It could be a scene from Disney classic The Fox and the Hound.
But these furry characters have become real-life friends after Rosie the fox cub was left abandoned when her father killed most of her litter.
The fox has now bonded with new pal Maddy at the home of Richard Bowler in the Berwyn mountains near Corwen, North Wales.
These heart-warming pictures show them enjoying playing together at the five-acre small-holding where Rosie is being trained.
It could be a scene from Disney classic The Fox and the Hound. But these furry characters have become real-life friends at the home of Richard Bowler in the Berwyn mountains near Corwen, North Wales, after Rosie the fox cub was left abandoned when her father killed most of her litter
The 15-week-old fox has now bonded with new pal Maddy at the home of Richard Bowler in the Berwyn mountains near Corwen, North Wales
Mr Bowler, 44, was formerly in the building industry but last year moved from Bedfordshire with girlfriend Helen, 41, for a change of lifestyle
Heart-warming pictures show Maddie and Rosie enjoying playing together at the five-acre small-holding where Rosie is being trained
Mr Bowler, 44, was formerly in the building industry but last year moved from Bedfordshire with girlfriend Helen, 41, for a change of lifestyle.
They now run a holiday let in Blaenau Ffestiniog and Richard is developing a wildlife photography business.
He explains: ‘Nothing is known about what happened to Rosie’s mum. All we know is that her dad went rogue and she was the only survivor and was hand-reared before her eyes had even opened.
‘We’ve now taken on Rosie to give her a home at our small-holding and she has bonded with Maddy, our Lakeland Patterdale cross.
‘Rosie was slowly introduced to Maddy. Maddy has always been playful and it’s a natural instinct for a fox cub to play so they get on great.
Mr Bowler and his wife now run a holiday let in Blaenau Ffestiniog and Richard is developing a wildlife photography business
He explains: ‘Nothing is known about what happened to Rosie’s mum. All we know is that her dad went rogue and she was the only survivor and was hand-reared before her eyes had even opened’
‘We’ve now taken on Rosie to give her a home at our small-holding and she has bonded with Maddy, our Lakeland Patterdale cross’
‘They have become best of friends, although we always supervise them playing together as Rosie is still quite small.
‘They chase each other around and Rosie often dives on Maddy; the living room is usually a wreck after they have been playing.
‘I feel it’s important that Rosie has a good bond with Maddy as when it comes to training Maddy shows Rosie what is required. Rosie is very quick to pick things up though.
‘I’ve been amazed at how clever she is, certainly quicker to pick up things than Maddy ever was. Her recall and sitting is 100 per cent and we’re almost there with toilet training.
‘It’s important for Rosie to be as trained as best as we can so that she can enjoy our 5-acre small-holding as freely as possible.
‘They don’t sleep together, we have a large dog crate in the living room for Rosie that has her bed in it. We only put her in her crate at night and that’s just to stop her chewing through the wires of the TV that she has an attraction to.
‘Rosie was slowly introduced to Maddy. Maddy has always been playful and it’s a natural instinct for a fox cub to play so they get on great’
‘They have become best of friends, although we always supervise them playing together as Rosie is still quite small’
‘They chase each other around and Rosie often dives on Maddy; the living room is usually a wreck after they have been playing’
‘I feel it’s important that Rosie has a good bond with Maddy as when it comes to training Maddy shows Rosie what is required. Rosie is very quick to pick things up though’
‘When she’s awake the door to the crate is open allowing her access to the living room, she also has access to our fenced in patio/veg garden while we train her.
‘We will then start introducing her to our bottom paddock that we have fenced in with 2’ chicken wire, this area is about an acre and we are developing it as an orchard and wildflower meadow so she will have a lovely area to run around in and play with Maddy.
‘We don’t feed Rosie and Maddy together but train them together with treats. We now have Rosie coming and sitting for a titbit.
‘When Rosie gets bigger we hope that her and Maddy will sleep together at the moment though as soon as they are together it’s just fun and games and destruction.’
‘I’ve been amazed at how clever she is, certainly quicker to pick up things than Maddy ever was. Her recall and sitting is 100 per cent and we’re almost there with toilet training’
‘They don’t sleep together, we have a large dog crate in the living room for Rosie that has her bed in it. We only put her in her crate at night and that’s just to stop her chewing through the wires of the TV that she has an attraction to’
‘When Rosie gets bigger we hope that her and Maddy will sleep together at the moment though as soon as they are together it’s just fun and games and destruction’