The Fox & The Vole

This is a story about a rodent, a small cat that might have been a fox, and my friends who think they are SO funny. 

I noticed a small tunnels underneath our porch step. I figured it was a small rodent, but I didn't see any other signs and it wasn't by the house, so I didn't care that much. When I DID start caring was when something started leaving little piles of poop on the step above the tunnel. I figured it was a neighborhood cat watching the rodent and just being a jerk. I kept cleaning it off, only to have it reappear a week or so later. 

Finally, after a snow storm, I found some tracks. It was not a cat--it was a fox. How do you get rid of a pesky fox that keeps pooping on your step?? I asked my friends Bente & Melissa for ideas, but there wasn't anything super simple. I just kept hoping the fox would catch the rodent and then leave. 

One morning I was backing out of the driveway and noticed something weird on the steps. I was in a hurry so I texted Jon to check it out. Jon, who was still in full Covid Toes mode, glanced out the door. "It looks like a mangled fox pelt." Awesome. So something killed the fox, then left it on my porch next to the poop??

When I got home, I gingerly approached the fur. It was all bunched up and I could see red inside, like its guts. But the fur was in remarkably good shape and super clean. I looked a little closer and saw this:

I immediately texted Bente and Melissa, who think they are just SO funny. Bente happened to find this in her neighbor's house and knew she needed to prank me. It worked perfectly. I still can't believe I got pranked by my friends at age 35, but honestly, I love it! I am truly lucky in my friends, even if they do give me a heart attack occasionally.