She was halfway down the trail when movement caught her eye; something small and rust-colored slipping between the trees.
At first, the woman from Pennsylvania thought it was nothing unusual, just another animal passing through. But then she noticed something around its neck that didn’t belong.
It gleamed faintly in the light, tight against the fur, almost blending in with the leaves.
The animal froze when she did, head low, breathing quickly. She couldn’t tell what she was looking at, only that it looked wrong. Her camera lowered. Curiosity shifted to concern.
And in that still moment between them, she realized this wasn’t just a chance encounter; it was a call for help.
The Animal Was Desperate For Help
It started out as an ordinary day for Julie Bernstein when she looked out of the window and saw an animal that needed her help.
At first, it wasn’t clear what it was, but then it dawned on her: it was a fox and he had something around his neck.
She called Aark Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center (Aark) in Pennsylvania in order to set up a camera and see where he was moving the whole time.
The woman realized there was a piece of tubing stuck on the fox’s neck and it was causing him a lot of problems.
Amanda Leyden, who works at Aark, told The Dodo: “The object around his neck was likely a section of drainage pipe. Small animals sometimes take shelter in these pipes, and a curious fox may stick its head inside to investigate or hunt, only to find itself stuck when trying to back out.”
Aark told Bernstein that the simplest solution to this problem was to catch the fox and bring him over to them so they could help.
In order to help the fox, Bernstein first needed to befriend him. He was scared of humans, so the plan was to help him relax a little bit.
Tubey Was A Really Healthy Fox
She set up a feeding station near her property, and she kept monitoring the fox the whole time. After a while, she decided to set up a humane trap.
As days went by, the fox got closer to the trap and Bernstein’s plan was working. She said: “Foxes are extremely intelligent and cautious. So this process took quite a bit of time and patience.”
The fox, now named Tubey, eventually got into the trap and the rescue was successful. After catching him, she found out that he was in excellent shape.
Now that he was safe, he was taken to Aark, where the rescuers sedated him and got started on the process of removing the tube around his neck.
He was also examined for other potential health problems, but Tubey was just a really healthy fox. There wasn’t much more they could do for him after removing the tube.
Leyden said: “Once Tubey woke up fully from sedation, he appeared noticeably calmer. He settled comfortably in his crate, alert but no longer panicked, which was a big change from his arrival.”
Once everything was taken care of, Bernstein took the fox back to where she first spotted him and allowed him to go back to his natural habitat. It’s pretty amazing how everything turned out so well for him.
