What does the fox say?
“I’m innocent, don’t shoot!”
Oh wait! Too soon?
Well, I apologize, but apparently that’s the case in Arroyo Grande if you’re a gray fox hanging out in the Village and harassing the chickens. At least it was because of whoever tattled to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services about this cute-as-a-button carnivore, which got euthanized by a contract trapper.
City residents were pissed! They showed up to the Nov. 28 City Council meeting to scold its elected officials, who, incidentally, had nothing to do with what transpired.
IMHO, ya’ll should figure out who called the animal police and make that person weep with remorse over what they did by inundating them with that cute video of the fox playing with a puppy. Lock them in a room with it and put it on repeat. That ought to do the trick.
However, our furry friend had to be killed because it had become dependent on humans, leaving the feds with “no other options.” Well, it was cute, so those humans in the Village tried to pet it, take its picture, feed it, make it social media famous—you know, they treated it like a domesticated animal.
“This fox was not vicious. It was like someone’s dog being taken out and killed,” Arroyo Grande resident Cleo Stanley told councilmembers.
Ummm … nope. Not the same thing at all, Cleo. Let me explain. A fox is a wild animal. A dog is an animal that has been domesticated for centuries, and as far as I can tell, there isn’t a GoFundMe campaign set up to help raise money for the medical expenses of the dog that was shot four times over Thanksgiving weekend by SLO County Sheriff’s Office deputies in Paso Robles. But, there is one that’s raised more than $2,000 out of a $15,000 goal to put a fox memorial in the Village.
Am I missing something? Oh, right. Hercules is a dog, but that little puppy is also a pit bull. It’s not the equivalent of a wild fox. But if it were a fox, would sheriff’s deputies have put four bullets in it? I’m guessing the answer is no.
Oh, right. The dog was barking and growling at the officers, who claim he eventually lunged at one. They were responding to a noise complaint and hadn’t been able to make contact with the home’s residents yet. Basically, young Herc was doing what dogs do, protecting his property from strangers, strangers who didn’t leave when he gave them the warning signal. And apparently deputies felt the best way to handle that situation, in front of a family home with children sleeping inside of it, was to stand their ground and utilize their handguns—not their stun guns or pepper spray or their spotlight or bull horn.
Bullets. Yep, that’s definitely the best way to deal with a noise complaint and a barking dog. Thank goodness that bully breed is tough, and Hercules is making a strong recovery.
Either way, Cleo, that is the equivalent of taking someone’s dog and attempting to kill it. And unfortunately, the fox had to be euthanized because it was too used to people. It’s not like the fox could have remained in the Village, harassing the chickens. The chickens were there first!
If residents truly wanted to save this fox, they should have contacted a wildlife care organization before treating it like a domesticated animal.
As Vivian Krug Cotton put it to AG City Council members: “We failed this fox.” And in order to not forget that failure, she helped set up the GoFundMe campaign to erect a memorial to the gray fox.
Frankly, there are a lot of things that deserve a memorial in this county.
For instance, the SLO County Jail inmates who have died in custody. There have been three this year. The most recent death was 62-year-old Russell Alan Hammer, who died of a blood clot in his lungs on Nov. 27. Twelve inmates have died in SLO County custody since 2012. We’ve definitely failed them, wouldn’t you say? Where’s the GoFundMe for their memorial? Or better yet, is anyone raising money to run against Sheriff Ian Parkinson in next year’s election?
The FBI is investigating Parkinson’s jail for civil rights abuses due to the deaths. The county had to fork over $5 million to the family of Andrew Holland, an inmate who died of a blood clot in his lungs after being placed in a restraint chair for 46 hours in January.
Coincidentally, on Nov. 27 Jeff Hamm announced that he would be resigning as the director of the county’s Health Agency in April, which makes it seem like he’s the only person who’s been pegged as accountable for what’s happened at the county jail.
We’re going to search nationwide to find his replacement, to find someone who could “continue addressing our community’s challenging health system problems and concerns, including the mental health treatment of county jail inmates,” according to the county. Holland was awaiting transfer to a mental health facility when he died, and Hammer was undergoing a court-ordered mental health evaluation. But something tells me the blame for treatment of county jail inmates doesn’t fall squarely on the Health Agency.
