Devastated

[davefromthechipie]

dave, do any of these really work or are they 'urban' miths, reason i ask is we have a male (neutered) dog and when hes exercised we do the right thing and collect his poo and deposit it appropriately, should i let him do his business in the garden? my SIL is a hairdresser so i have an unlimited supply of hair clippings, cant get OH to pee on compost so ive not a chance in the back garden and theres not many lions in leeds

I Wish i could say yes but i cant Where i was before it was over 8 acres and i couldnt cover that area even thow i like a drink or 2 as for urben myth i think they arnt it seems to work for me at the time ( fingers X )and making scents is what animals use to mark there territory . yet that dosnt mean some foxes will try take over :/ . I havnt tryed the lion poo yet spoken to people that do use it and all seems to work ( I live close to port lyme zoo so easy for me to get some But i think they sell online if not email them im sure they sell it) I just have my dogs that poo around the chicken pen ,Im sure its because they want to eat them ......

All that said if a fox knows where to find food and hungry ie are hens then its going to take them at any risk . That is why killing the fox that kills you hens is needed unless you fox proof . Putting dominance smells around your plot will stop/delay new foxes coming around to finding the food ( hens )

[Hilary B]

You can buy pelleted lion poo in some garden centres. It is sold to deter cats, but would probably deter foxes as well. One brand-name is 'Silent Roar'. There is also (or perhaps it has now been banned under EU 'elf'n'safety rules, because it seems to be based on something similar to creosote) a substance called Renardine that apparently foxes will avoid with enthusiasm. To protect an area (such as a garden) you soak a rope in it and lay around the perimeter. It isn't water soluble, so rain doesn't wash it away, but obviously it wears out and needs replenishing eventually.

Not every fox will 'come back for more' especially if you delay getting replacements for a while (if he/she comes back while there is nothing there, you have hopes that deterrent methods will be enough for that one as well...)

It may be that the dog-poo is more effective as deterrent with male hormones in, so a neutered dog may be less help.....

[poppy_lillysmum]

I'm really sorry, for you loss, I know exactly what it's like, 2 day before christmas 2007, the fox got ours 7, about an hour after letting them out, and only took one and left the others dead in the Garden. Took me months to get up the courage to get more, My neighbour sat for days and nights on his back door step with his gun. The worst thing was we found out about a week later, about 3 doors up, the people had them living under their shed, and were feeding them. My Dad got some stuff, which i now put down every month or so around the whole property, which is suppose to keep them away, and must be working, as we haven't seen any for year now. Will let you know the name of it if you want to try it, I'm at work at the mo so it will be later.

[allotmentlady]

Please dont kill the fox as suggested, it is only doing what it knows..........I am a lover of all animals, the mere thought of her being killed sends shivers, she could have babies waiting for her in the den.

[Sanjo]

My sympathies to you all. I hope you and your family are finding it a bit easier now. I don't keep chickens myself but my daughter does and they are all named and are her substitute babies. She lost one recently when they put them away in the dark and it got left out and died. It devastated all of them, especially her husband who put them away. She lets them free range, and I do mention foxes because we have them here but she seems to think that as she has never seen one (despite living in a pretty much countryside area) that it isn't a problem. Losing all your chicks at the same time is pretty grim and I am sorry for your loss. I know by my family, how much the chickens mean to them all. XX

[tricky]

so sorry to hear your news digthatchick
i dont know what i would do in that situation,feel it for you.
Please dont give up

[HayleyB]

{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}}}}}} I'm so sorry, can't say any more don't know what to say

[Flummery]

You must get some more chicks to dig - or you'll have to change your name! I don't suppose you ever forget the horror of finding them like that.

[angelat]

so sorry for you

I am so sorry for the loss of your chicks, i can't believe the fox strolling around in the daytime?? and with fencing so high, your poor children, hope you find comfort from everyone's messages on this forum, we are all with you on this one. x

angela

[Hilary B]

Please dont kill the fox as suggested, it is only doing what it knows..........I am a lover of all animals, the mere thought of her being killed sends shivers, she could have babies waiting for her in the den.

Unlikely to have babies this early (but another few weeks.......)
A dog that bites from fear is 'only doing what it knows', and hating it is pointless, but it cannot be allowed to repeat the performance. If you can avoid killing foxy, great, but it doesn't always work like that!

[Hans Mum]

My Dad got some stuff, which i now put down every month or so around the whole property, which is suppose to keep them away, and must be working, as we haven't seen any for year now. Will let you know the name of it if you want to try it, I'm at work at the mo so it will be later.

Yes please will you let us know the name of this product,thanks

[Moridin]

The news is saddening, unfortunately the only remedy I've found that works is dogs and guns. I have no trouble putting the mangey things down especially for their unnecessary destruction techniques

[Hashette]

(((((Digthatchick))))) how utterly dreadful for you, I'm so, so sorry to hear what's happened

Ours are free range, and we're out all day at work, leaving on the dot of 5pm and charging home to close the pop hole as soon as we can. I dread coming home and finding the cage empty, not to mention what we might find when it gets light the following morning, but they were so desperate to get out of the run that we felt we couldn't take them out of the battery cage just to put them in a bigger one. They've had no quality of life until they came to us, so after much discussion and soul-searching we've taken a conscious decision that a possibly short but happy life is better than a long and miserable one.

But now I've got to know and love them as individual characters I just don't know how I'd cope.

I'll be thinking of you today xx

[Glutton4...]

That's really bad luck Digthatchick, it must be awful. I'm planning to put my girls in the paddock out the back in the spring, but I'm now having a panic about it, as it backs on to open farmland and we do have foxes around. They even come in the garden on rare occasions.

It's going to cost a small fortune to rabbit and fox-proof the whole area. I guess the solution is a smaller but more secure run, which wasn't the initial plan.

Anyway, I hope you get some more soon, and have better luck.

[Nicos]

I've just phoned my farm suppliers in the UK - asking for advice about fencing - and they said electric poultry wire is the way to go- they won't try and jump over it - or dig under it. It was described as a nylon fence- similar to sheep fencing ( square holes) and has posts incorperated into the netting. No top needed.
Runs off a battery or mains.cost £90.70 for a 50m coil. They don't sell shorter lengths.

I'm going to see if I can get it here- and cost it up...failing that I'll be buying that next time we go 'home'

Anyone got any experiences with this stuff?