F is for Fox | ABCs of Paganism #YTPaganABC

While I am doing this for my letter F in the ABCs of Paganism series, it's also part of my Magic of Animals series. Video at the bottom as well.

The Magic of Foxes

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General Info

Foxes are adorable critters! They are part of the Canidae family, which also includes wolves, jackals, and dogs. Foxes are found in North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The most common species is the red fox.

Size: They are typically around the size of a medium-sized dog and can weigh 1.5 lbs (680 g) to 24 lbs (11 kg). The smallest species of fox is the fennec fox, which is about the size of a cat.

www.livescience.com

Habitat: They tend to live in forests but can also live in mountains, grasslands, and deserts. The also dig burrows in the ground for sleep, storage, and protection. The make several exits so they have an escape route if a predator gets in.

Life: Foxes are social and live in packs. The terminology for a male fox is dog, tod, or reynard and females are vixens. Fox babies are called pups. Foxes are nocturnal so they sleep during the day and hunt at night. Their eyesight is as good as a cat’s. They can run up to 45 mph (72 km/h), which is quite fast.

Wikipedia

Food: Foxes are omnivores and eat both meat and plants. For meat, they tend to eat smaller animals like lizards, mice, birds, and bugs. They also eat fruit. Some foxes that live near the ocean might also include fish and crabs in their diet. If they are having a tough time hunting, they are known to scavenge trash cans for scraps.

Foxes in Folklore and Mythology

In folklore, foxes are usually portrayed as cunning and sneaky. Some believe the fox can lead you to the faerie realm. There are some cultures that portray foxes as good and some portray them as bad. Multiple cultures believe fox spirits can shapeshift into a human form and that they have magical powers. The Kitsune is prevalent in Japanese folklore and is a fox with supernatural abilities, often with the ability to shapeshift into a human form and sometimes as many as 9 tails.

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In some Native American lore, the fox brings fire, has healing abilities, and ties in with their Shamanic practices. In others, the fox is a trickster who plays pranks and can cause harm.

Fox as an Animal Guide

Reading the above information gives a lot of information as to what a fox spirit can help us with.

The fox is clever, determined, and adaptable. A fox spirit can teach us to see through illusions and trickery, and help increase our senses especially at twilight and dawn when foxes are most active. The fox is fast and smooth in situations. Spirit foxes also have a good sense of humor - always a plus! The fox can help you to learn to be quick on your feet, to think fast, to come up with clever solutions where you thought there were none, to see the truth of people, and to laugh at life.

Wikipedia

Foxes in Pop Culture

Disney’s Robin Hood animated movie where Robin Hood and Maid Marian are foxes

The Fox and the Hound (book and movie)

Dora the Explorer includes a fox called Swiper the Fox, who is a thief.

Sonic the Hedgehog has a friend, Tails the Fox.

Zootopia the movie has a main character that is a fox - Nick Wilde.

The Pokemon world has many fox-type Pokemon like Vulpix and Ninetales.

The anime series Inuyasha has a kitsune character named Shippo.

The song by Ylvis called What Does the Fox Say? was quite popular several years ago.

The Star Fox video game series has Fox McCloud as the main character.

The League of Legends video game includes a nine-tailed fox character named Ahri.

The Five Nights as Freddy’s series has a fox animatronic names Foxy the Pirate Fox.

There are TONS more examples of foxes in pop culture!

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https://whatismyspiritanimal.com/



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