Dealing with a fox... :/

[no1hilbily]

Foxes will eat chickens my cousin had chickens took he found pieces of them that lead right to a fox den with feather around the opening if it is small enough fox consider it prey just like any other predator and with the presence of man being just about anywhere now what other choice do they have but to overcome that if the fox thinks he or she has found an easy food source the only thing you can do is keep up your chickens or get rid of the fox

 

[Just_Ducky]

Quote:

Okay, you seriously just won the thread. As you have instructed, from this point forward I will distrust everything you say.

Seriously though, if chickens were a major part of the diets of the foxes where you live, a red fox would never just cross your land. Red foxes hoard food. They would be after each and every one of your chickens constantly if your birds were "what they were looking for." They are opportunists. They eat what is convenient. Clearly, the OP's neighbor's chickens were convenient. OP said that his neighbor went out of town for a week. OP said that his neighbors left his chickens loose during that time. That's not exactly the best way to keep your animals safe from foxes. Or from coyotes, hawks, owls, feral cats, loose dogs, raccoons, snakes... you get the idea.

As far as foxes not being scared of humans, though, there was a study done in England not all that long ago on that very topic. They found that while country foxes still behave as foxes typically do (avoiding people and pretty much anything that smells strongly of people), city foxes have begun to adapt. They are larger and they eat literally everything that people eat. Like raccoons, they are thriving on what we throw out. Additionally, since people who live in cities tend to be less wary of foxes than people who live in the country (city dwellers don't have livestock to worry about), they feed the foxes. Generations of foxes have grown up this way and the foxes who don't fear humans are reproducing more successfully than the foxes that do. The "fear humans" gene is being bred out. So if you live near a city that could account for the behavior you're seeing. Similarly, if you have neighbors who don't secure their garbage or who leave food out for the foxes (intentionally or not - they'll eat dog or cat kibble) then your local foxes could be showing the same behavioral changes that the London foxes are. But your experience is anecdotal and can't be reliably applied across the board to all foxes. I could recommend a few books on fox behavior if you're interested.

 

[ivan3]

Just_Ducky wrote: As far as foxes not being scared of humans, though, there was a study done in England not all that long ago on that very topic. They found that while country foxes still behave as foxes typically do (avoiding people and pretty much anything that smells strongly of people), city foxes have begun to adapt. They are larger and they eat literally everything that people eat.

And, taking it to the little lower layer: http://www.hum.utah.edu/~bbenham/2510%20Spring%2009/Behavior%20Genetics/Farm-Fox%20Experiment.pdf

Though I don't know as I'd let them guard the flock

 

[theFox]

Quote:
I don't know exactly what the foxes around here are eating on a regular basis, but it isn't likely to be of the vegetable or fruit line of food. Funny things happen to such fare when the temperature drops and the snow piles up. I have seen them take various small rodents on the lot.

I have both red and grey fox that cross the lot (along with fisher, marten, mink, raccoon, opossums, and in the past there have been weasels about).

It isn't likely that a fox would get one of my birds as they aren't out where a fox could get to them.

I've seen red fox cross a good deal of land to get to other people's chickens.

Fox are like other omnivores they eat anything and everything that qualifies as food, my wife would tell you that as long as it wasn't alive and safe to eat I would likely give it a try and if it was alive and safe to eat I might even go so far as to place it out of the ability of a competent veterinarian to fix and then give it a try.

I prefer meat and potatoes, I'm willing to bet that a fox prefers meat.

Just so you know I'm not in a city or even in the built up areas of the town in the location indicated on the left hand side of my postings.

Just ask the beavers that had to be evicted last winter.

 

[Knittycat]

I totally want a fox as a pet now! (I read the whole article)

 

[kesali]

It is well known among wildlife biologists that foxes are the best mousers. They outdo cats. Examinations of the stomach contents of foxes showed their main food is various species of mice. During the spring, summer, fall, chipmunks also become a part of their diet as do birds of all sorts. Since chickens are birds, a fox will have little qualm about grabbing one. Indeed, as previously stated here, they are opportunists and must be to survive. I live in a heavily forested area and in the spring often see a fox hurrying along carrying a mouse or chipmunk back to a den for the youngsters. You can tell momma has taken good care of them because when they finally start wandering away from the den and you see one or two of them, they are plump, fluffy, and their red coats just glisten. Of course, they are not very worldly and predators get many of the young at this time. Also, there is always some little fellow that strays onto the road and doesn't know that a car driven by an idiot will flatten them. Don't get me wrong, it is also dangerous for those that have to learn that messing with my chickens is not a good thing.

