do foxes dig???

[monster1]

i put chicken wire on top of my dog run chicken pen because a fox got our chickens. will a fox dig under the pen to get an easy meal?

 

[Dill]

Yes.

 

[monster1]

would one foot of chicken wire laid out from the base of the perimeter of the pen keep him out? i read that predators that dig will dig against the object which they are trying to tunnel under and not away from the object.

 

[horsejody]

I would bury the chicken wire. Foxes are clever. It may manage to get under it if it is not buried.

 

[patandchickens]

Oh yes, foxes are some of the best diggers you'll see. A one foot apron is probably not gonig to slow a fox down much. Run it out four feet (weighed down with rox or pavers or such) and you'll be in better shape, especially if you take the trouble to peel your sod back and lay the wire just *under* the sod.

If you're going to dig downwards and bury a vertical section of mesh, I wouldn't trust a fox with less than 2' depth, and even then, if the fox were determined, he might go under.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[gratefulchicken]

The deeper the better with the chicken wire. My wire was only about 4-6 inches deep and a critter managed to dig a little and squeeze under

, hurting three of my then babes and permanently injuring one (she now has a limp)

. Due to rocks preventing me from getting any deeper, I drove nails on an angle every 4 inches or so through pressure treated 2x4's, buried them as deep as I could with the nails pointing down and out, stapled the wire to the 2x4's, and filled in the shallow trench. I also plan on laying down large pavers or pieces of slate so the critters will need to dig further horizontally before they hit the wire. If they try and squeeze under, they will get shredded up by the nails

. Its been about 4 months now and so far so good

. Good luck!

 

[monster1]

been trying to send his little a$$ over the rainbow bridge but haven't been able to do it yet. i have never seen him, but my neighbor see's him in his backyard all the time. he hunts about two hours before dawn and my schedule doesn't allow me to be up waiting for him with mr 12 gauge.