Maybe we can start a GoFundMe for inmate health care. Δ
The Shredder wants a pet fox and a memorial. Send comments to shredder@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Nov 30 – Dec 10, 2017.
I didn’t realize there is a law in slo county for only one good cause? Why is I that when someone attempts to do something good for a cause that is not exactly the most altruistic cause on earth then it shouldn’t be done and is a bad idea. It’s a false dilemma. There’s room in the world for more than one go find me page. “Lighten up Francis!”
Lock the person who called animal control into a room and ‘make them weep in remorse’. Really? I’d say that’s pretty irresponsible of a paper to print. And if you read the GoFundMe Account page and listen to the Council Meeting you will note that the fundraising is not only for a memorial, but for Educational Wildlife Signs along the Creek Walk, public workshops and more. Since when is protecting our wildlife, educating and protecting our community a bad thing?
You’re putting people in the shredder that are doing something positive in their community!? Give me a break.
Does doing a good deed, a kindness, a charity prevent you or others from also doing good deeds that speak to your heart or your specific passions? I’m sorry, but there is no logic or responsibility in that statement. Instead it should motivate you and anyone else with this complaint to follow the grey fox community’s example . You are certainly free to inspire others to oppose breed specific prejudices in the case of the pit bull, or advocate for compassionate care for inmates if that is your calling. You are free to motivate others to contribute to the efforts that you have mentioned.
As for your comment about the fox being wild and the chicken coming first etc…Grey Foxes are a native species . They were in the habitat/ecosystem first before domesticated poultry were introduced.
Also, the absolute origin of the little grey fox is still unfolding. Perhaps he was a domesticated pet, captive born (yes there are domesticated foxes), or perhaps he was a wild born orphan ,rescued and then imprinted on dogs and humans in a domestic setting. But this particular fox was not wild. Please research the terms you use, so you do not contribute to the misinformation. We are all learning. Do you know the meaning of these terms? tamed, feral, wild, domesticated, habituated, imprinted. If not, it seems that there is scope for the wildlife education program that the grey fox community is initiating. I recommend that you be among the first to sign up for its educational offerings and workshops being planned.
And, by the way, I personally do care about the pit bulls, the chickens, the inmates. We all have the capacity to care about many beings and many issues. (yes, all at the same time.) Watch the videos of the little fox, showering all of the parkgoers with joy, and all of the dogs with affection. It seems that this little being had the capacity to care about many, unconditionally. It is this radiant innocence that we are mourning.
Are you a vegan or vegetarian? If not, I would guess that your concern for the chickens does not extend as far as your words imply. My advocacy for the grey fox also embraces the chicken (I do not eat them.) And there is no proof that the little fox killed any chickens. In fact, all video evidence supports his innocence, his playfulness and submission to dogs, as well as no evidence of prey drive towards the chickens in the park. They sat side by side on the fence with him.
Why dont we just make one GoFundMe campaign for all the worlds worthy causes and divide up the money according to individual need? Let me know how that goes. Money from the GoFundMe for the Village fox will go towards informational signs to educate the community about why wild animals need to stay wild. At least the inmates referenced received a fair trial, that is more than the fox was granted. The USDA will continue to quietly wage its war on wildlife across the state and country because so-called journalists are too occupied with making snarky remarks to gain social media attention. As for the Shredders requests for a pet fox and a memorial, if you move to a different state you could have that pet fox. I dont know of any states, however, that will memorialize an unscrupulous opinion journalist.
