A Tribute To Inali
August 26, 2022
It is with very heavy hearts that we let everyone know that we had to say goodbye to Inali, our grey fox yesterday. She came into our lives when she was only 3 months old. Some people stole her from the wild because they thought she would be a cool pet. Some smart people turned them in and California Department of Fish and Wildlife confiscated her and asked us to give her a forever home. In the wild, grey foxes only live 2-4 years. In human care they average 6-8 years old. Inali was 14 years 4 months old.
There will never be enough words to express our gratitude, admiration, or love we have had for Inali. Nor enough words to describe how many tens of thousands of lives she touched. Inali was a catalyst for change, not only at Turtle Bay but for facilities all over. Because of the progressive, positive training we did with Inali, we were able to take her on off leash walks around the Park. This was an unheard of practice before. She would run through the woods, climb trees and have a grand time. Animal trainers from all over have come to Turtle Bay just to see this work… and we even won an award for it.
Inali was the entire reason we were able to get the Animal Recovery Center (ARC) built in 2018 to provide that extra TLC for our animals when and if they needed it.
Inali was one special fox. She helped us to raise 3 other foxes. One of which is Loki! Loki is so bonded to Inali, it is ridiculous! He would get so excited every single time she came back from a walk or a program. During the Carr Fire we had them separated for almost 2 weeks while we were evacuated. When they reunited, it was nothing but pure joy! The very first time Loki, as a little 10 week old kit, was in the exhibit with Inali, she went over, grabbed a plush toy, carried it over to Loki and dropped it at his feet! Inali never got to play with a toy again! Loki took them all, but she never dominated him or tried to take them back!
Inali was a precious soul. She started slowing down last year and some small tumors had formed, but they were slow growing and benign and didn’t seem to be bothering her. Last week, for the first time, she seemed uncomfortable in the heat. This week she was laying around a lot and not interested in things she normally would be. We all loved her too much to let her suffer at all. She has given so much to education, the trainers, and to our guests. Our hearts are broken, but we will cherish the gifts she has given and remember her forever!
Original Post
August 18, 2015
As we got out of the car with the Game Warden, a woman approached. A little nervous for what was about to happen, I stayed close to the warden. We started walking towards the door when some dogs came running and trotted beside us. “That’s not a dog,” I noticed as another animal joined us. “That’s a fawn!” The warden asked if she fed the fawn. “No,” replied the woman as we entered the house and slid the glass door closed behind us. The fawn stood at the door as if it wanted to desperately come in with us. “You don’t ever let that fawn in the house?” asked the warden. Of course the woman once again replied, “No. I don’t know why he’s at the door.”
I had been working in this industry for 18 years and I thought I had pretty much seen it all. But there is always something new to learn and people will always surprise me. It seems like every time I think I have it all figured out, something new and unique happens.
Earlier that day, I received a phone call from the California Fish and Game Department asking if I had room for a gray fox. They had a youngster and needed to find a place for her that day. I had never worked with a fox and didn’t even know the requirements. I knew they were canines, but they most certainly weren’t dogs. What size exhibit space do they need? How big do they get? What is their temperament? All of these questions rushed through my mind. After a few moments of thinking, it dawned on me that all of that could be figured out. The biggest problem of all was: permits! We didn’t have a permit for a gray fox and it can take up to six months to go through all the paperwork and requirements to get one. We had only one day to get information to California Department of Fish and Game, get recommendations from past facilities, and prepare an exhibit. As the day progressed, we researched the care and needs of a gray fox, we made phone calls to other zoos, and worked hard to get a space prepared for her with a sleeping den and places to climb. Well, it is amazing how fast you can get a permit when they want you to have one! By late afternoon, we had a permit for a gray fox in hand and were ready for her arrival.
Now I thought, like all animal transfers, the warden would be bringing her to us at the end of the day. It turned out that I was very wrong. “We want you to go with us to get the fox,” the biologist said. “She is being kept by some people and the warden will meet you to go pick her up.” Excuse me? Did I really hear that correctly: they want me to go with the game warden to confiscate this young fox? My concerns about caring for an animal that I have no experience with at all just turned to concerns for myself. All I pictured was a bad episode of “Cops” and I didn’t really want any part of that. She assured me that it would be safe and that this was a voluntary confiscation. If the people gave up the fox willingly, they wouldn’t be prosecuted. They had taken her from the wild as a tiny kit and had thought it would be great to have a fox as a pet. Since it’s illegal, some neighbors turned them in and, not wanting to pay the piper, they agreed to give her up easily. I agreed to go, but being the chicken that I am, of course, I made the other animal trainer go with me!
We met the warden in town and then followed him to the house. It was a gated property with a long driveway. The landscaping was beautiful with a pond and tall trees. I couldn’t believe my eyes as we pulled up to the huge house: a six car garage with an old fire truck and boat parked out front and a helipad in the back. We turned to each other and said, “Both of our places could fit in that garage!”
Once in the house, two men met us and the warden continued to talk with them as we stood there waiting anxiously. That’s when I saw her, curled up on the couch sleeping. Her precious face tucked with her nose over her with a gray bushy tail. Her eyes were closed as the woman picked her up and put the young fox on her shoulders. They called her “Scarlet” and she was three months old. “She does well,” the woman told us. “Her best friend is our Corgi, they play together.” She continued to tell us how “Scarlet” was tough and could hold her own among the other dogs at feeding time. The family was very polite and pleasant with us. They said their goodbyes and handed the young fox to us.
As we left a sadness came over me. This young animal should have been able to live in the wild and now couldn’t. But it gave me some peace that I also knew we would give her a great life allowing her to express her natural fox behaviors: running outside and climbing trees and, eventually, we’d introduce her to a more appropriate best friend. She would now educate thousands of people about foxes and wildlife and that is exactly what Inali has done!