Pain In The Arse Fox!

[slipper 116]

Well I think it's a fox, farmers wife I get on well with ( very well ) phoned me to say her chickens are disappearing she started with 25 now down to 4 or 5 so she bought another dozen or so as she sells the eggs, but now back down to 4 or 5 again, but there's only a few feathers about the place thats it, ground is dry so can't see any tracks, I haven't seen a thing, been there at 3 in the morning till 6 ish then again in the evening, I have been watching everything with my nightvision but nothing! Really getting peed off now, the foxes here are usually pretty easy, I thought it would be a vixen feeding cubs but I thats a lot of chickens to just dissappear

[Bootsha 1,306]

go during the day mate..... prob big cubs helping themselves in broad daylight................. they are daft like that, but very efficient. Either that or rthe neighbours are taking over her egg selling round lol !

[Alsone 789]

Put a camera trap out. Not only can you identify the quarry but with time stamping you'll know what time it's making it's rounds.

[Tyla 3,179]

Had a similar problem with turkeys on a place a few years ago. Finally turned out to be Polish temporary labour from the farmer next door. b*****ds!

[StephenWalsh 73]

Or just put a cage trap out with a suitable bait inside...

[Skull Hooker 185]

Sound advice.

I've got the same problem. Fox is visiting in broad daylight. Three gone so far and the first and last time it was seen, it was disappearing across the back lawn at 2pm with a hen in its mouth. That two occasions before that there has been no trace of the attack, no feathers..nothing, and no times I've put a cage trap down for two weeks baited with rabbit and it wont touch it .I haven't got a camera trap and even if I had, i'm not sure its taking the same route in so I wouldn't know where to put it.

I've just built an alarm clock trap which is a celebrations tin with a £1 alarm clock cable tied to the inside of it. A bit of fishing line is tied around the battery and that goes through a hole in the side of the tin which is tied to a lump of bait. Big rock on top of the tin to stop it moving. Theory is , bait always put in the same place. Charlie pitches up, swipes the bait and pulls the battery out of the clock . Doe this a few times to establish a pattern, then plot it up with the appropriate fox bashing firearm. I'll let u know how I get on

[StephenWalsh 73]

Change the bait, if rabbit doesn't work try something, anything else! Chicken, left over BBQ bits, eggs, old meat, cat food, mix and match! And move the trap, it sometimes is just trap placement.

 

In my experience the Fox might think it's a trap, but if there is something in there that it can't resist then it will go in. It is, after all, a Fox.

Edited July 12, 2014 by StephenWalsh

[shropshire dan 467]

I'm trying left over bbq chicken tonight. Placing it on the foxes path through the farm haha. Fingers crossed

[SportingShooter 0]

Sound advice.

I've got the same problem. Fox is visiting in broad daylight. Three gone so far and the first and last time it was seen, it was disappearing across the back lawn at 2pm with a hen in its mouth. That two occasions before that there has been no trace of the attack, no feathers..nothing, and no times I've put a cage trap down for two weeks baited with rabbit and it wont touch it .I haven't got a camera trap and even if I had, i'm not sure its taking the same route in so I wouldn't know where to put it.

I've just built an alarm clock trap which is a celebrations tin with a £1 alarm clock cable tied to the inside of it. A bit of fishing line is tied around the battery and that goes through a hole in the side of the tin which is tied to a lump of bait. Big rock on top of the tin to stop it moving. Theory is , bait always put in the same place. Charlie pitches up, swipes the bait and pulls the battery out of the clock . Doe this a few times to establish a pattern, then plot it up with the appropriate fox bashing firearm. I'll let u know how I get on

 

I've used a similar method, with the alarm clock. It worked for me and the Fox came back within 15 minutes of the average time.

[slipper 116]

Bloody good idea that with the alarm clock as money is a bit tight at the moment so a camera is out of the question, I will keep you posted I'm taking my spaniel out for a mooch tommorow and then planning on sitting in the jeep with the rifle for a bit, on a good note had 56 pigeons today on standing barley nice change from foxing as this particular fox is driving me mad, lucky its just a hobby and lucky the chickens are only a quid a piece, its a dairy farm and the farmers wife just keeps a few hens as a bit of a side line nothing serious lol

[Macky 227]

Well I think it's a fox, farmers wife I get on well with ( very well ) phoned me to say her chickens are disappearing she started with 25 now down to 4 or 5 so she bought another dozen or so as she sells the eggs, but now back down to 4 or 5 again, but there's only a few feathers about the place thats it, ground is dry so can't see any tracks, I haven't seen a thing, been there at 3 in the morning till 6 ish then again in the evening, I have been watching everything with my nightvision but nothing! Really getting peed off now, the foxes here are usually pretty easy, I thought it would be a vixen feeding cubs but I thats a lot of chickens to just dissappear

use the clock method myself works well ,but in dry conditions where there is no tracks have found sand to be very helpful obviously just needs to be damp and smoothed over with a brush this will often tell you if a fox is coming in from gateways hedgerows or paths ,or identify any other animal with the footprints

[jack-percival 25]

Had a very similar problem, baited a cage trap and caught the offender... Turns out it was bodger the badger.. And Charlie had been getting the blame for the last few weeks.

[maktayla 50]

Skull Hooker...I like that. Have you patented it (joking) It is amazing though. Thats why I like these forums so much. Always learning new things and when you read something like that, I stop and think, Why on earth didnt I think of that. Happy days. Thank you Skull Hooker.

Got a woman in work with me who likes her cats. She has been having a few go missing and she believes its the foxes she has visiting on a regular basis. However, she doesnt know what time throughout the evening and night they are coming around. I wont go into all the details regarding the foxes and the cats but, has anyone else had any experiences with foxes taking cats??

Glad you mentioned Badgers Jack-Percival.

[Skull Hooker 185]

Cost exactly £1 from (guess where)..Poundland!

Don't know what I'd do without that place.

A positive cornucopia of cheap tat to assist the financially strapped shooter.

[abarrett 461]

A fox taking a cat now that's a bonus right there

Wait till all the cats are gone then do the fox

Winner winner