How can foxes be made unwelcome?...

[Snadger]

How does it scare the vampires? The undead don't have reflections or shadows

Is that not the point??.........Christopher Lee would never be seen dead (sic) in a room with mirrors in it in case it betrayed what he was!

[petal]

My father used to say 'only good fox was a dead'un'. I think poultry keepers tend to feel that way. When a fox raided his pens he would call the local(on foot as in Cumbria) hunt out who would dispatch the said fox effectively - no need to poison or maim it by shooting (they are tricky to shoot) Foxes will also take new born lambs so I can understand farmers not liking them. The hunts view was that if there was not sufficient food(voles etc) on the fell then the population of foxes needed reducing and the weaker ones were more likely to be killed by hounds than the ones higher up on the fells. I can see both points of view on them as they are beautiful but I agree with the views expressed here, there has to be some sort of natural selection(manmade culling) if the strongest genes are to survive.

[petal]

Eco chic - this didn't answer your original question- to deter a fox a labrador wandering around will be effective- our lab loves her chicken friends. you could fill tights with a mans hair and hang around coop and get a man to urinate next to it regularly.

[greendean]

;we have a guy that fits that discription down at our local co-op wearing, tights and urinating. never seen any foxes around so it must work

[Nicos]

Marthaclematis,



Come to think of it I've never heard of foxes being threatened by anything other than man (& woman).

Wolves?????/bears?????....oh they've been killed off over here ( Urmmm- over there)

[bluemoon]

Eco chic - this didn't answer your original question- to deter a fox a labrador wandering around will be effective- our lab loves her chicken friends. you could fill tights with a mans hair and hang around coop and get a man to urinate next to it regularly.

Yes!!!!!!!! I knew I'd find a good reason to get another Lab one day. 18 months after losing our lovely old boy, I'm starting to feel ready to try again. Thanks, Petal, I'll point OH in this direction.

[Hilary B]

Re-predators threatening foxes. Eagles will take an adult fox, Probably a buzzard could take a youngster.

[Runningwolf]

yup unfortunately wolves and bears were killed off in this part of the world. Its called mans ignorance and intollerance. wolves are very social creatures and have strong family bonds, somthing a lot of humans seem to be lacking these days. I spent many years studying wolves and their life styles habits etc (hence my adopted name given me by a native american) they are shy and will usually avoid human contact. However if we had wolves around then foxes would be less likely to be in such numbers, as they would be in the wolf foodchain, bigger predators killing smaller ones and so on. The downside I guess would be so would the chickens. Its trying to strike a balance. I think the point is years ago foxes would avoid human contact where as now they are not botherd by it and seem to thrive on it. people naturaly want to protect their chooks that stand no chance aginst a fox.

regards runningwolf

[Hilary B]

yup unfortunately wolves and bears were killed off in this part of the world. Its called mans ignorance and intollerance. wolves are very social creatures and have strong family bonds, somthing a lot of humans seem to be lacking these days. I spent many years studying wolves and their life styles habits etc (hence my adopted name given me by a native american) they are shy and will usually avoid human contact. However if we had wolves around then foxes would be less likely to be in such numbers, as they would be in the wolf foodchain, bigger predators killing smaller ones and so on. The downside I guess would be so would the chickens. Its trying to strike a balance. I think the point is years ago foxes would avoid human contact where as now they are not botherd by it and seem to thrive on it. people naturaly want to protect their chooks that stand no chance aginst a fox.

regards runningwolf

The thing with wolves is that humans learned the value of co-operation from the wolf when the changing climate made hunting an essential part of survival. Because of this our 2 species have long recognised the similarities. Then humans started changing the world to suit them, instead of adapting to the world as it is, and the similarities made living alongside wolves impractical, so the less thoughtful of humans started attirbuting all the worst aspects of human nature to the wolf......

[Flummery]

Re-predators threatening foxes. Eagles will take an adult fox, Probably a buzzard could take a youngster.

They'd also make a mess of a chicken!

[Eyren]

However if we had wolves around then foxes would be less likely to be in such numbers, as they would be in the wolf foodchain, bigger predators killing smaller ones and so on.

I'm a wolf fan myself, runningwolf, but as a zoologist I see two problems with your hypothesis:

1. In rural areas, wolves would simply replace foxes as top predators, to the annoyance of sheep farmers - the UK is so much smaller than North America and so much more highly populated that you really can't compare the two ecosystems.

2. Wolves would be of no help to chicken-keepers faced with urban foxes, unless they too invaded our cities

The only way to keep foxes out is an enclosed (ie roofed) run made with solid welded mesh of a small enough gauge that hens can't stick their silly heads through, and with a "skirt" around the base to prevent old Reynard from digging next to it (they apparently don't think to start beyond the skirt and tunnel under) - the skirt can be pinned to the ground with screw-in pegs if you're worried about them scratching it up. Even if you don't want an eglu, the Omlet website has useful diagrams of their runs that might provide some inspiration!

[Hilary B]

They'd also make a mess of a chicken!

True, but so would anything big enough to tackle a fox.....

[Runningwolf]

yes I agree Eyren The Uk is only a small island and it would not be practical to have wolves running around and entering our cities as you say,it would not be fair on them. They would most definately take sheep and then the farmers would start shooting them and the same cycle would come back to square one again. Oh well then back to the drawing board.

regards Runningwolf

Thought you might like the following native American prayer

Grandfather Great Spirit fill us with the light.
Give us the strength to understand and the eyes to see.
Teach us to walk the soft earth as relatives to ALL that live.
Help us, for without you we are nothing.

[Eyren]

Thanks, runningwolf! I'm a Taoist myself, so I don't really do formal prayers, but I agree with the sentiments expressed

[Flummery]

Thought you might like the following native American prayer

Grandfather Great Spirit fill us with the light.
Give us the strength to understand and the eyes to see.
Teach us to walk the soft earth as relatives to ALL that live.
Help us, for without you we are nothing.

I love the way these people thank the spirit of any animal they kill to eat - even any plant they cut down or dig up. It's a wonderful sense of harmony and mutual dependence on the living world that many of us have forgotten. We think we own everything.