Why did Europeans not widely domesticate foxes?

So I've been thinking for a while about making a world where cats aren't as common and instead are more of a regional domesticated animal, replaced in (mostly Northwestern) Europe by foxes.

How come it never took that foxes would be pest control or even hunting companions for rabbit hunt in Europe? Doing research I found that recent studies show sign of Bronze Age domestic foxes (more info, more bloc of text too) and I know that there is a Russian/Soviet scientist that tamed and started domesticating foxes in the past 60 years. The issue is that foxes eat rodents, hunt rabbits and also have a varied diet that includes fruits. So

1. they could take care of rodents messing with stocks of grains just like or even better than cats
2. they could be used in areas where large mammals are not as common and hunting rabbits is more durable/profitable
3. they could also be fed an alternate diet that doesn't take away too much from the rare meat in early civilisations.

Basically: could foxes realistically be domesticated between the bronze age and the middle ages in Europe and replace cats?

Thank you!

posted over 5 years ago

Nierninwa‭

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