Vets have carried out the first ever caesarean section on a fox mother to save the lives of her cubs after she was found injured in the middle of the road.

The tiny foxes, which are believed to be the first fox cubs of this year, were born a month earlier than is normally expected for a wild fox birth.

The Wildlife Aid Foundation's (WAF) veterinary hospital in Leatherhead, Surrey carried out the emergency c-section after rescuers realised the pregnant fox was too ill to give birth.

Rescuers were called out to a road accident over the weekend after a female fox was found lying in the road with serious head injuries. The adult fox, who was heavily pregnant with six cubs, had several fits as she was taken back to the WAF hospital in Leatherhead, Surrey.

'The mother was our patient and we had to treat her as the priority, so we stabilised her on a drip and monitored her for the next 24 hours.'


The fox had a good night and was considered to be 'very strong' the following morning. Rescuers planned to release the wild animal later that night so she could give birth in her natural habitat.
Source

NOTE: Mother has not survived