A noisy beast, cunning, too! (3)

I believe the answer is:

fox

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'cunning too' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.

'a noisy beast' is the wordplay.
'a noisy' becomes 'f' ().
'beast' becomes 'ox'.
'f'+'ox'='FOX'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for fox that I've seen before include "Animal; to cheat" , "Countryside carnivore" , "Baffle; mammal" , "Hunted animal" , "Nonplus" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.

Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app