4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Hazel_L]

When you look out of the window and see a flurry of ginger feathers blowing around in the wind and realise you have one less chicken than you let out this morning.

 

No idea what had it - we have foxes, pine martens and dogs round here - chicken death is accepted as quite a routine occurrence amongst the village.

 

I'm still gutted though and have to explain it to my little girl later

[HENthusiastic]

I'm so sorry for your loss. From what I've read on the forum, I would guess that if it was a fox attack you would have likely lost them all. Thank goodness that didn't happen. Hope you, your daughter and the remaining girls are feeling better soon.

[SharonX]

Hi,

Sorry to hear about your loss.

If you don't mind me asking, what is a pine martin? I've never heard of one before.

[BarbaraJ]

sorry to hear about your chicken and more that you have to twll your daughter!

 

A pine martin is a little like a weasel i think but prettier

[Egluntyne]

What a shame.

[Hazel_L]

It's a kind of weasley thing - about the size of a large-ish squirrel.

 

Vicious devils though - one had all my neighbours hens and ducks in one attack, they have a stone henhouse and it went inside and hid till they put the hens in - had the lot.

 

Makes me think it was one of those as it was this morning and only one of the girls was killed

[Louisdog]

Sorry to hear about your chook.

 

On Tuesday about 7pm I heard a lot of fuss and looked out the window, my girls were creating a right commotion inside their electric run, but there was a pile of feathers on the lawn outside, and a fox was sat next to their run watching them all I think one of them must have got scared and managed to fly out of the run and that's when he got her.

 

Foxes don't seem bothered about coming near houses and people do they.

[ajm200]

I'm so sorry to hear about your chickens

[Guest]

.... chicken death is accepted as quite a routine occurrence amongst the village.

 

 

I feel so sorry for you but that line shocked me. I suppose it's a different mentality in the country, I keep mine locked up tight unless we're there to supervise them free ranging.

 

Again, very sorry for your loss.

[Carol U]

So sorry to hear about your chicken. No matter how common in the country, it still hurts to lose one. Hope your little girl is not too upset.

[Hazel_L]

It's definitely a different culture where keeping hens is concerned over here... they think Brits are weird for their attachment to their animals.

[moomin]

It's definitely a different culture where keeping hens is concerned over here... they think Brits are weird for their attachment to their animals.

 

Horses for courses I suppose. I don't consider myself weird. I just care about things that are alive and can feel pain.

[Olly]

Sorry to hear about your chicken.

 

I think a lot of people in rural locations take a risk on it - foxes are generally less bold there.

 

I also think it's true that people who have grown up in the country tend to be less sentimental about animals, because they are generally viewed as food/income rather than personalities. They probably think we're bonkers for giving our chickens names!

[Hazel_L]

Horses for courses I suppose. I don't consider myself weird. I just care about things that are alive and can feel pain.

 

me too - passionately

 

even if they peck my pea plants to death and dust-bath in my newly planted seed beds WHILE I'm in the shed getting the netting

[Hazel_L]

trouble is..... they're now in their pen 6ft x 4ft but there's going to come a point where I have to let them out to range again (we live on a 3.5 acre smallholding) so I'm never going to feel safe about letting them out, am I ?

 

Surely they're better off free ranging than being in an open-topped enclosure (that was my other idea) where they couldn't at least run away...

[Louisdog]

How about an enclosure with a couple of electric strands to keep foxes out?

 

I'd love to free range mine but I daren't risk it Lost three birds since December despite electric fencing.

 

My neighbours on either side both had chickens in the past but gave up after the fox kept getting them all.

 

So frustrating though isn't it when you have plenty of space but are afraid to let them out. I keep thinking if I won the lottery I'd get the whole place fenced against foxes!

 

Cheers

alex

[Hazel_L]

actually - I'm getting some 6 ft high polypropylene deer fencing soon to keep the deer & hens out of the veg plot - will have some left from that...

