How to get rid of foxes

designer · #1 07/01/13, 03:01 PM

Not sure where to post this, I've lost allot of hens to these foxes. I found the den but don't know what to do next. How do I get rid of them?
How to get rid of foxes - Poultry

tickranch · #2 07/01/13, 03:27 PM

You can kill them. That will stop the attacks till more move in. A dog or two outside all the time who are protective of their area might slow the attacks but will not stop them completely, the term 'sly like a fox' comes to mind.

The only way to stop the attacks (from foxes anyway, coyotes and stray dogs too for that matter) is to fence in your birds. A hot wire across the top might slow down 'coons and 'possums.

pamda · #3 07/01/13, 03:46 PM

There is only one way to get rid of them..you kill the. Any other way and they will keep returning until you are out of chickens then and only then will they leave (guess that's 2 ways). Dogs will keep them away from areas you can keep dogs in but the fox will find a way in. The will dig in under fences, jump over fences if they are not high enough. I heard a bunch of chicken noise on late morning and ran out and and had a fox run around from the other side, stand me off and growl and challenge me. In the middle of the morning, no less. Lost 2 that time. If I see it again it is dead...the end...

KSALguy · #4 07/01/13, 04:13 PM

a good guard dog is always a good idea but the only sure fire way is to kill them, and keep killing them as more move in, if one fox family has set up a territory in the area it must be good territory for foxes to keep using,

RebelDigger · #5 07/01/13, 04:56 PM

My dog Annie killed the one we were having problems with but, I am told it is rare for a dog to be able to do that. Annie is a rare kind of girl LOL. For what it is worth she is a pyrenees/black lab mix. I have tried hav a hart traps before but never caught anything except raccoons in them which was still good since that eliminated another chicken killer. If you have found the den I would think it would be easy enough to catch them "home" and dispatch them.

eggman · #6 07/01/13, 05:04 PM

I put an electric wire about 6" off the ground around the bottom of the chicken fence, that did the trick. I was losing one chicken a day until then.

designer · #7 07/01/13, 06:15 PM

I do plan on killing them, just how? Other then staking out the hole all night, hubby not willing to do that, is there something we could put down the hole? poison or something?

fishhead · #8 07/01/13, 06:41 PM

If you kill them they will be replaced by more fox. The most effective way is to fortify your pen and coop. Then the problem is fixed not just temporarily fixed until the next bunch of fox move into the neighborhood.

pamda · #9 07/01/13, 07:02 PM

Are you sure you have a fox den ? If so I guess you could try raw chicken with some type of poison but I think that is a last resort and just wrong any way. It's also against the law here so I would not do it. And dogs or pets might get it. The neighbor tears up dens when he finds them, leaving no place to live. They den in wood piles and under fallen tree trunks on his place. He will use the tractor to dig it all up and scatter all the wood and dirt. We just shoot them and go on. Try hanging around the chicken yard waiting for them. After destroying the den.

designer · #10 07/02/13, 06:45 AM

DH had suggested digging up the den. We've shot 2- one last year and one about a month ago. But that is pure luck seeing them. My chicken lot is very secure, they are safe in there but it is small and with all the rain we have had, and forecast every day this week, it is just a mud puddle. I like to let them out to find dry dirt to bath in.

After shooting the last one I started letting them out again with no problem for about a week and a half then lost several in a day. I happened to hear them making strange noises one evening and DH went out in the pasture and saw the three, got off some shots but missed. That is how we found the den.

He bush hogged the thicket down and covered the den in the process. The next day it was dug back out. I hoped that would scare them into moving but the trail cam shows they are still there.

fishhead · #11 07/02/13, 06:59 AM

Try putting a radio next to the den. That's strange that they would continue to use the den after being disturbed.

tickranch · #12 07/02/13, 02:38 PM

You can pick a spot you think you might see them and hide out and wait. When you see them shoot them. Or you could hire someone to do it for you.

Once they are gone more will come back in time. Since you already have a secure yard but want the option of letting them roam a bit you could invest in electric net fence, poultry netting. Add on to their yard when you want, take it down when you don't, no worries about furry critters getting your hens.

Foxes do take domestic birds when they have the option they also keep the wild bunny, mice, and vole population in check. I would rather find a way to keep my birds safe than try to get rid of all the foxes.

I would not use poison. To many possibilities for unintended consequences.

bigredfeather · #13 07/02/13, 03:12 PM

A good Great Pyrenees or other LGD will keep them at bay, no doubt in my mind. I know it's not a quick fix, but like others have said, they will be back. I've talked to the coyote/fox hunters in my area, and they kill foxes all around me, even in my 36 acre woods, but I have not lost any of my chickens. My Pyrenees barks most of the night which keeps them away. I've had 40-50 of my chickens free ranging with an open coop at night for over a year, and the only losses I had was the week after she had her puppies and busy with them.

Lazy J · #14 07/02/13, 03:42 PM

Are foxes a protected species in North Carolina?

designer · #15 07/04/13, 08:42 AM

I don't think so. Also my understanding is that if it is taking livestock you can kill it.

Lazy J · #16 07/05/13, 08:03 AM

WOW, there are some really messed up regulations concerning fox in North Carolina!

NC Fox Regulations