A giant fox twice the normal size has been caught and killed in Maidstone.

The huge animal, which weighed 26.5lb and was almost four feet long, was trapped and killed humanely by vet Keith Talbot.

Mr Talbot, pictured left, killed the fox after it has been seen around his parents' house in Maidstone days after their 19-year-old tabby cat was found dead on the doorstep. He trapped the fox in a cage before putting it down.

The fox, which is about the height of a seven-year-old child, is thought to have grown by eating food scraps left out in dustbins and by wildlife lovers. A pack’s alpha male will often grow bigger than the rest by claiming the most food.

Foxes hit the headlines last year after twins Isabella and Lola Kouparis were attacked in their beds in London after a fox got into their home via a open patio door.
However animal rights campaigners point out that most foxes live on insects and small mammals and pose no harm to humans unless they are frightened.

The fox has now made news around the world after it was featured on The Field Sports Channel. It is thought there are at least 34,000 urban foxes in Britain.