An Arctic fox that got into a life and death situation is safe thanks to the help of a crab fishing crew.
Alan Russell, Mallory Harrigan and her boyfriend Cliff Russell were fishing in William’s Harbour, Labrador, Canada, when they saw a little animal on an ice pan around 2.5 miles (4km) offshore. When they got closer, they couldn’t believe their eyes – it was an arctic fox.
They knew the fox would not survive if they didn’t help him. They couldn’t reach the fox while it was on the ice, so Harrigan says they rammed the pan (with the boat) to break it up and then scoop the fox out of the water with a dipnet.
Harrigan told VOCM News that they put the fox in a container for a little while so it could destress and tried to feed him. He revived when they gave him a tin of Vienna sausages.
Harrigan noted, “His fur should be brown by now but he was on that piece of ice for so long that it never changed colour.”
They ended up dropping him off on land in William’s Harbour in an area with “lots of little critters and stuff” and ponds of fresh water so that he has food and water to live off.
They dropped him off in an old dog house and he ran off, no worse for wear, as the video below shows.
Mallory joked that “The real hero here was the vienna sausages.” But many people disagree. One person commented, “It’s so nice to see there are still compassionate and caring people in the world, many thanks to the crew of this fishing boat!”
Share their story if you agree!
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