Valley foxes turning up dead

Emaciated, dead fox found near the Grand Valley Canal at 26 Road, seen August 1. (Photo: Anne Landman)

Three dead foxes have been reported in the Grand Valley within the last 6 weeks, all looking like they just dropped dead in their tracks, without overt injuries or bleeding. Two have been reported to the Colorado Department of Wildlife.

The first one was spotted August 1 on the south side of the Grand Valley Canal just east of 26 Road.

A second dead fox was spotted August 28 in the vacant lots behind Crossroads Blvd., also near the Grand Valley Canal:

Second dead fox, seen August 28 in the vacant lot north of Crossroads Blvd. (Photo: Anne Landman)

A third was photographed at an unknown location. The photo was taken by a Grand Valley resident. It was sent to a friend who lives out of state, who then sent it to me, after I posted photos of the first two foxes on Facebook. An autopsy was reportedly done on the third dead fox, which revealed that it had died from a balloon lodged in its digestive tract:

Third dead fox, “found dead last week” in a Facebook post dated 9/12/23. Location undetermined. Reportedly an autopsy done on this animal revealed it died from a balloon lodged in its digestive system.

Don’t release balloons into the sky

Balloon releases at parties and celebrations are catastrophic for wildlife and the environment, as you can see from the photo above. Animals confuse the brightly-colored material with food, ingest it and die. The balloons also get stuck in trees, power lines, bodies of water and waterways, where they can clog pipes and kill marine life.

Just say “no” to balloon releases as a form of celebration.

  4 comments for “Valley foxes turning up dead

  1. Just say no to balloons. They can be a fun way to celebrate but put a demand on helium. They most likely were made in an overseas factory by under paid workers. They pose so many hazards to wildlife.

  2. Foxes are helpful to keep down rodents…we are seeing a huge surge in squirrels, cute but are getting out of control, carry disease as do skunks, raccoons etc…a balance is held by preditors

    • Foxes are also on of the few predators who eat fruit, which could explain why they would eat something brightly colored on the ground, especially this time of year, when over-ripe fruit is falling off trees.

  3. Back when the Dems used to give out balloons at the Downtown Farmer’s Market we made it a point to get biodegradable balloons so they just decompose to a puddle of color that can not harm wildlife. They are a little more expensive but protect the critters out there. If you insist on balloon releases, they are the way to go.

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