Foxes got two of my animals.

[spies04]

We let our chickens free range only when we are home, otherwise, they are locked in a secured house and fenced in area. These foxes showed no fear when we were home and killed two of our beloved pets - one buff orphington and one guinea hens. My family is devasted. Now we are waiting for them to come back to put a final end to these ruthless animals.

I want to be sure I am keep my pets safe even when we are not home to prevent them from digging into my coop.

Any help would be so much appreciated! My heart is broken as I cannot even bear to think about my pets' last moments.

 

[kinsey228]

The same happened to me. I lost an EE and a Golden Comet. You either have to trap them or kill them. The one that got our chickens actually chased the rest of the flock right up onto our front door step. Luckily we were able to save them, but it kept coming back, until it got hit by a car.

 

[CapricornFarm]

So sorry about your chickens!

Have you put a ditch with a wire skirt around your coop? Helps keep the varmints out.

 

[spies04]

Thank you for your kind words. No, we have not but we are willing to try anything at this point. I treasure my animals and do everything to keep them safe. I actually came around the corner to catch one of them chasing our chickens. I found one of our guinea hens in the tree. Now she is continually calling to her friend who just doesn't answer back.

 

[aprophet]

google dirt hole set or flat set is the quickest way the top coupla links will show you pictures on how to do it

 

[Redcatcher]

I totally empathize with you. I finally was able to trap and kill the fox that had been killing and terrorizing my chickens. Mine free range too when I am at home but it made no difference to this fox. It would not think twice about coming right up onto my porch to grab one and run off with it. The trap I used was a relatively humane foothold trap. The jaws are rubber lined and do little damage yet hold the animal. I placed a live chicken in a small animal crate and tethered her by the leg so that she could not reach trap yet could move around. Then I placed the trap just inside the entrance of the crate. I used a Silkie hen for this due to her quiet temperament and not minding sitting for hours at a time. She was never in any danger because I have great deal of faith in this trap and placed it so that there was no possible way that the fox could get to the hen without tripping it. It took about a week and some experimenting with various times and places. Just remember that right after a killing, the foxes are not going to be really hungry. A couple of chickens will keep them occupied for several days. So, patience may be needed.