ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — An Orlando man was ordered to appear in court after he was caught keeping a Fox at his home, according to a report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
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An FWC officer responded to the home on Cleburne Road in East Orange County on Jan. 29 for a report of a man there who was in possession of a fox.
The report doesn’t say who initially contacted FWC with the complaint.
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The responding officer knocked on the door and was greeted by 49-year-old Mark Villafane, who admitted to keeping a fox at the home.
The report says Villafane walked the officer to the back of his property where they found a red fox in an outdoor enclosure.
When asked, Villafane admitted he did not have the Class III permit required for possession of a red fox.
According to the report, Villafane said he had been in possession of the fox for “several months,” but couldn’t provide documentation for where he got it or when.
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The FWC officer inspected the fox’s enclosure and took note of an empty water bowl, feces on the ground, and “noxious odors” coming from it.
When asked, the report says Villafane claimed he cleaned the kennel out once a week. The FWC officer noted that such an enclosure should be cleaned daily .
According to the report, the enclosure also failed to meet minimum size requirements, and lacked a required “dig barrier” to prevent the fox from digging out of the pen.
The officer issued Villafane a notice to appear at the Orange County Courthouse due to the enclosure failing to meet minimum size requirements and for possession of the fox with no documentation of the source.
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Villafane was also issued a non-criminal citation for possession of the fox without the proper permit. The officer also wrote Villafane warnings for the unsanitary state of the enclosure, the lack of a dig barrier, and for the enclosure being structurally unsound.
The report says the fox was photographed for evidence before being taken to a licensed wildlife rehabilitation center for evaluation and proper care.
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