Are there anyways to deter foxes?

[Ponypoor]

Are there anyways to deter foxes. Has it worked for you? If so whats it called?

I love electric fencing - highly entertaining also.

 

[Folly's place]

Rabies: infected critters are contagious BEFORE showing signs of illness! Time while contagious and acting normal vary by species and individual, from less than ten days for dogs and cats to months for bats. Skunks can take time too. In part it's why some species are more dangerous than others.
Mary
Amending the dog and cat (and ferret?) story here: if the dog or cat is still healthy after ten days from the event, he or she was not contagious with rabies at that time. Doesn't mean that the animal isn't incubating rabies, just that the virus wasn't yet in it's salivary glands.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Rabies: infected critters are contagious BEFORE showing signs of illness! Time while contagious and acting normal vary by species and individual, from less than ten days for dogs and cats to months for bats. Skunks can take time too. In part it's why some species are more dangerous than others.
Mary

This really good to know. Thanks, Mary!

 

[jxp]

I've been very fortunate. When I relocated to a 2 acre parcel surrounded by 80 acres of farmed land (they grow & rotate corn or soy), I noticed a few foxes that had dens in the farmland & next door wooded lot, that also enjoyed sunbathing on my grassy area. I love wildlife, often photographed or sketched what I've seen since childhood. Here, I have been able to observe quite a variety...Hummingbirds, Osprey, various types of hawks, falcons, Bald Eagles, various duck species, Canadian and Snow Geese, many types of song birds, the occasional raccoons, Opossums, otters & of course lots of fat rabbits & those pesky groundhogs. The foxes like to hunt rodents, so I'd get a kick out of watching a fox look at the ground, tilt the head listening, then do a beautiful jumping swan dive type of pounce & come up with a mouse, mole or rat. I don't mind them on rodent patrol at all!

I've had Homing Pigeons for decades & the only type of predator that really goes after them are hawks. So I do limit free flying in winter months.

When I decided to get chickens in 2015, I found your site here as I researched all types of potential issues, and built a predator proof coop and large pen. I do free range my chickens but only when I am outside there too, doing yard work, gardening or some other type of project close by.

The cool thing is, the foxes have come to know me as the lady that appreciates wildlife. They can be in my yard most of the day, and not even go near the chickens or pigeons. They have their favorite spots to sunbathe or play. Seeing kits play is a real treat, they roll around and chase eachother like puppies do.

The one older Vixen, became very friendly with me. I called her Lady Fox. She would lay down by me when I sat at the fire pit. When I saw a particularly stunning sunset, she would notice me taking photos, and she'd look up at the sunset, then sit down by me & we'd literally watch the sunset & it's changing colors for a good 15 minutes...she would be gazing up at it too.

She also would accompany me on my walk to the mailbox down the road and back. Neighbors said they wished their own dogs would walk as nice while on leashes, so perfectly matched was her gait to mine. Lol

She would bring her kits out to show me, she'd sit down to calm them so I could get photos. I enjoyed each litter, watching them grow, then they'd eventually leave to find their own turf somewhere. I don't know where they went, but once a year, every May, there would be a family reunion of sorts. Literally on the very 1st warm sunny day in May (usually near the 15th) I would see 15 to 30 foxes of various ages, all rolling around & playing. They'd stick to the area of nice grass where it meets the cornfield, in back of my big barn, about 100'x75' and just hang out, like some family picnic. It is truly awesome. Before my father passed, we both witnessed this, and one time 2 adult foxes greeted eachother, both front paws on eachothers shoulders then walking on hind legs only from one end of the yard to the other! Both my dad & I exclaimed "Wow, they're doing the Fox Trot!" & we could not believe we were able to see such an amazing thing in person. I've watched nature shows & documentaries my entire life & never got to see foxes doing the Fox Trot...this was a gift.

Lady Fox was quite the endearing "dog" & she kept her kits in line. One day 2 Springs ago, her male kit was checking out my Guineas...he started walking towards them & I said "No" & I was amazed to see Lady Fox trot over to him & grab him at the scruff & drag him away from my Guineas. He hunkered down & sulked by her for 20 minutes. Lol I have no idea if she really was trying to teach him they were to be left alone, but honest to goodness he never went near them again, & made huge detours to avoid their coop from then on, too.

