Water is one of the essential nutrients for foxes.
Water is an essential nutrient for foxes, and it is the main component of cell protoplasm. In the animal body, water accounts for about more than 2/3, of which 40% is in the cells, 20% is in the tissues, and 5% is in the blood. If a fox's body loses all its fat and liver glycogen, and even loses half of its protein, it can still barely survive, but if the body loses 10% of its water, it will die.
The digestion, absorption and metabolism of various nutrients in the fox's feed ration all take place in an environment with water. For example, the saliva, gastric juice and intestinal juice needed to digest feed contain 98% water. The blood that transports nutrients and metabolic products contains more than 90% water, and the urine that excretes metabolic products contains about 95% water. It can be seen that if the water in the fox's body is insufficient or lacking, metabolism cannot proceed normally.
Water plays an important role in regulating body temperature in foxes in summer. Foxes have underdeveloped sweat glands. They mainly lose heat through evaporation of water from the oral mucosa, tongue and respiratory tract. According to research, each 1 milliliter of water evaporated can dissipate 2.66 kilojoules of heat. Therefore, giving foxes more drinking water in summer is an effective measure to prevent heatstroke.
For pregnant and lactating female foxes. Due to vigorous metabolism. The amount of water supplied needs to be increased. During the birthing period, due to the loss of water from the body, the body is empty and thirst occurs, so drinking water must be specially supplied. Growing young foxes have a larger food intake. Vigorous metabolism also requires more water. For male foxes used for breeding, due to vigorous sexual activity and a large amount of exercise. Physical exertion is also great. If attention is not paid to supplying drinking water, sexual desire will be lost prematurely.
In winter in the cold northern regions, although the water requirement is low, drinking water must still be maintained once a day, and of course it is best to supply warm water. In summer in the low-latitude northern areas of Hebei, Shandong and Henan, drinking water must be supplied frequently every day, and the ground should also be sprinkled with water to keep it moist. This is the most effective way to prevent heatstroke.
When transporting foxes over long distances, feed less, but drinking water must not be omitted. Give small amounts and frequent drinks. This is of great significance for safe transportation.