'GREAT PEST CONTROL': Fox family living under Etobicoke shed star in livestream
Author of the article:Jane Stevenson
Publishing date:Apr 13, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
A family of foxes has taken up residence under Etobicoke resident Jason Tremblay's shed.
A family of foxes has taken up residence under Etobicoke resident Jason Tremblay's shed. PHOTO BY JASON TREMBLAY /Special to the Toronto Sun
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A fox family with seven babies living under an Etobicoke home shed are now the unsuspecting stars of their own ongoing movie.
Toronto couple Jason Tremblay and Katelyn Darlington, both paramedics in Peel, are live-streaming on YouTube the comings and goings of the red fox father, black fox mother and their seven kits, which they discovered in their backyard two weeks ago.
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“I was doing yard work and came into the backyard and there she was with seven of her babies feeding from her,” said Tremblay, who has also photo videos on his Instagram account, jtremblay83.
“And I kind of sat there for an hour at my patio table watching her and started seeing them going under the shed. ‘Oh, I guess they’re living here now.’ I wasn’t overly concerned because the last couple of years I’ve had either raccoons or skunks living there.”
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Tremblay, who does woodworking on the side, even made the fox family their own sign in the backyard that reads: “Welcome Sia, Jim and babies.”
“We just thought we’d name them because we put them on the livestream, and I’m sure people would have liked to have seen the sign,” he said.
Tremblay reached out to both Toronto Animal Services and the Toronto Wildlife Centre, who advised them to leave the fox family alone or hire a company to have them privately removed if they were a problem.
“So we’re just giving them water a couple times a day, not feeding them, and watching them as often as we can,” said Tremblay.
He’s noticed the family is up about three times a day — early morning, afternoon, and early evening — and the kits, which were feeding off their mom, are now digesting squirrels, rats and birds brought back by their parents.
“(The foxes are) quite shy,” said Tremblay. “As for the neighbourhood itself, if I had a cat, I certainly would be keeping it in the house. But beyond that, they’re actually no bother at all. They’re actually a great pest control.”
The couple live near Lake Ontario so don’t feel the wildlife discovery is that unusual, especially since the two adult foxes have been spotted in their neighbourhood over the last year of the pandemic.
Needless to say, Tremblay, who doesn’t have children with Darlington, says the fox family is a hit with “the neighbourhood kids.”
“They’re quite young, they’re under five, so their parents are usually with them,” he said of the kids. “We’ve just asked that they stay as far away as possible and watch from a distance.”
Or just watch the livestream.
jstevenson@postmedia.com
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torontosun.com
Author of the article:Jane Stevenson
Publishing date:Apr 13, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
A family of foxes has taken up residence under Etobicoke resident Jason Tremblay's shed.
A family of foxes has taken up residence under Etobicoke resident Jason Tremblay's shed. PHOTO BY JASON TREMBLAY /Special to the Toronto Sun
Article content
A fox family with seven babies living under an Etobicoke home shed are now the unsuspecting stars of their own ongoing movie.
Toronto couple Jason Tremblay and Katelyn Darlington, both paramedics in Peel, are live-streaming on YouTube the comings and goings of the red fox father, black fox mother and their seven kits, which they discovered in their backyard two weeks ago.
ARISA COX PAYS TRIBUTE: Big Brother superstar Nikki Grahame dead at 38
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STORY CONTINUES BELOW
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“I was doing yard work and came into the backyard and there she was with seven of her babies feeding from her,” said Tremblay, who has also photo videos on his Instagram account, jtremblay83.
“And I kind of sat there for an hour at my patio table watching her and started seeing them going under the shed. ‘Oh, I guess they’re living here now.’ I wasn’t overly concerned because the last couple of years I’ve had either raccoons or skunks living there.”
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Tremblay, who does woodworking on the side, even made the fox family their own sign in the backyard that reads: “Welcome Sia, Jim and babies.”
“We just thought we’d name them because we put them on the livestream, and I’m sure people would have liked to have seen the sign,” he said.
Tremblay reached out to both Toronto Animal Services and the Toronto Wildlife Centre, who advised them to leave the fox family alone or hire a company to have them privately removed if they were a problem.
“So we’re just giving them water a couple times a day, not feeding them, and watching them as often as we can,” said Tremblay.
He’s noticed the family is up about three times a day — early morning, afternoon, and early evening — and the kits, which were feeding off their mom, are now digesting squirrels, rats and birds brought back by their parents.
“(The foxes are) quite shy,” said Tremblay. “As for the neighbourhood itself, if I had a cat, I certainly would be keeping it in the house. But beyond that, they’re actually no bother at all. They’re actually a great pest control.”
The couple live near Lake Ontario so don’t feel the wildlife discovery is that unusual, especially since the two adult foxes have been spotted in their neighbourhood over the last year of the pandemic.
Needless to say, Tremblay, who doesn’t have children with Darlington, says the fox family is a hit with “the neighbourhood kids.”
“They’re quite young, they’re under five, so their parents are usually with them,” he said of the kids. “We’ve just asked that they stay as far away as possible and watch from a distance.”
Or just watch the livestream.
jstevenson@postmedia.com
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'GREAT PEST CONTROL': Fox family living under Etobicoke shed star in livestream
A fox family with seven babies living under an Etobicoke home shed are now the unsuspecting stars of their own ongoing movie.