Intercepted-one up for the bird.

[LeggyLeghorn]

Intercepted a fox with my fella in it's mouth! Late night, with a window open, heard my rooster squabbling. thought to myself that doesn't sound right. ran out to the coop with a light and there he was! the fox cleared a 7' stone wall. Rooster was shook, bloody head but he's ok. I spent the next half hour in the dark mending my coop. The fox tore off the chicken wire in a weak spot (my own fault there). Fort Knox now

.

 

[sourland]

Well done on the rescue. Be prepared as the fox will return. Chicken wire keeps chickens in, but does not keep predators out. Good luck.

 

[LeggyLeghorn]

Two nights later I heard something being killed along the river so, I'd say the fox is sated for the time being. I am in the process of re building my coop, so now I must expedite the building.

 

[CatWhisperer]

Invest in hardware cloth for your coop. Fox will return for chicken dinner soon

 

[LeggyLeghorn]

Part of the run is hardware cloth and part of it is not. I know that chicken wire is not the barricade that works best.
In the 6 years that I have had this run, I have had one mink attack, and this one fox attack. One year, I had a fox living in my field, in harmony with my chickens. I used to find his bed in a tuff of grass on winter mornings. The fox never went for the chickens. maybe it was vegetarian...
yes, my new coop and run will be different.

 

[drumstick diva]

Fox are very persistent, very clever. Even better than hardware cloth, is a electrified fencing.

 

[nuthatched]

Make sure you don't forget to secure the run floor, foxes are crazy diggers!

 

[LeggyLeghorn]

Fox are very persistent, very clever. Even better than hardware cloth, is a electrified fencing.

Persistent and opportunist! I am not a big fan of electric fencing for birds. I’m surrounded by it here in Ireland. That’s all that is used for livestock. If pushed I would probably get a couple little terrier’s and let them live outside. as many Irish do.
Give and take, everything needs to eat. I buried wire all around the coop. The fox attempting a break in that way but, it hit wire and stopped.

 

[Building Bridges]

Wow!! Such a close call!! Good thing the window was open and you were vigilant! Very glad to here you saved your fella. I have a good friend who lives in County Kerry. I love border collies and have two of them....she always told me how groups of BCs just wander loose in Ireland.....she painted lovely pictures in my head of sea shores and green hills and border collies living the life they were meant to! Sounds like such a lovely place.

 

[LeggyLeghorn]

Wow!! Such a close call!! Good thing the window was open and you were vigilant! Very glad to here you saved your fella. I have a good friend who lives in County Kerry. I love border collies and have two of them....she always told me how groups of BCs just wander loose in Ireland.....she painted lovely pictures in my head of sea shores and green hills and border collies living the life they were meant to! Sounds like such a lovely place.

It is like that however, Boarder Collies running loose might be a bit of a stretch or very specific to your friend. If a couple loose collies, or more, happen to herd the wrong flock or worse, pack mentality sets in on flock...could be death to the dog. You definitely see dogs running around loose-often left to their own devices for a walk. And the concept of picking up your dogs poop is just well, becoming a notion! But in the country you would definitely come across a collie on a farm. and a farm by the sea!