Meet the arctic fox—perhaps the most adorable pup in the wild dog family

Yes indeed! Arctic foxes sure are adorable. You’d wish you could adopt one and have him curl up by the fire on a cold night in your very own home, but the arctic fox is a complex creature and one that belongs in its natural habitat.

They can be friendly, and are known to come up to people who happen to be hiking out there, but be careful, as they are wild animals as stated, and they can definitely get a tad defensive when surrounded or approached, and when they’re hungry, watch out!

Here are some interesting facts about the Arctic’s most adorable critter and expert hunter, the arctic fox

As wwf.org.uk states, there are a whopping eight different species of this wild dog alone. Some include: the Mainland Arctic fox, the Spitsbergen Arctic fox, the Bering Island/Sea Arctic fox, and even the Ungava Bay Arctic fox, and not all of them have white fur.

Interestingly enough, their fur does change and that color change depends on the changing seasons and the harsh climates of its habitat.

They are hungry critters and they have a varied diet. They eat meat…essentially smaller mammals they can hunt; birds as well, and even fish. But they also eat berries and seaweed.

But perhaps the most interesting thing about these little critters is that they will often follow polar bears around, and although as fans of the many Pixar and Disney films we’ve seen over the years (Ice Age in particular), we’re hoping this phenomena is because they’re best buds until the end, but in reality, these sly foxes follow the bears in hope of attaining a few morsels of food the polar bears are likely to leave behind.

But, as the WWF also states, the arctic fox is in danger and yes, it’s a familiar threat they face as well…something we’ve been talking a lot about as a society and something very little is being done about: climate change.

These adorable critters are losing safe places to stay when the temperatures drop and reach severe lows. They’re essentially losing “snow cover,” as the WWF puts it (they keep snug in the snow…as even though the snow itself is cold, it still provides shelter from strong, cold winds…think igloos…), and of course this loss of cover is because of climate change.

Another cute fact about these beautiful wild dogs is that they are like cats in one specific way. When they sleep, they will often curl up in a ball and wrap their tails around themselves.

Because of fossils found, the arctic fox dates back to the early Pliocene, which takes this little critter’s origins to roughly about 3 to 5 million years ago, according to Wikipedia. Now that’s definitely an OG when it comes to the wild dog family, isn’t it?

Have you had any funny encounters with these epic animals, dear readers? Let us know.