When it comes to unlikely friendships, animal kingdom never cease to amaze. Although there are countless of such bonds, it is always heartwarming to see animals of different species befriending in such a charming manner. This time it is a baby fox and her two badgers friends that steal everyone’s heart.
Phoebe the fox cub was brought to the Whitby Wildlife Sanctuary in North Yorkshire, England, after she was found abandoned in a box near the city of Leeds. She was nearly two-month-old. A few days apart, two badger babies were brought in, after they were found wondering the streets of Meltham, West Yorkshire. The volunteers named the little badgers Betty and Bella.
Even though the three cubs have all lost their parents and they had to deal on their own, no one would ever thought they will soon thrive. The sanctuary usually doesn’t want animals they shelter to rely on humans for food and comfort, and since Phoebe was the only fox there, the staff came up with a pretty bold idea – to put the cub fox and the two orphan badgers all together. Thankfully, it worked perfectly!
The baby fox and her friends found comfort in each other and their inspiring friendship surprised everyone at the sanctuary. It was this bond, this friendship that kept them all alive and helped them to move on.
“Foxes and badgers would never mix in the wild, in fact they tend to keep out of each other’s way,” said Alexandra Farmer, chief executive at the Whitby Wildlife Sanctuary. “But these three were wild animals without their mothers, all of a similar size and we thought we could place them together as long as we kept a close eye on them.
“We have been delighted to see they have bonded extremely well, it’s been lovely to see them feeding, sleeping and even playing together.”