Fox War - Snares and Traps

[panner123]

Quote:
Unless you bury the wire in an L shape out from the main fence, I don't care how deep you dig and place cinder blocks. Your digging predators will dig under the blocks, but with the wire in this shape, the predator will dig down hit the buried wire and stop. I have never known any predator smart enough to back up to get under the wire.

 

[snugglepup]

Dude, we aren't just burying it in an L, we are burying it in a T. It will extend both outside the pen but inside also. We are using welded wire/hardware cloth on all walls and ceiling. Our goal: IMPENETRABLE!!!

 

[Mountain Man Jim]

Quote:
I guess I should have been more specific, a big white dog

What kind of dogs do you have? I'm surprised they don't chase the fox off. Of course, maybe I shouldn't be. Before was got the Pyr, the fox would actually slip into the yard and take a bird without the retrievers even noticing.

Eventually we determined there was a time of the day we called “Fox Hour”. The local fox had a schedule of when it made its rounds to our yard to check out the hunting possibilities. Fox Hour seemed to be just before sunset and just after sunrise, so we made sure the girls were in bed at those times (the chicken “coop” is bulletproof). And, at Fox Hour I would stand watch with the BB/airsoft gun to try to “communicate” to the fox that the yard was off limits. It kind of worked, now the Pyr is old enough that we don’t have any issues (as long as she is outside).

Your plans for the coop sound great. Is there anyway to fence in the area of the existing coop were a dog or two could patrol day and night. I know this sound extreme, but just until you make improvements.

Jim

 

[ivan3]

snugglepup:

This is a link to foxtrapperSteph's primer on legholds over on ezbyc:

http://p098.ezboard.com/prepping-an...rdchickensfrm7.showMessage?topicID=1468.topic

Live traps are iffy (never did have one set off large havahart). Have trapped one juvenile and one adult in the standard model (over ten years of having three live traps set ALWAYS). Leg holds require some time and effort to set up, as do snares. Snares in particular require pretty thorough knowledge of where the foxes are coming from and going to (set snares along paths).

If you plan to keep the chooks in a protected coop/run all the time then there's no need to bother with active measures. If you plan to free range them (and that includes supervised free ranging - foxes are brazen) then retire as many as possible (goes a long way towards decreasing the overall frequency of predation).

If you do free range them, clearing the brush along the virge is excellent. Leave one or two `noses' of brush extend into your clearings - when the chooks alert, you'll know right where the fox is sitting and it can be shot while still plotting (have retired three by doing this just this past summer).

 

[Sharisr32]

Not sure what your budget for this is but you can also grab a phonebook and see if in your area there is a trapping service---I am used them all live traps leg traps and sat with a gun to get mean nasty preditors -I had a personal battle with a coon - he was a piece taker one piece out of a bird in the chest area and leave it - We now have a Blue Tick which has kept the bad guys away since May --- and a shep on the other end which is good for skunks etc...
he doesn't let much get by him and I have a boxer which walks with me--- I live in an armed camp -- but no loses makes it worth it -- prior to setting leg traps i did notify neighbors -- we are now upto 4 new cats at the neighbors
which she sees no reason to have fixed --- so just waiting for the dogs to get them --- but that is their job to keep the chickens safe --- I hope you get the fox good luck ---

( I don't debate traps my land my rules )