She got new branches, some new  soil for all the good smells,   she got new toys and a wide variety of foods, so there was plenty to keep her busy.   We also noticed that she began  digging a den in her dirt floored space,   and it’s since become quite deep. So she’s  been finding ways to entertain herself as well. We’re not sure what the future holds  for Seraphina and our fox saga,   but we’re keeping our minds and ears  open for whatever comes next because   we’re never sure what is going to  happen or who might be needing a home.

All we can do is to be as prepared as possible  and make the best decisions that we can   with what we know. I can promise  you that we’ll always lead with love   and keep the animal’s well-being as our priority. Thanks for watching!

I hope you have a better  understanding about some of the challenges   that come with animal rescue. You can’t  always know what’s going to happen,   and best laid plans don’t always work out. If you'd like to help support our efforts to  rescue animals in need and share their stories,   you can join our community on Patreon  by going to patreon.com/animalwonders.   Your monthly support will keep us  going, and you get fun perks in return.

And if you’d like to continue  going on animal adventures with us,   be sure to subscribe and we’ll see you soon! Bye! [BOLD OUTRO MUSIC].