Clearly this reporter has not done their homework. And attacking people who are trying to right a wrong is deplorable. Tormenting the woman who unfortunately made the call to remove the fox has also probably suffered enough. We are all angry for what she did, but she is already afraid for her safety and her children and you post a way to make her pay? Very offensive. Agreed there should be gofundme accounts to help all kinds of causes, local and worldwide and there probably are and those individuals have just as much right to start collecting and raising awareness for them. Why single out this cause as not being worthy because others may not have fundraising? Just as one persons mistake caused this issue to come about, your power with ink ridiculing this cause is a mistake that could hurt this project moving forward with educational signs and memorial. I loved that fox and what happened was wrong. A memorial which showcases one of the members of the vast wildlife in the Village along with educational signs can only do good. Maybe our next fox won’t be so friendly and someone will reach out to pet it and get bitten. We need those signs!! I ask you to please reconsider your position and write an article supporting what Vivian and others are trying to accomplish here. It was wrong to put this in the shredder. If you want to shred something, shred those who are taking advantage of people, causing problems, not people who are doing good. I for one will not support what you’ve said or any of the advertisers of your paper. I will wait to see your retraction and for a story that supports Vivian, Frank, Nikka, Cleo and all those others that are doing the right thing. It’s your turn to do the right thing.
Very irresponsible NewTimes. I’m joining in with the others and will no longer support your advertisers or your paper. I agree that ridiculing a community effort and calling out and posting peoples names that have done nothing wrong and are only working to help their community is reprehensible. You belong in the shredder!
Many good points made in the above comments. This is a ridiculous post. Just because people are striving to make a difference for a cause they believe in, does not mean that they disregard all other good causes. There are many good causes in this world! But this is one of them that some of us are trying to make a positive difference on.
This guy is a troll…Shame on you New Times!
I echo everyone’s comments above. Shame on you for trashing people who are making positive changes in their community. Isn’t that what we all should be doing?! They are owed an apology and not just in a little corner of your paper but a significant apology and story supporting their efforts. They are volunteers, they are doing this for the good of the community, not for any personal gain and they are giving of their own time and you have the nerve to discredit them.
I will also join the others above and will no longer support NewTimes advertisers or the NewTimes if their policy is to allow reporters damaging the reputations of good people and community causes that bring about something positive for everyone.
So MeToo! And by that I don’t mean I was abused, it means I will also no longer support your advertisers and paper seeing the policy of your paper is to harm community unity, spirit, and harmony and those who have stepped forward to help. I’m in agreement that an apology is in order. These people are not doing anything bad, wrong, negative, shady, they are stepping up to turn an unfortunate event into a learning opportunity and making a positive change in their town.
You messed up big time on this one. Good, caring people are trying to move the community forward in a positive way. Little Foxy taught us so many lessons and we are trying to preserve those lessons for future generations. He got along with Village chickens, dogs of all ages and types, and children and adults. He was so trusting. Not an aggressive bone in his beautiful small body. His end was tragic. To diminish the well meaning efforts of volunteers like Vivian and Frank, and our entire community, makes you so very small.
What does the NewTimes reader say?
Unsubscribe!
Ha what a joke funding for inmates healthcare. Most inmates healthcare is already shitty by the life style they chose, ie: drugs, alcohol, when they arrive in jail. And if they did not do things that intially landed them in coustody in the first place, we as txpayers would not have to support their free meals, free medical and dental care, that we out here can barely pay for. I hope when people think of the thousands of lil FOXY;s that live a disgusting life in cramped, filthy cages, just to be skinned for some one’s coat, or hood, that i at least this innocent fox, got to actually feel grass under it’s paws, smell the flowers, have kindness shown to him. The fox would get my money brfore some idiot who lands in jail due to their own actions.
Ignorant article written by someone who is obviously very ignorant of the facts.
Appalling! Since when do we punish and drag good people through the mud? They most certainly do deserve an apology in writing by this publication. Not only should the New Times publish an apology they should make a substantial contribution to the Fox Fund! I too have a good mind not to support your advertisers and unless an apology is made no longer touch your paper.
ML Sanders, what a literally wonderful comment. So beautifully written, and so very kind. I love this: “…the little fox, showering all of the parkgoers with joy, and all of the dogs with affection. It is this radiant innocence that we are mourning.”
I agree with Russell Katz: Shredder blew it on this one, on several points, but can redeem themselves with a substantial contribution to the fox fund.
Well if the inmates do not like the way they are treated in jail, don’t do things that land you in there in the first place. They get 3 meals a day, free dental/ medical, more than many elderly can even afford. And the lil fox did no criminal activities to deserve what he got. This is why I prefer animals to people