Taming Foxes in Minecraft: A Comprehensive Guide

Foxes are adorable, agile creatures that add a touch of wilderness to the Minecraft world. While they might not be as traditionally useful as some other mobs like wolves or horses, taming a fox is a rewarding experience and can provide a unique companion. Unlike wolves that you tame directly, taming foxes involves a slightly more intricate process that focuses on breeding rather than direct interaction. This guide will walk you through each step required to get your own tamed fox in Minecraft, whether you’re a seasoned player or just starting your blocky adventure.

Understanding Foxes in Minecraft

Before we dive into taming, it’s crucial to understand a few key characteristics of foxes in Minecraft:

• Habitat: Foxes primarily spawn in taiga, snowy taiga, and grove biomes. They are more commonly found in forested areas within these biomes.
• Appearance: There are two main types of foxes: the regular red fox and the rarer white snow fox. They have distinct colorings but share the same behavior. Baby foxes always inherit the color of their parents.
• Behavior: Wild foxes are skittish and will run away from players when approached. They’re also nocturnal, meaning they tend to be more active at night. Foxes also have a cute habit of carrying items in their mouths that they may have picked up or found.
• Food: Foxes are primarily interested in sweet berries. This is the key to our taming process.
• Trust vs. Taming: It’s important to note that you do not directly ‘tame’ a fox in the same way you would tame a wolf. Instead, you establish trust by breeding them. The resulting offspring will be loyal to you from birth.
• Special Behavior : Foxes will occasionally jump and pounce on prey. They also can pick up items that are on the ground. This can sometimes be useful if you’re dropping food for them or even a dropped sword!

The Taming Process: Step-by-Step

Here’s the breakdown of how you’ll acquire your own loyal fox:

Step 1: Finding Foxes

The first step is locating wild foxes. As mentioned earlier, these can be found in taiga, snowy taiga, and grove biomes. Here are some tips to help you locate them:

• Explore these biomes at night: Foxes are most active at night, making them easier to spot in the dark.
• Listen for their sounds: Foxes make a yipping sound which can help you locate them.
• Look near trees and bushes: Foxes often hide under leaves or within bushes during the day.
• Use a Compass: If you find a fox, but it runs away, you can use a compass to mark it’s initial location and try to find it again.
• Use a Boat: if you find a fox and want to transport it, you can place them in a boat, and guide them to the area you want to raise your foxes.

Step 2: Gathering Sweet Berries

Sweet berries are the only food that can attract and breed foxes. You’ll need to gather a good supply, so here’s how to do it:

• Locate Sweet Berry Bushes: These bushes are found in taiga, snowy taiga, and grove biomes. They are quite common, so exploring a bit should reveal them.
• Harvest Berries: To collect sweet berries, simply interact with the sweet berry bushes. Each bush can be harvested multiple times before it needs to grow more berries.
• Planting Sweet Berry Bushes: You can also plant sweet berries on the ground. Place them to create your own berry farm to make sure you have a steady supply.
• Harvesting in the Nether : If your world has a nether roof portal system, sometimes you can find sweet berries in the warped forest biomes.

Step 3: Creating a Breeding Pen

Before you start breeding foxes, it’s a good idea to set up an enclosure. This will help keep your foxes in one place during and after breeding and prevent wild foxes from running away. Here’s how:

• Choose a Location: Pick a flat area near where you found your foxes, or transport them to a more convenient place.
• Build Walls: Construct a pen using any building blocks, like cobblestone, planks, or fences. Make sure the walls are at least two blocks high to prevent foxes from jumping over them.
• Add a Gate or Door: Include an entrance for you to get in and out of the pen. A fence gate works well.
• Make it Comfortable: Add some decorations to make your fox pen comfortable! Plant some berry bushes, or put down some foliage. Foxes will like having a natural and comfortable area.
• Ensure it is enclosed: Foxes can jump over 1 block high walls. So make sure your walls are at least 2 blocks high. It’s also good to make sure the gaps between your fences are smaller than 1 block. Otherwise, the fox might be able to escape.

