daylight fox attack

[Keara]

How common is it for a fox to take chickens durring the day? I lost half my layers and all my pullets yesterday, 9 in total. We saw a fox leaving the barn area as we discovered the piles fo feathers. Five years and I've never lost chickens durring the day! I will be setting out live traps and sitting this afternoon with the .22 near the path he headed home on. Do foxes hunt in groups?, so many where taken and I only found one body.... can't imagen one fox ate eight chickens!

-Keara

 

[greyhorsewoman]

I had that a couple years ago when a young family of foxes came and wiped out my barnyard chickens. They were coming morning, noon, and night !

 

[slackwater]

I've heard that foxes will bury prey for later. So, even if one fox can only eat so much at a time, they will keep more for later - especially if they have kits to feed.

 

[incubatingisfun]

they are mainly nocturnal but i think they occasionaly hunt during the day

 

[aprophet]

Quote:
it is not so much day and night it is more when human activity dies down they become active

 

[incubatingisfun]

good point
keara where do you live city or country

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

I've seen them during the day but mostly in the morning or late afternoon. I guess it depends on how hungry it is. Good luck!

Steve

 

[Keara]

Quote:
I live in Vermont it's all country here!.... specifically a old dairy farm just outside of town. I've always assumed foxes were only a problem in the evenings and night.

We've always had coyotes but I've never seen fox here, though I'm not surprised. Just never had a problem before, kept chickens for 5yrs now, this is my first fox loss.

Lesson learned, no more free ranging my favorites when I am not home. I am going to build a enclosed run for my BCM chicks, cuz I don't want to lose those too.

 

[jmagill]

We see the foxes at all times of the day and night.

Foxes are aware of your routines and will watch at different times of day to see when you are out and about.

My husband got home the other afternoon and saw the fox sitting just outside the pasture fence watching me put the chickens back in the run.
if I had been 15 minutes later he would have had a couple.( or more)

 

[gootziecat]

I have seen foxes hunting in the morning too. Years ago, we had racoons killing our chickens in the middle of the day. Like some one mentioned, it has a lot to do with how hungry they are.