A wildlife fan has struck up an extraordinary friendship with a young fox after he noticed she was ill.<br /><br />Bob Dunlop, 69, spotted the fox had developed mange on her tail on wildlife cameras he had set up near his home in Littleport, Cambs.<br /><br />Mr Dunlop worked out where the animal was living and began to treat the fox by feeding her bread with a homeopathic remedy.<br /><br />Their heart-warming friendship blossomed as the young vixen began to greet Mr Dunlop on his daily walks through the forest.<br /><br />Mr Dunlop said he knows he must let her re-wild and is slowly cutting down amount of time he visits and has stopped feeding her.<br /><br />The retired health and safety manager, said: "She's such a special animal, it will be hard to let go."<br /><br />"I'm going to cut down the amount of time I spend with her. I do not intend to make her tame as she is a wild fox."<br /><br />In the videos, the young vixen, affectionately named Ms Fox, can be seen rolling on her back and affectionately biting at Mr Dunlop's trousers for his attention. <br /><br />She also greets him as he approaches, yelping and whining in excitement.<br /><br />Mr Dunlop, originally from Fife, Scotland, noticed the fox with mange on her tail - a skin disease that is caused by microscopic mites that burrow into skin - back in December.<br /><br />After curing her of the mange, Mr Dunlop has shared videos of their unique bond - with the fox acting more like a dog than a wild animal.<br /><br />He said: "It was a labour of love but I monitored and fed her on a daily basis.<br /><br />"I could put the drops of the remedy on some bread and I would go and feed it to her alongside some dried food. <br /><br />"I think she's coming up to a year old because I believe she is the last remaining cub of a previous fox family who lived there.<br /><br />"My view is that if she'd been dumped and was already tame, she wouldn't naturalise herself in a rural area.<br /><br />"The mother of those cubs have some mange on her tail too - I think that's where she got it from."<br /><br />Mr Dunlop was unwilling to leave the mange untreated and sought advice from the National Fox Welfare Society.<br /><br />They sent Mr Dunlop an arsenicum and sulphur 30c homeopathic remedy to treat it, free of charge.<br /><br />Mr Dunlop, who lives with his wife Sue, 75, visits the fox almost every day to keep an eye on her progress. <br /><br />He added: "Back in January, I lost my dog. All the time my dog was with me on my walks, Ms Fox would hide.<br /><br />"Once my dog had passed, I noticed her mange was gone and she became less withdrawn and more attached to me. <br /><br />"The day I first put the food down and she showed her belly, it was just wonderful.<br /><br />"I know at some point I've got to stop and let her rewild. I think she was just a lonely animal that was ill, has recovered and is showing her appreciation.<br /><br />"She hides when she hears other people approach and is hunting at night which I see on my camera so I'm not concerned she's at risk of being too tame."<br /><br />Mr Dunlop said his plan is to let Ms Fox re-wild completely and hoped she might have her own cubs one day.
