Does Anyone Use " FOXWATCH "?? Does It Really Work??

[Chickie Mamma]

Hello, After a few losses last year from foxes, I went and purchased "Foxwatch". Its supposed to send a high pitch tone that foxes, racoons ect. can hear and they stay away. It is supposed to have a "detection" radius of around 20 feet, but I notice that the red light does not go on unless I am about 10 feet directly in front of it. I have not had many fox problems since May so I am thinking it works somewhat. The batteries run out every 3-4 days ( its a pain ) I know my birds set it off all the time, but if I put it too far, it won't detect anything in the pen. Share your experiences with this product please

 

[huppfarm]

i work for a school district in az, we purchases 4 units simular to yours to chase bats out of the attic, didnt phase them.

i bought a trio of show lf rhodes. the same night a fox came in and killed them all and took one away for later meals. i tracked it for 2 hrs then made a nice wall hanging of it. nature does what it will, foxes, skunks, racoons, ringtail cats, and cootamundies are all preditors here in az, that can climb a fence and prey on our stock.
im not a hunter and dont kill for sport, but i will protect my flock with extreme predjudice! remove the preditors you find, remove the problem.

 

[farmergal]

A neighbor of my mom's had something kind of like that to keep dogs from pooping on his lawn. It was the most annoying thing, because I could hear the grating, high-pitched noise -- and anyone walking by the lawn on the sidewalk triggered it! I took to turning the sensor back towards the house, so the guy could have a taste of his own medicine. (Sorry... side rant!!)
I haven't tried your kind, but someone recently gave me something called "Nite Guard." It has a little solar cell on top, so there's no need for batteries. Rather than emitting a sound it just blinks red lights that are supposed to look like the eyes of other predators, which means that predators will consider the coop territory "taken" and not come around. You mount them on a stake, and move the stake a couple times a week so the predators don't catch on that it's a fake.
I haven't tried it yet but I have heard positive results from other poultry owners.

 

[Chickie Mamma]

Thanks for the replys. I haven't had any foxes around (that I have seen or know of) so I was unsure if it was because of the unit. I have an electric wire around the base of the pen and coop (about 4-5 inches off the ground) also. I KNOW that works... it stings for a while. I also have spike strips around the whole base (about 1-2 inches under the dirt) to stop any digging also. My husband call it the "Fortress" with maximum security.

I can't take another loss again. Too heartbreaking

I will look into the night guard, batteries are costing me a fortune

Thanks again for everyones input!! Still new at this and learning every day! Ann

 

[farmergal]

Here's the Nite Guard website: http://www.niteguard.com/ It's only $30, so it might earn its money back in batteries pretty quickly.

I know what you mean about losses... it's so heartbreaking to lose a bird! I lost 23 babies in one night to a fox... I cried for weeks. And now, like you, I've built a Fort Knox of a coop... up on stilts so nothing will try digging under it... a big old wood human door that I lock at night, just in case. It's definitely a learning process!!

 

[Chickie Mamma]

Thanks for the site!! Wow 23 birds lost?? I was wondering about that myself. I lost 8 birds ... 4 chicks and 4 ducklings. The fox dug under the coop (which now has chicken wire under it also). Would it have taken all 8 birds? In the back of my mind, I was hoping it took a couple and the others followed out of the hole that was dug and got away, or were caught days later by some other predator. Foxes are persistent, that night I hit it in the head with a small can of tomato sauce (now have a BB rifle)

It let out a screech and ran off. Revenge was sweet for him

 

[farmergal]

There were 25 month-old chicks in my coop. The fox got all but two of them. Same story as yours... it dug under the coop, exactly where the babies were sleeping all cuddled together... in the morning, feathers, blood, and a few dead bodies that the fox had killed but left behind. I'd say that they can definitely take 8 in one night!

I too kept hoping that the others had escaped, but in the end, I only had two survivors: one (that I named Hope, she's still alive) who'd been bitten by the fox and hid under the ramp inside the coop. Another escaped and was found 24 hours later a couple hundred yards from the coop... a neighbor saw her, whistled to her, and she walked right up to him.

Foxes are awful. I wish I'd had a can of tomato sauce handy and had stumbled on the fox as it was killing my entire flock!!! Good for you on knocking him one!!

In January, I think I'm getting a livestock guard dog to try and protect my flock... it's hard to get home every night at sunset to lock up the coop, and I don't think I'd ever forgive myself if I lost more birds due to my own ignorance or irresponsibility. Live and learn!!

 

[Chickie Mamma]

It is sooo sad and after all that work, hatching, brooding, building etc. I have 3 kids that think even with webbed feet, they dug a nice hole and ran away

I had to come up with something fast. I still hear peeping sometimes

Poor hubby didn't know what to do, so I had him running around the woods here in search for a little hope. Well, I hope you have continued luck against predators as well as myself. Thanks for the info again