A woman in Croydon has rising fears for the safety of her pets following the sudden death of two foxes over the last year which she believes is a result of poisoning.

Lesley Gadsden, of Morland Road in Croydon, told Your Local Guardian that over the last year she has witnessed the sudden deaths of two foxes that frequented her garden after she claims they both seemed to be “in good health”.

Lesley recorded the first death of a male fox in August 2022 when she went out into her garden one night to discover that the fox had suddenly become unwell.

The death of a second fox took place on January 9, 2023 – and it died in similar circumstances to the first fox a year before.

Lesley explained: “On the first occasion, in late August, the fox had crawled behind my shed and I called the RSPCA as it was still barely alive. “He was making the most awful gasping sounds like he was fighting for breath, I just felt so helpless that I couldn’t do anything for him.

“The foxes come into my garden all the time because I give them food and to see him so unwell was so upsetting.”

Lesley said she contacted animal charity RSPCA to ask for help.

However, when they arrived to collect the animal on August 30, 2022, they discovered that the fox had died.

Your Local Guardian: A woman in Croydon said she witnessed the sudden death of two foxes in the last yearA woman in Croydon said she witnessed the sudden death of two foxes in the last year (Image: Lesley Gadsden)

Lesley said: “When I got up in the morning the fox had managed to get over the other side of the garden and he was gone.”

The fox’s rapid decline, along with guidance that she received with the visiting RSPCA officer, lead her to believe that the fox had died of poisoning.

Lesley explained: “His breathing just got worse and worse and worse and he declined over such a short period it seems very much like he died of poisoning.

“When I was in contact with the RSPCA inspector at the time she said it sounded like he was suffering from poisoning.”

A spokesperson for RSPCA told Your Local Guardian that as the fox had died by the time they arrived they were unable to verify the fox’s illness.

They also said that the charity does not collect the remains of animals and so the true nature of the fox’s illness could not be known for sure.

Lesley witnessed the death of a second female fox in her back garden earlier this month and said it followed a similar pattern to the first.

Lesley said: “My dog found the second fox just as she found the first, I took her out for a wee in the night and she darted for the bushes.

“I thought surely this can't be happening again so soon, I went indoors to fetch a torch.

“I looked under the bush and sure enough I found my pretty little fox curled up against the fence under the leaves gasping for breath.”

The next day Lesley awoke to find that the fox had died overnight, despite seeming to be in good health not long before.

Lesley said: “She was in a lovely condition, a thick fur coat and we put food out for her all the time”.

As the fox had died overnight, the RSPCA was not involved in the case of the second fox’s death and so Lesley had to dispose of the remains herself.

Lesley claims that she raised the issue of both poisonings with The Fox Project after having concerns that both foxes died from a deliberate poisoning attempt.

Lesley said: “There were no obvious signs of injury and the fact that they had both been fighting for breath lead me to believe that someone in the vicinity is putting out poisoned bait.

“Unfortunately, we cannot pin it to one house but think it's probably someone new to the area in the last 6 months as we have had foxes and their families visiting for decades with no problems.

“Me and my neighbours are all worried because lots of us have dogs and cats and it’s a concern that this is happening”.

RSPCA said that whilst the fox may have died from poison, it may have been accidental as opposed to deliberate due to a fox potentially eating a rat that had ingested poison.

The charity also warned about the dangers of using rat poison and the dangers it poses to other animals.

An RSPCA spokesperson said: “While the poor fox’s symptoms indicated that sadly he had probably died from poison, it is unknown how that happened.

“Aside from the slight possibility he may have been deliberately poisoned (which is illegal), he may have eaten a rodent that had itself died of rat poison.

“Or he may have ingested poison which was left out for rodents but was unfortunately accessible to other wild animals and pets.

“People use rat poison but forget about the dangers it poses to other animals which feed on rats - and the RSPCA often gets reports from dog owners about their pets getting severely ill or dying after ingesting such poison.

“Simple and effective methods exist which in many cases can be used to deter rats humanely - and help safeguard the health of other animals - without ever having to resort to lethal control.

To report concerns about an animal, please call the RSPCA’s helpline on 0300 1234 999”.

Founder of the Fox Project, Trevor Williams advised that it can be hard to determine if a fox had died through poisoning without police investigation and that foxes can die from a number of illnesses.

Trevor said: “Foxes die from all manner of reasons not always apparent to ourselves.

“The police are the only body capable of investigating, but they need evidence and that’s where fresh bodies are vital in order to begin to make a case.

“We would always recommend contacting the Wildlife Crime Unit. “