CA Resident Takes Home Orphaned Fox Kit After Mistaking It For Kitten

ROCKLIN, CA — In a unique case of mistaken identity, a Rocklin resident got quite the surprise after police said a small kitten she rescued was quite a bit more like a baby "Swiper" than "Garfield."

The Rocklin Police Department said Monday that a local resident found the animal last week but later realized it was actually a fox kit. Rocklin is about 20 miles northeast of Sacramento in Placer County.

"A concerned family member called us after seeing the scared little guy and Animal Control responded to transport the critter to Gold Country Wildlife Rescue," police said in a Facebook post.

A photo attached to the post showed a small, black fox, with pointy ears.

Police said local residents who come across an orphaned or injured wild animal ought to contact the wildlife rescue. Those outside the area can contact the Humane Society or the nonprofit Animal Help Now organization.

"Keep the animal in a warm (NOT HOT), dark, quiet place away from children and animals/pets," police said. "Then get it to the nearest wildlife rehab center immediately."

In an Instagram post Tuesday, the Gold Country Wildlife Rescue said it surpassed its 1,600th patient this year with a new gray fox kit, which was rescued after being orphaned. However, that fox kit was gray, rather than black.

"Although cute, it’s not a pet and our wildlife technicians will strive to keep human impacts away from this one so it can grow wild, and eventually free," the center said.

California gray foxes are solitary animals that grow to be the size of a small collie dog and mainly live in chaparral, according to the National Parks Service. They're common in Upper Sonoran and transition zones on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. They've also been seen from Pleasant Valley eastward to the floor of Yosemite Valley.

The California fox-kitten incident isn't the first case of mistaken animal identities this month.

As Barnstable-Hyannis Patch reported earlier this month, a Massachusetts family got more than they signed up for when they brought home a lost and distressed puppy from a busy road, only to discover the bundle of fluff was actually an Eastern coyote pup that had become separated from his family.

And in April, animal care services in San Antonio, Texas, said a concerned citizen called them to take in a helpless, abandoned "puppy." The wayward pup was — you guessed it — not a pup, but actually a gray fox kit.

"Most native wildlife will have their young in early spring to early fall, during which time they are very dependent on mom," the city of San Antonio Animal Care Services said in a Facebook post at the time. "Chances are Vulpix, the grey kit, must have somehow separated from the litter when mom was moving them to another safe location.

"Officer Johnson and Cadet Rial took precautions when handling and transporting this cute kit to ensure the health and safety of all involved. Cadet Rial carefully wrapped Vulpix in a fleece blanket and secured him into the Animal Care vehicle to transport him to our friends at the Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, Inc. facility where he will be cared for until he’s old enough to be released back into nature."