 

[aprophet]

around here a grey momma fox will kill/eat a 100 muskrats a spring feeding a litter of pups but early in the fall I catch them using fruit as bait a lot of other non meat baits work good too if I had to pick only one bait for red fox it would be a well tainted mouse they just work grey fox are almost as fond of fish as reds are of mice

 

[77horses]

UPDATE: I haven't been able to update lately, but a little while after I posted this thread and after I secured the chicken coops more, the fox seemed to go away for the time being...But, sadly, it struck again last week and killed 2 Red Star hens, 3 young Buff Orp/Cochin mix pullets, and attacked one of the younger roosters but the big RIR rooster chased it off...which led me to believe that there are actually two foxes (a small/younger one, and a larger/older one). The younger one was the one that we saw when it grabbed one of the younger roosters a couple days ago but got chased off by the big RIR rooster (which was only possible probably because it's the smaller/younger fox). The older/larger fox, on the other hand, is believed to be the one that our neighbors saw when it killed their chickens.

 

[SteveH]

Quote:

Okay, you seriously just won the thread. As you have instructed, from this point forward I will distrust everything you say.

Seriously though, if chickens were a major part of the diets of the foxes where you live, a red fox would never just cross your land. Red foxes hoard food. They would be after each and every one of your chickens constantly if your birds were "what they were looking for." They are opportunists. They eat what is convenient. Clearly, the OP's neighbor's chickens were convenient. OP said that his neighbor went out of town for a week. OP said that his neighbors left his chickens loose during that time. That's not exactly the best way to keep your animals safe from foxes. Or from coyotes, hawks, owls, feral cats, loose dogs, raccoons, snakes... you get the idea.

As far as foxes not being scared of humans, though, there was a study done in England not all that long ago on that very topic. They found that while country foxes still behave as foxes typically do (avoiding people and pretty much anything that smells strongly of people), city foxes have begun to adapt. They are larger and they eat literally everything that people eat. Like raccoons, they are thriving on what we throw out. Additionally, since people who live in cities tend to be less wary of foxes than people who live in the country (city dwellers don't have livestock to worry about), they feed the foxes. Generations of foxes have grown up this way and the foxes who don't fear humans are reproducing more successfully than the foxes that do. The "fear humans" gene is being bred out. So if you live near a city that could account for the behavior you're seeing. Similarly, if you have neighbors who don't secure their garbage or who leave food out for the foxes (intentionally or not - they'll eat dog or cat kibble) then your local foxes could be showing the same behavioral changes that the London foxes are. But your experience is anecdotal and can't be reliably applied across the board to all foxes. I could recommend a few books on fox behavior if you're interested.

IMO, across the nation, both coyote and fox populations have risen, and both species seem to have to adjusted to living in close proximity to humans in rural and metropolitan areas alike. Neither have had the hunting pressure once suffered when there were numerous small farms, each with their own livestock and poultry raised for both food and income. With raising our own meat and eggs now becoming popular again, fox in the hen house is also becoming a revived saying.

 

[pinkyglory123]

I had a "live and let live" approach to the fox on our farm-approx. 100 acres. We knew we had fox-generally saw them crossing the fields from afar. would occassionally lose a chicken-ours free range. HOWEVER this season the large male killed, I lost count, half a dozen and let them lie. He came around the corner between the barns towards me chasing yet another chicken and it took alot of noise and arm waving to get him to turn off-he was approx. 16 feet away from me when he finally did. I do realize it was time to be feeding a den full of kits. But that was way to close for comfort for me. After a local hunter was given the okay the kits unfortunately were dispatched. I believe he may-or something-has made a den under the upper part of the bank barn. Probably going to rehome a retiring foxhound as a farm dog if it is steady on stock-generally they are as they are trained to avoid all but fox, or depending on the area, coyote. Then fence with low electric/poultry netting. both to contain hound and deter fox. Once a fox or racoon finds an easy source of food it is game on. After a while-it gets expensive if nothing else.