Most foxes live in the wild and so usually don't get the chance to watch TV and lounge around on the sofa and usually get by by rummaging for food in people's dustbins if the cocky canines aren't stealing chickens from a nearby farm.
But Miss Snooks is different. She's been living in Mr Edgington's one-bedroom flat in Ditchling, East Sussex, above his pet shop for six YEARS where she likes listening to BBC Radio 2, watching TV and eating her favourite meal of chicken cooked in honey.
Pictured: Miss Snooks the friendly fox who has her own one-bedroom flat, complete with TV and a three-piece suite
By Beth Hale
17th February 2009
Daily Mail
The closest most of us get to a fox is when we spot one under the garden shed or rummaging in our bins.
Steve Edgington, however, has a daily brush with one - because it has moved into his home.
The vixen, Miss Snooks, was taken into Mr Edgington's pet shop as a ten-day-old cub after being found seemingly abandoned by her family six years ago.
Enlarge
Play time for the six-year-old fox in her flat provided by kind hearted animal lovers Steve and Nola Edgington
Since then, she has resisted all attempts to reintroduce her to the wild, returning through the catflap, and is instead content to live in Mr Edgington's one-bedroom flat above the shop in Ditchling, East Sussex.
Mr Edgington, 56, and his wife Nola, 55, have equipped the flat with a lair made of cardboard boxes and duvets.
They say Miss Snooks enjoys listening to Radio 2, and gets on with their other pets, a dog and three cats.
Miss Snooks in the couple's kitchen
She spends most of her day on the sofa before tucking into her favourite food, chicken cooked in honey, and dried cat food washed down with half a cup of coffee.
The RSPCA advises against keeping foxes in domestic settings and Mr Edgington agrees that looking after Miss Snooks, including taking her for late-night walks to avoid confrontation with unfamiliar dogs, is almost a full-time job.
But he added: 'I see it as fate. She has changed my life for ever. She is a beautiful animal who is incredibly loyal.
Domesticated: Miss Snooks enjoys a spot of television
'She considers us as Mum and Dad because we brought her up. She goes mad when she sees us.'
Foxes are predominantly wild animals who generally live between two and three years but can survive for up to 10. They are normally extremely wary of humans.
Scientists in Russia have been conducting tests for 50 years attempting to tame the silver fox and their research has revealed some become dog-like in their behaviour, putting their ears down and wagging their tails when happy.
Enlarge
Miss Snooks was taken in six years ago by animal lover Steve Edgington and his wife Nola
Miss Snooks curls up in her 'lair' of blankets
An RSPCA spokesperson said: 'Even the most experienced fox experts have failed to keep the animals successfully in captivity; adult foxes tend to become very destructive and difficult to keep.
'Because they have been in captivity the foxes are unable to fend for themselves and cannot be released back into the wild.'
dailymail.co.uk
But Miss Snooks is different. She's been living in Mr Edgington's one-bedroom flat in Ditchling, East Sussex, above his pet shop for six YEARS where she likes listening to BBC Radio 2, watching TV and eating her favourite meal of chicken cooked in honey.
Pictured: Miss Snooks the friendly fox who has her own one-bedroom flat, complete with TV and a three-piece suite
By Beth Hale
17th February 2009
Daily Mail
The closest most of us get to a fox is when we spot one under the garden shed or rummaging in our bins.
Steve Edgington, however, has a daily brush with one - because it has moved into his home.
The vixen, Miss Snooks, was taken into Mr Edgington's pet shop as a ten-day-old cub after being found seemingly abandoned by her family six years ago.
Enlarge
Play time for the six-year-old fox in her flat provided by kind hearted animal lovers Steve and Nola Edgington
Since then, she has resisted all attempts to reintroduce her to the wild, returning through the catflap, and is instead content to live in Mr Edgington's one-bedroom flat above the shop in Ditchling, East Sussex.
Mr Edgington, 56, and his wife Nola, 55, have equipped the flat with a lair made of cardboard boxes and duvets.
They say Miss Snooks enjoys listening to Radio 2, and gets on with their other pets, a dog and three cats.
Miss Snooks in the couple's kitchen
She spends most of her day on the sofa before tucking into her favourite food, chicken cooked in honey, and dried cat food washed down with half a cup of coffee.
The RSPCA advises against keeping foxes in domestic settings and Mr Edgington agrees that looking after Miss Snooks, including taking her for late-night walks to avoid confrontation with unfamiliar dogs, is almost a full-time job.
But he added: 'I see it as fate. She has changed my life for ever. She is a beautiful animal who is incredibly loyal.
Domesticated: Miss Snooks enjoys a spot of television
'She considers us as Mum and Dad because we brought her up. She goes mad when she sees us.'
Foxes are predominantly wild animals who generally live between two and three years but can survive for up to 10. They are normally extremely wary of humans.
Scientists in Russia have been conducting tests for 50 years attempting to tame the silver fox and their research has revealed some become dog-like in their behaviour, putting their ears down and wagging their tails when happy.
Enlarge
Miss Snooks was taken in six years ago by animal lover Steve Edgington and his wife Nola
Miss Snooks curls up in her 'lair' of blankets
An RSPCA spokesperson said: 'Even the most experienced fox experts have failed to keep the animals successfully in captivity; adult foxes tend to become very destructive and difficult to keep.
'Because they have been in captivity the foxes are unable to fend for themselves and cannot be released back into the wild.'
dailymail.co.uk