 

scratch that - a fox would bite through it wouldn't it..?

 

at least in the pen they're in they have room to scratch about and I can see them from the house....

[ajm200]

If you get an open topped pen you should probably electrify it as I've seen the urban foxes in my mum's garden scale a 6ft wooden fence panel with ease.

 

She has 5 foxes in her garden at the moment and has been working with the RSPCA to treat them for mange which involves feeding them pork sausage full of medicine. I was really cross when I found out that she was feeding them and told her that they are vermin best put of their misery. She's not very happy with me..

[Louisdog]

Hazel, where did you get the deer fencing from, it sounds good, wouldn't mind trying it to keep my chooks in and away from the fox, then I can add electric strands to deter the fox too. Don't feel too bad having them in the pen, at least they are safe there.

 

ajm200, that's frustrating about your Mum! Mind you, when they have mange they are a very sorry sight.I was always quite happy co-existing with foxes in Pembrokeshire, they never gave me any trouble apart from tearing the bin bags open and they ate a quail once when hubby left the hutch open. We used to see them a lot in the field with our sheep and prowling around the garden but they were very scared of us. But now I have moved to South East Wales, the foxes around here are bold as brass and a complete nuisance and I am starting to feel differently about them.

[BarbaraJ]

I think we have to realistic and i totally understand you're way of thinking. If you live on a small holding you can't really expect to have your animals cooped up, i see chickens when i'm driving around in the country in peoples large gardens free ranging no sign of people. Surely they have a fair chance to get away in 3.5 acres?

At the moment mine are left to free range whilst i'm at home, there hasn't been a fox seen anywhere near here in the 15years i have lived here, if there had been i would think twice but as i work from home (childminder)i can't be outside to watch them till 6.30 unless its a lovely day and kids are out too, I wouldn't want chickens to have them in the run all the time so i take the risk.

 

was really cross when I found out that she was feeding them and told her that they are vermin best put of their misery. She's not very happy with me..

 

I would be a bit sad to hear that too, to be honest. All animals (ok not rats) are free to have a life i don't begrudge foxes coming into towns if people are daft enough to feed them they are not going to turn up their noses are they!

[ajm200]

I know that I probably sound heartless saying that my mum shouldn't feed sausages to foxes that have mange. Mange is awful and they shouldn't be allowed to suffer but the original two have had 3 cubs that are so tame that they will put their noses against the patio doors when Mum is right next to it.

 

They have no fear of humans at all, they'll be taking childrens pets, overturning bins and generally making a nuisance of themselves and their cubs won't be scared of humans either,

[Hazel_L]

Louisdog - a company called Tenax in Wrexham http://www.tenax.co.uk/c/index.php?cat=af

 

reasonable price and marvellous customer service = lady couldn't do enough to help me when I explained I wanted delivery to Ireland

[Louisdog]

That looks great, thanks Hazel. Does it come with posts or do you attach it to wooden posts?

 

I agree, half the problem with foxes is when they lose their fear of people. It annoys me when people think they are so cute as well, they stink for starters and are ruthless killers. When my friend heard that my poor duck had been eaten by a fox in December she said "oh the poor thing must have been hungry". Yes they deserve to live too but not in my back garden, feeding off my birds!

[Hazel_L]

no - no posts with it - any 6 foot posts would do...

 

The technical chap advised attaching it to wooden posts using battens rather than staples to prevent it being torn off the posts (we have a large stag population here which is lovely to watch, but pants when they destroy a carefully tended veg plot and our food supply !!)

 

I'm now toying with some electric poultry netting but with all the fences, the place will look like a prison camp.

Edited May 1, 2008 by Guest

[Louisdog]

Thanks. Lol, we get deer here too and when we moved in our neighbours told us we'd soon go from excited whispering and watching the deer, to rushing out and chasing them away, once we see what they do to the plants!

 

I use green poultry netting and it's pretty u"Ooops, word censored!"trusive tbh.

 

Cheers

alex