Hi and welcome to BYC from northern Michigan
Even if you kill this predator (or predators), without securing your run you will continue to loose birds. There is Always another predator looking for a chicken dinner. Your dog will be no deterrent.
My run is open at the top, too. It is quite large....about 50 ' X 25' right now, with some trees for cover and contraption in the middle where they can get out of the rain...(which they are too stubborn or stupid to do, it seems) and also to create an obstale course for hawks who look for a "runway' to land and make the kill.
Are you suggesting that I cover the whole thing (wow!) with netting or something? What would the expense of something like that be. I need to be careful here too. as we are in wild county...lots of everything as far a predators go. I won't let them free-range for that reason. Friends up the road have lost their whole flock except one to predators (they free-ranged). I'm all for free-ranging but every home in our neighborhood is surrounded by 40 to a 100 acres and our land backs up onto hundreds of acres of stateland with lakes and creeks, etc. Great hunting for us and for predators.
My husband thought that foxes only hunt very very early in the morning....unless they are starving.
