2 nearly became 1 or none :(

[b_cos_1_can]

i was sat watching big brother *ear plugs in to dull all the groans*........when all of a sudden i hear these almighty squarks and noises in the garden, they werent the usual 'getting attention' squarks!

i jumped to attention and leged it accross the lounge, through the kitchen and flung open the back door to see 2 ruffled ladies looking at me in horror!, they came running towards me all flustered and i stopped to have a look around their run!
a couple of feathers here and a few over there and another couple just by the coop! odd! looked around the back garden and found nothing abnormal, started looking closer for footprints - found nothing!
went back to the run. the girls were just sooooo glad to see me, i chatted to them while looking around again! omg, a footprint, 2 footprints, ahhhh and a couple more over there too! some blasted animal has been in my chicken run! so i googled footprints! its a blooming fox! (though there are no claw marks on my muddy prints, its the same pad shapes as fox)

im all shaken and worried that he might be back while im alseep and i just have to hope that ive built my coop strong enough to stop mr fox from entering!

i dont know what to do
:(

[melons]

I'm also worried sick about foxes....if you look on the practical poultry web page forum, a fox will give up if it's not an easy meal, but a badger will destroy your hen house & have the lot, read carnage in tipperary on the pests & predators page, I nearly sobbed after having cooed over the little chickie picture, then the whole lot were eaten by a badger. Sorry to sound morbid, it's meant to put your mind at rest (that's presuming you don't have badgers too) I keep thinking that in the middle of winter while i'm at work, the girls wont get out in the day, only at weekends, but at least they'll still be here for me when I get home foxes are very very crafty, have you recently watched spring watch about the foxes in Glasgow? naughty naughty naughty.
If you can.... put your hen house & run on patio slabs, then bolt it to the slabs, no foxes, badgers or rats can get in, we cover the floor in Bark chippings or straw for scratting about in, it may not be perfect, but it has worked for our guinea pigs & rabbit for over 15 years, I still lock them up at night, so if they still get taken, it wasn't through lack of trying
My new hen house is going to get the same Colditz treatment tomorrow, the girls must think I'm bonkers, the neighbours certainly do, after I brought a gazebo to keep the rain off them yesterday
In the mean time try not to turn your back for too long.

You can probably tell I have nothing better to do than barracade the hen house & other critter abodes. I should get a life really :wink:

Good luck, dogs are meant to be a good deterrant.

Mel

[b_cos_1_can]

ive just got home (put the cooks away at about half 7 - they werent impressed) only to find a bloomin fox in my front garden :mad: i spose at least i know what the little blighter looks like now!

[Richard]

I'm afraid that ol'foxee won't give up easily.

Like melons, I want to put your mind at rest, but they're so clever and the theory that they attack at night or sun up is completely untrue. I've seen foxes in my Pen in the middle of the day (not recently since I've gone OTT on barricading etc), even found one fast asleep next to the chicken fence.

I lost seven in one night once, got through a hole no more than 4" high. My neighbour two doors down found them buried in his garden for pick up later.

I haven't a thing against foxes, but there is absolutely nothing worse. See Down the Lane Foxes Page....
http://www.downthelane.net/Page_27.html
There's a few 'tips' on there as well.

But think positive, it's a warning so to speak. If you hadn't had this now, it could have been far worse in a couple of month's time.

Sleep tight, it's easy to read how much they think of you.

Take care, Richard

[wendy]

I am really in surburbia my house no is 365, so you can see how many houses in my road. But I do back onto a field. We often have foxes walking through the front garden, and the other day we came out of the house to see two sitting in the middle of the road !!I batten down the hatches every night, but so far fingers crossed, we haven't had one in the garden. I do have high fences and the OH 'obliges' around the back gate..... They say male urine keeps them away.
Wendy