A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A FOX

Hello! My name is Francine. I have very light red fur with white patched feet, a very fluffy tail and a white face. I'm eight years old and I about 15 pounds. I stay clean and I'm friendly, but I'm also very shy. I live in a den in the slough.

Every day I go out hunting for mice, voles or rabbits. I also look for plants, but in the winter it's hard to find food because of the weather or snow.

One day while I was out hunting on the tundra, a snowmachine came by and the passenger happened to see me. She told the driver and he said to hang on because they were going to chase me. At first I didn't know what to do because I was too scared! Then when I came back to my senses, I tried to run as fast as I could. They chased after me for a very long time. Finally, I guess they realized that they couldn't catch me and they went away.

When I came home I fell right to sleep because I was tired of the chase. When I woke up I went looking for food. While I was eating my catch a male fox came by, and he asked me if I would share my food with him. I said, "Sure." He looked like he was starving and I couldn't finish the rabbit by myself anyway, so I shared it with him.

After we were done he asked me if I would mind if he walked me home. I told him I wouldn't mind. So he walked me home.

After he left for his den, I fell into a deep sleep. When I woke up the next morning, a fox was in my den yelling for me to get out because there was a fire in the forest. When I heard the word "fire" I got so scared I ran out of my den and headed toward the tundra. All of a sudden I realized I was running in the wrong direction. I stopped in my tracks but it was too late and I burned to death.

So that was my life, and now it's gone. But I'll always remember that fox who tried to help me. I didn't really know him, but he was a friend.