what's the best type of trap to catch a fox? Anyone have experience?

[bassfishrman]

I have lost 4 free range chickens in the last 2 days. There is no sign of them, but foxes have been spotted lately by neighbors. I have locked my chickens up (they hate it!) until I can catch the foxes.

Does anyone have experience trapping them? What type of bait is best? I would prefer to use a live trap of some sort.

 

[usbr]

Foxes are known to not go in livetraps (cage traps). You can try your local or state trapping accociation to see if anybody wants to come out to trap them but around here, they want money to do it. Seeing as how its not prime season for pelts, I opted to do it myself because even the offer for trapping rights later in the year wasnt going to get them out (why come out to trap my foxes now and have nothing left to trap later). I tried the hay set but by the time I put it out, I have shot the papa fox and molested the den pretty well so they seemed to have moved on so in the end, I have to say a 30.06 worked best for me. I still think they swing through the area but the dens have been moved from just over the property line to someplace else.

Of course I have to say, dont rule out coons, they just seem to keep comming and comming. I wish they had a bounty on them, I wouldnt have to pay for my chicken feed if they did. If you already have a live trap, put some of whatever animal food you have around the place or some corn. This will catch any coon or possums you have comming around and if no more kills, you will have a good idea its foxes. Coon will skip the corn and food if they have tasted some nice fresh chicken though so nothing is set in stone.

Link for the hay set. http://p072.ezboard.com/The-HAY-SET-step-by-step-for-easy-fox-trapping/fbackyardchickensfrm7.showMessage?topicID=1216.topic

Good luck and happy hunting.

Edited to add: I have had fox eat eggs, dog food, dead squirls, dead chipmunks, and dead gophers. They wont eat the possums or coons though. Any of the above list could have been eaten by coon and possum on occation as well. Its a jungle out there.

 

[dlhunicorn]

FoxTrapperSteph has instructions (sticky folder) over at the EZboard BYC location... here is the thread:
http://p072.ezboard.com/fbackyardchickensfrm7.showMessage?topicID=1216.topic