I Have a Fox Problem

[NAA60512]

We had a fox but I think the owl chased it away.

 

[SOHC-FTW]

Relocating varmints is gibberish.

 

[JennyFromTheBawk]

I lost one of our free ranging hens to a fox a couple weeks ago. We have a couple roosters so they alerted us and we chased it away. We made sure to have our .22 close by. Early that same evening ( all the chickens were penned up) the fox returned and the roosters sounded the alarm. He didn’t live too much longer. In Alberta, trapping is illegal even if it’s a nuisance predator so the .22 was our only option to be rid of it. Unfortunately our dogs were useless and sleeping on the other side of the yard both times the fox came by ‍.

 

[roosterhavoc]

I lost one of our free ranging hens to a fox a couple weeks ago. We have a couple roosters so they alerted us and we chased it away. We made sure to have our .22 close by. Early that same evening ( all the chickens were penned up) the fox returned and the roosters sounded the alarm. He didn’t live too much longer. In Alberta, trapping is illegal even if it’s a nuisance predator so the .22 was our only option to be rid of it. Unfortunately our dogs were useless and sleeping on the other side of the yard both times the fox came by ‍.

http://albertaregulations.ca/trappingregs/licensing.html
http://www.albertatrappers.com/

 

[oldhen2345]

You cannot trap a fox. Illegal. Store bought coop Mistake #1 ( made this mistake also). How did it get in?? Did you bury the wire 18 inches out from your enclosure? Did it get under the fence? I have fox and it just watched my girls, it found out it was WAY too much trouble to try to get in. I have an enclosed 12x 24ft garden, their coop is inside, the fence is 6ft high, I have hardware cloth around the perimeter and buried 18 inches out. I've had Chickens going on 3 yrs, not ONE predator death. After my first year I realized I was in OVER my head, I studied and built my own coop.

Your coop looks a lot like mine. I am lucky that I have mine inside a 6 ft privacy fence, but still get coons and possums - and cats. I saw something that I thought was fabulous - the pop door was on the run, not the coop. The chickens can get out and scratch about in the run safely in the morning - until I open the pop door and let them into the yard. I use Havahart traps and so far have caught a couple of possums, but not the racoon, the invading armadillo and the 4 cats that come in my yard at night. But - the chickens are safe.

 

[mscallisto]

I feel your pain, but mine is raccoons. Anyone who says raccoons are cute have never seen the carnage they leave behind when killing chickens. I had a home built a-frame coop thst like you I added on for a run. Like you, big mistake. They managed to get under or around or whatever the fencing, got into the roosting area and killed every one. I did, although, buy a store bought coop after that, but I buried stainless steel fencing about 6 inches under it and around the perimeter. I also plan to add mesh to the outside of the coop before winter to reinforce.

I have had good luck introducing young birds and pullets to an existing flock, but I think it all depends on the original birds temperament.

 

[JennyFromTheBawk]

http://albertaregulations.ca/trappingregs/licensing.html

I didn’t even think to look there. I only looked at our county website and it said it was illegal. Thanks for the info!

 

[Schlieter]

mine is very similar to that

Mine too.

We have two coops a Summerhawk Ranch one and an Innovation one. We used a 10x10x6’ chain link dog kennel for our initial coop run and just expanded with fencing, wire, and meshing a weekend or two back. Oy the work. Lol

 

[teringeorge]

Most states allow for killing predators if they are attacking your livestock. Depending on the state, killing usually means shooting. Trapping fox requires a trapping permit and can only be done during a certain time of year. Use hardware cloth instead of chicken wire. Hope this helps.

 

[Mtnboomer]

Fox is a furbearer species and therefore technically illegal to trsp without the proper permit and during the season. However, if it were my chickens at my house, i would set a "box" trap baited with sardines or tunafish. Once you catch him and possibly other would be predators (raccoons, skunks, opossum etc) call wildlife control for removal or relocate yourself. Live traps are indiscriminate and like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get. Most wildlife officers understand this and will help you with a nuisance animal. But technically illegal so your call.

We have all sorts of predators from bear to bobcat that wander through the yard every night and have only ever lost 1 bird. That was in the middle of the day while chickens are free to roam the yard and woods. Night time safety has been achieved with an elevated coop, welded wire (no chicken wire) and latches on every point of entry. Our "adolescent" birds (up to 4 mos) are raised in a flight pen (8' x 30') that is welded wire to 7ft high with chicken wire ceiling. Base of fence is anchored by 6x6 timbers buried in the ground. Inside the flight pen they have an elevated coop with additional locks so even if fox gets in the pen they cant get in the coop.

If animal control won't help, and your uncomfortable addressing the situation yourself, beef up security with heavier wire and ground anchorage.
Photo shows the coop for free range adults on right and flight pen for adolescents on left