Admittance date: 25th March 2022
25/03: Another fox in with horrific case of mange, to the extent he can barely open his eyes. This is Troy, who was brought to us from Leeds based group Lets Talk Foxes. He's been given his first mange treatment today so that should help him feel a bit better in no time, as it will kill off mites which must be causing him immeasurable discomfort. He's a decent weight at 6.3kg and he's got a big appetite to match, clearing his food bowl overnight. He's had some sunflower oil poured over his head this morning to loosen up some of that crust which should make it easier for him to open his eyes.
01/04: As soon as we got the crust off his face and he was able to open his eyes we could see there was a problem with his left eye, so we booked him in for a vet check. After a thorough examination by our vet it was discovered that he also had some thickening / swollen glands on the left side of his neck, some crackles in his lungs which sounded worse on the left side and his gums were rather pale. The vet thinks he may have had a knock on that side of his face / body. We’re guessing that this may have happened as a result of him not being able to see whilst both his eyes were shut due to the crust. He is on a course of antibiotics now which we’re able to give to him in food – his huge appetite has reduced slightly now he’s had his fill, but he is still eating well enough for us to put the tablets in food. If he has recovered fully from all his issues by the end of his course of treatment he can go home - if we’re in any doubt then he’ll go back to the vet for a further examination. He’s rather a nervous fox so fingers crossed everyone please that he can go home sooner rather than later.
12/04: After a visit to the vets it was shown that Troy’s eye was improving following his course of anitibiotics. We had initially planned to keep him in a bit longer just to monitor the eye and ensure it didn’t deteriorate, although Troy had other plans. He was making it abundantly clear he was not happy being kept behind bars, and was putting himself at risk of harm due to the stress he was under/the lengths he was going to in trying to escape from the outdoor pen he was in (keeping him in the unit was no longer feasible as he was simply not coping), and so as his treatment for mange/his eye infection had completed, we opted to let Troy go.