Lady Fox was wonderful, she loved posing for photos & sketches, loved a good relaxing fire at the fire pit, & treated my dad & me like friendly neighbors. She was unique. She was quite old & sadly died this past September. She lay down not far from my fire pit, right next to the wildflower garden, curled up as if to nap & passed away. She is buried there.

Her last 3 kits still hang out here, 1 of which has decided to be like her mother. I call her Little Girl. She follows me around at times, sits and gazes at sunsets, relaxes right by my chair at the fire pit, accompanies me to get the mail, & let's me know when the coyotes are nearby by acting nervous & looking in their direction, then back at me. When she acts that way, that night we will hear coyote calls.

She has let me know when she catches rodents, she actually plays tossing the rodent in the air & catching it, then brings it over to the steps by the back door. She has left 2 mice & a rat there the past month, then once she sees that I've seen them, she takes them away.

Well, I did not mean to write a book, but my encounters with nature always touch my heart. I have not lost a single chicken & there hasn't been a single hole dug to try & get into the chicken pens. One of the young male kits did try to grab a big hen once, all he got was a few feathers in his mouth & me hollering, swinging a 5 gal bucket at him. My hen is still the biggest girl & that male never came back for more. The look on his face as I nearly hit him with the bucket as he ducked & ran off was priceless. If you've ever seen the expression your dog makes the 1st time they run around a pool, make a wrong turn & realize they can't walk on water...yeah, that look. Lol

I guess I am blessed, because I practically have a wildlife channel live, right here in my own yard. Yes, I build predator proof pens right from the get-go, and I am glad I did, because it allows me to appreciate nature. I always will try to have a more harmonious approach whenever possible. If I had issues with bears, wildcats or something vicious that actually tore into the coop or pens, I'm sure I'd be singing a different tune, but the foxes are welcome.

View attachment 3732849View attachment 3732850View attachment 3732851View attachment 3732852View attachment 3732854

She's beautiful. You're truly blessed.

 

[jxp]

Take the lyrics from the Motley Crue song “Girls, Girls, Girls,” and change it to “Dogs, Dogs, Dogs.” Sing it to yourself a few times. You’ll etch into your mind for as long as you live the secret to free-range predator control.

Foxes are at the bottom of the canine food chain. Coyotes and wolves eat them. A domestic dog is a wolf. Big, tough, territorial, free-range dogs will go a long way towards keeping foxes deterred. You don’t have to kill most predators. You just have to make them feel like they will be killed if they linger too long around your farmyard.

My fox deterrent: View attachment 3732823

Having had both wolves and dogs in my life, I have to disagree. They're different enough that you'll know which you're dealing with and if you think you can treat a wolf like a dog, you'll be disappointed with the results.

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Having had both wolves and dogs in my life, I have to disagree. They're different enough that you'll know which you're dealing with and if you think you can treat a wolf like a dog, you'll be disappointed with the results.

Who said anything about a human treating a wolf like a dog?

I am referencing how wild animals perceive domestic dogs. Domestic dogs are modified grey wolves. Grey wolves are apex predators. When a fox smells a domestic dog, it is smelling and perceiving a major predator of its own kind.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Who said anything about a human treating a wolf like a dog?

I am referencing how wild animals perceive domestic dogs. Domestic dogs are modified grey wolves. Grey wolves are apex predators. When a fox smells a domestic dog, it is smelling and perceiving a major predator of its own kind.

Depends on the dog though because I doubt a fox is going to be deterred by a chihuahua and those come from wolves too technically

 

[Huntmaster]

Depends on the dog though because I doubt a fox is going to be deterred by a chihuahua and those come from wolves too technically

Maybe not deterred by the size but as @Florida Bullfrog stated.

When a fox smells a domestic dog, it is smelling and perceiving a major predator of its own kind.

 

[jxp]

Who said anything about a human treating a wolf like a dog?

I am referencing how wild animals perceive domestic dogs. Domestic dogs are modified grey wolves. Grey wolves are apex predators. When a fox smells a domestic dog, it is smelling and perceiving a major predator of its own kind.

My misunderstanding. I thought when you wrote, "A domestic dog is a wolf." that you meant what you typed. I'm simple like that.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Maybe not deterred by the size but as @Florida Bullfrog stated.

Hmm good point I suppose