![You're at the right place when you see the gorilla marking the entrance to "Fox Village"](http://a0.cdn.japantravel.com/photo/14587-86462/320x240!/miyagi-fox-village-in-zao-86462.jpg "You're at the right place when you see the gorilla marking the entrance to "Fox Village"")
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Latest on Zao Fox VillageZao Kitsune Mura is a village full of free roaming foxes deep in the mountains of Miyagi. My visit happened to be on a foggy day, no problem as it suited the mystical aura foxes carry in Japanese mythology. The foxes are tame, but still semi wild. Don't touch them and think twice about bringing very young children. Follow the tori gates in the village to the Inari shrine. Foxes are messengers of the deity Inari, so you may want to bribe the messengers by giving them some fox food which can be purchased upon entry.
There are several other animal species at the fox village, particularly a large bunny petting zoo. A restaurant and gift shop are also on the premises.
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Find out more about Zao Fox Village.
Through ads online we thought that this was some kind of sanctuary for foxes, but it is quite the opposite.
There is a warning when you get in of strong smells but it doesn't truly prepare you for the smell that greets you after you pay. Being that it was in the low 40s, I can't imagine being there in the summertime. If you are smell sensitive, don't come.
The area you enter is full of cages of different types of foxes and different ages. Most were younger but some were very elderly. The cages were too small for the animals and I felt very bad for the animals. They also had rabbits, mini horses, and goats. Their enclosures were also too small for the animals.
We went into the open enclosure where there were a tremendous amount of foxes sleeping and walking about. When the food man came, they all perked up and started following him (we did too). He runs a stand in the middle of the enclosure where you can buy food and feed the foxes. It's about 7 or 8 pieces of giant processed dog food pellets you break in half and throw from the enclosure to feed the foxes.
This was a fun activity for the kids but it causes the foxes to fight with each other. 1 bag Is nowhere near enough food for a single fox, neither was the 4 that we bought collectively. I'm sure they get fed regardless of how many tourists come.
Their gift shop was amazing and had the cutest things. This was the only high point of it.
Adults are ¥1000 and kids are free. It must be one adult per child. No more so if the kids outnumber the adults, then it's a no-go. And you must hold your child's hand at all times. The open enclosure isn't staffed so if you get bit, your fault (you sign a waiver beforehand).
The worse part is seeing my daughter wrestle between seeing the animal she loves the most in such horrible conditions. She already has told me she wants to boycott all animal shows because the animals are treated so cruelly. She was trying so hard to enjoy herself, but I could tell she did not.
Pretty sad stuff about this place, it's actually a fur farm, and a lot of the foxes are in very small cages and are frightened of the staff. Do not advertise to animal lovers. Animal lovers would not go to a place that promotes cruelty
The small cages at Fox Village, I was told, are there for two reasons. First is foxes feel more secure in small places. Second is to get them used to humans. Once they are used to humans they are moved to the village section where they have a huge area to run and play around without fear of predators. The foxes in that area I believe are treated humanely. I think the village can do a better job still, and also sharing more info about how they care (or don’t) for the foxes would be beneficial to unsure visitors (including myself).