Do foxes attack cats?

Foxes don't attack the domestic cat, normally. This comes from my personal experience and from information on the internet. It actually makes sense too. I am incidentally, writing about British foxes in Britain. The British fox, in this instance an urban fox, is the size of a medium-small sized dog.

My friendly fox getting up close to me. Photo by Michael at PoC

He is a very handsome fox. I look after him in a minor way. I put out cat food that my cat does not finish. This is sensible recycling, I think. There is no waste. Although I don't think a fox should eat too much cat food as it is probably too rich.



I think this fox is no longer frightened of me. Although he is very cautious but as you can see he approaches to within a foot of my camera! He actually looks pretty fit. Most foxes around here die of a kind of mange that strips off their fur and they die of hypothermia I believe.

The issue of whether a British fox would attack a domestic cat probably comes down to several factors all of which indicate that it won't happen.

The relative size of the animals is a factor. A small, perhaps ill cat might be vulnerable to a large, hungry and desperate fox. But a decent sized adult and relatively fit domestic cat is probably perfectly safe. I have seen my three legged boy cat, a large 15 lb cat, walk close to a fox and be aggressive towards the fox. The fox ignored him.