Nutrition

=__Food__= The Vancouver Fox Otter has lots of available prey in Vancouver. Since the Fox Otter is a powerful carnivore, it can kill and eat about anything it's size. Some of the Fox Otter's prey are Deer, Beavers, Squirrels, Minks, Chipmunks, Red Foxes, Sea Otters, Salmon, Crab, and Skunks, too name just a few. The Fox Otter hunts in varying ways. If the Fox Otter is hunting for smaller prey, like a squirrel, chipmunk, or skunk, it will crouch down, and lie in wait, hidden. Once the prey is close enough, the Fox Otter will try to silently pounce on the prey, and roll it over, so that it can get on top of it. If it can do that, the Fox Otter swipe at it's preys neck with it's powerful, retractable, claws, while holding it down with the other paw. Once the prey is dead, the Fox Otter will quickly snatch it up with it's jaws to take it to a safer place, like it's den. Also, if the family is in need of large amounts of food, a "hunting party", consisting of 4-6 Fox Otters will try to find larger prey, like Deer. If this happens, the party will walk quietly and close to the ground, to listen and smell prey. Once they find some, they will surround the unsuspecting animal, while staying hidden in cover. Then, the leader of the hunt will jump out to attack the animal. The rest of the party will follow. All Fox Otters will try to slash at the big animal with their claws, and try to bite at it's neck. Once the prey is successfully killed, all Fox Otters will drag it toward the den, where everybody will feast on it. If the prey is marine, then the Fox Otter will try to dive down, pick it up and out of the water until it suffocates. Then, the Fox Otter will bring it back to the family.

=__Waste__= The Fox Otter is a normal mammal. It must release four things from it's body. 1.) Urine. 2.) Feces. 3.) Carbon Dioxide. 4.) Sweat. Urine is made by the kidneys from the bloodstream. The urine is made of water and liquid waste. The kidneys then send it along to the bladder via the ureter. Once the urine has accumulated enough, the Fox Otter will dispose of that urine, and move it out of the body through the urethra, which connects to the bladder. Feces is waste from the digestive system made by the large intestine. The waste then moves to the rectum ampulla, where it is temporarily stored. As more comes in, the rectum ampulla stretches, alerting the nervous system. The nervous system sends a signal to feel the urge to defecate(release feces). If that urge is followed by the Fox Otter, that voluntary choice will tell the rectum to shorten and contract, therefore pushing the feces through the anus, and out of the body. If that urge is not acted upon, the colon will make the feces absorb water, preventing pain until it hardens again. The next time more feces come from the large intestine, the urge will come up again, and the process will repeat. The urge will get stronger every time, until the Fox Otter obeys the urge. Carbon Dioxide is a product of the respiratory system, made by the lung cells. Carbon Dioxide is released from the body when air is exhaled out of the nose or mouth. If air is not exhaled, the Fox Otter will experience air hunger, or the urge to exhale Carbon DIoxide, and breathe in Oxygen, since without oxygen, the Fox Otter will die. Sweating is an example of thermoregulation, or the ability to keep one's body temperature within certain boundaries, despite outside conditions. The Fox Otter will open it's mouth and pant, to get rid of excess heat, as panting will evaporate water from the mouth. The evaporation has a cooling effect.