Step 4: Luring Foxes into the Pen

Once you have a pen, you need to lure two wild foxes inside. This process involves using sweet berries to attract them:

• Hold Sweet Berries: Equip sweet berries in your hotbar and hold them in your hand. Foxes will be attracted to the berries.
• Approach Slowly: Approach the foxes slowly. Sudden movements can scare them. Walk slowly toward them with berries in your hand.
• Lure them In: Walk slowly towards your pen, while holding sweet berries in your hand. The foxes will follow you into your pen.
• Secure the Pen: Once two foxes are inside, quickly close the gate to prevent them from escaping.
• If You Fail: if the fox is too far away, they might lose interest, and stop following you. If this happens, try moving closer and try again.
• Use a Boat: If you are having trouble luring a fox into a pen, you can use a boat to more easily move a fox. If a fox is in a boat, it won’t run away. You can slowly move the boat to the location you want to raise the foxes.

Step 5: Breeding Foxes

With two foxes safely in your pen, you can now begin breeding them. This is the crucial step in ‘taming’ your foxes.

• Feed Sweet Berries: Hold sweet berries in your hand and interact with each fox by right-clicking (or tapping) on them. You’ll see heart particles appear above them. Once they are both fed berries, they will breed.
• The Baby Fox: After a few seconds, the foxes will breed and a baby fox will appear. Baby foxes inherit the trust of their parents. Meaning that baby fox will now be loyal to you.
• Wait for growth : The baby fox will remain small for a while. But eventually they will grow into a full size fox.
• Repeat the Process: Repeat the feeding process with the adult foxes to breed more baby foxes. The number of foxes you can keep is limited by your resources and the space in your enclosure.
• Color Inheritance : Baby foxes will inherit the color of their parents. So if you want a snow fox baby, you will need to breed two snow foxes.

Step 6: Caring for your Baby Fox

After your baby fox is born, it is important to ensure they are safe and healthy. Here are some tips:

• Keep the Baby Safe: Baby foxes are small, they can fall in small holes, or gaps in your enclosures. Make sure the baby fox cannot fall into any small holes or areas that are hard to get back out of.
• Ensure Food: Make sure your baby fox has access to sweet berries, to ensure it can heal up if it is injured.
• Provide Protection: Provide protection from other monsters and dangerous situations.
• Be Patient: It takes time for baby foxes to grow into adult foxes. Be patient while they grow.
• Enjoy the Companion: Once the baby fox is grown, you can now take it around with you. And enjoy your new little companion!

Additional Tips and Considerations

• Leash a Fox: If you want to take a fox around the world, you can use a lead to attach a fox and take them on walks.
• Transportation: If you need to transport your foxes across long distances, using a boat is an efficient method. Put the fox in the boat and row them where they need to go.
• Foxes with Items: Foxes can sometimes pick up items. If you see your fox carrying something, they may drop it if they are killed, or if they get injured.
• Foxes Sleep: Foxes sometimes sleep. You’ll notice them sitting down. If you walk up to them while they are sleeping, they will react and get back on their feet.
• Foxes and Wolves : if a fox is attacked by a wolf, the fox will run away. In some cases, the wolf may even attack and kill the fox. So it’s important to make sure your fox is kept separate from any wolves you might have in the area.
• Beware of Ravagers : Ravagers, which are found during raids, will attack foxes. So if you are raided, make sure your foxes are safe inside a secure enclosure.
• Cross-breeding : All foxes, regardless of type or color, can breed with each other. Baby foxes will inherit the color of their parents. But there are no other breed differences.
• Fox Breeding is safe : Unlike breeding some other animals, breeding foxes won’t damage or kill them. You can breed foxes as many times as you want, provided that you have enough sweet berries.
• Make your Pen Safe : As always, make sure your enclosure is well lit so hostile mobs won’t spawn there and kill your foxes. It’s a good idea to make sure your pen is completely enclosed, with no holes, or gaps to make sure the foxes can’t escape.

Conclusion

Taming foxes in Minecraft is a delightful endeavor that adds a unique dynamic to your gameplay. Although they can’t be tamed with a simple right-click, the process of breeding and raising baby foxes provides a deeply rewarding experience. Now that you know how to do it, get out there and start collecting those sweet berries to find your loyal fox companions! Whether you’re a new player or a veteran, this process is a worthwhile adventure that will fill your world with adorable and fascinating creatures.