Such a sad day.

[weslammey]

The only problem with my coop and run is i didn't shut the door. It is secure and the only way in would be tunneling and he would have to go a foot under ground. The only time I let them out now is while I am out there. I haven't trapped him yet but shooting him isn't an option since I live in a neighborhood. Although I probably would shoot him if he presented the opportunity. I will catch him and kill him before I let them out to free range again.

 

[RonP]

I was at war with mother nature for quite some time.

Win a battle, lose a battle.

Way too many loses on both sides.

I found my energies better spent on building a strong defence as others have suggested.

I don't even think about predators anymore.

My avitar is a reminder of my very last capture, he was just a baby.

Held him captive till I finished my reinforcements, then released him knowing he was now no longer my enemy nor threat.

He left with a full belly of my dogs food, lamb and rice, not chicken

.

He returned often, but left unsatisfied.

 

[cmbookworm]

We have been free ranging our flock for several months with no issues, until yesterday. I was leaving around 11:45 and I was coming back from the coop to my car, there was a fox in the yard in the midst of where the flock was free ranging! At first I thought it was a coyote, but once I thought about it, there was no way. My husband and I figured....definitely fox. I just happened by at the right time and the only loss was our roo's beautiful tail feathers (poor fella!). I hate to keep them all confined, but we're going to have to take a different approach. We were thinking of a new coop anyway, so we'll have to do a better more secure run for them. We've had chickens for around 7 months now (3 of our ladies haven't even started laying eggs yet) and I've seen a snake, we've seen owls and a few hawks, and heard coyotes, but no fox until now. I hope we can take him out before he does serious damage!

 

[RonP]

Seems everyone loves chicken....

 

[Folly's place]

Having a very secure coop and run is the most important thing, and then don't trap unless you plan to shoot. Mary

 

[Dorthia]

So glad you realized killing wasn't the answer. Such a touching story of kindness.

 

[LeafBlade12345]

Dorthia, who do you mean? RonP?