Prime Time 1, Coursebook

Animal news (Unit 14) Living in the city a) Look at the page and guess what the text is about. Tick  the boxes. Then read the text and check. Animals in a zoo Wild foxes in cities Problems with foxes Pet foxes 1 ANIMAL NEWS Your Letters Dear Animal News, Yesterday morning we found our rubbish bin on its side. All the rubbish was on the ground beside it. It happened again this morning! Who is going in our rubbish bin at night? The dogs in our area go for walks on leads with their owners. And a cat cannot open a heavy rubbish bin. So who is doing it? The Shand family, London NW2 ANIMAL NEWS: I think foxes are visiting your garden at night. There are many wild foxes in town. You don’t often see them because they sleep during the day. Foxes are night animals. They come out at night when they are hungry. Your rubbish bins are full of old food, and a fox can open them. How long do foxes live? Eli and Jack Forsyth, Edinburgh AN: Foxes live about 15 years in the country- side. But in the city they only live 2 to 3 years. That’s because they have a lot of stress in a big city like London. In Britain 60% of foxes die in traffic accidents on the roads. Hi Animal News, What do foxes eat in the wild? How can they live in our towns and cities? Faisal Ali, Leicester AN: Foxes eat whatever they get, meat but also fruit and vegetables. In the wild, foxes eat small animals like mice and rats. They also like fruit, berries and apples. In towns, foxes can attack small pets like rabbits and guinea pigs. So keep your small pets inside the house or in a strong cage in the garden. Foxes have very good noses. They can smell the old food in your rubbish bin. They often try to get into the rubbish bin to get something to eat. Hello, Can you keep a fox as a pet? Alice Barker, Manchester. AN: Foxes are wild animals. They are part of the dog family but they are not dogs. They prefer to live with other foxes. So it would be very difficult to have a fox as a pet. Dear Animal News, Are foxes dangerous to human beings? Maya Capelli, London AN: Foxes are not dangerous animals for humans, they are afraid of us. In the wild, if they see or hear you, they run away. But in towns people often feed foxes in their gardens, so they are almost like pets. That’s why a fox may come up to you. But foxes can be aggres- sive when they have young cubs. You should never disturb a fox with its young. 134 16 Unit Fact detectives one hundred and thirty-four Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv