Several smaller, temporary dens may be located nearby where the pups can be moved in time of danger. Foxes are primarily nocturnal but may come out in daylight, especially in late morning or early evening. Because they often travel over the same routes, worn and well-marked trails soon develop. In contrast to red foxes, gray foxes readily climb trees. They climb out of curiosity, to search for food, to take refuge from dogs or to lie on limbs and sun.
Gray foxes are less cunning than red foxes and are regarded as easier to trap.
Rabbits, rats and mice form the bulk of the diet of foxes, and this portion of their feeding habits is considered beneficial. Additional items include other small mammalian species, wild birds, insects and only a small amount of plant material. To a certain extent, they do feed on small livestock and poultry, but the economic loss is not as great as it appears because doubtless some of this is carrion. When available, about a pound of meat is eaten at a feeding. If food is plentiful, more is killed than the fox can eat.