As we walked along the woods of Sugarland Run, both Toshirō and Sachiko stopped abruptly and stared intently at the edge of the woods. It was so sudden and so intent that it scared me a little, so I stopped to see what they were staring at.

There was a majestic red fox standing underneath the trees just watching us. He was probably only four or five feet away from us, but showed no fear whatsoever of our two Shelties. He just stood, and then sat, and he watched us.

Sachiko seemed completely smitten with the red fox. Toshiro largely ignored him, just watching.

Leaving for our walks before sunrise or just after sunset really is the best time to watch the wildlife around Loudoun County, Virginia. We’ve been able to see foxes, raccoons, skunks, deer, coyote, and bats during our daily walks.