Unsecure chicken perches

[Jeannette1]

Hi

 

I'm a new chicken keeper - we got our ex-bats yesterday at 1pm. We have them in an Eglu Go with a run plus extension. Yesterday we got the girls into their new home about 2pm and finally (with the aid of a torch and a lot of patience) got them into their eglu and shut them in for the night (about 5.30pm). This morning I saw a fox in the garden about 10am and he had a quick peek at them then legged it (all in the 10 seconds it took me to see him enter the garden and open the back door).

 

This evening at 4.45pm (still not dark) as I went out to shut them in I found them huddled at the back of their eglu and a fox prowling around. I shut them in and went indoors - came back 5 minutes later to check all was well to find the fox was back and trying to dig under the back of the eglu and the girls squawking inside.

 

I've put very heavy slabs of slate walling around the eglu now so he can't dig next to the eglu. Is he likely to try again but this time dig from further back?

 

Has anybody had this happen before? Has a fox got into the locked up eglu (through the floor)?

 

I found in the fox attack section that a fox dug under an eglu classic (?) at the curved section and got into the run. Has anybody had a fox dig into an Eglu Go run from under the eglu? Any advice on how to protect my girls would be welcome!!!

 

thanks

[mollyripkim]

Hi, welcome to the forum and sorry to hear about the fox, that must be awful. Unfortunately can't think of any advice in the short term but hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be along. Best of luck.

[Sam]

If you have any clips left from assembling your run, I'd put them all on so there is no chance of it ripping them off (heard this has happened before) And although the run is fox proof, I would buy some paving slabs and put them all around the eglu so he won't be able to dig through, it just makes it even more fox proof I guess. Hope everything is okay & welcome

[mollyripkim]

Actually thinking about it I do have a large stone ornament that I place against the back door as I am paranoid about not shutting it properly at night.

[Jeannette1]

Thanks. I have been worried about the back door - I'll see if I can find something. I presume a fox can't twist the door k"Ooops, word censored!"???

[mollyripkim]

I wouldn't think so unless they are scratching at it in the right direction but something large against it wouldnt hurt. Hope everything is ok, there are all sorts of advice on here for fox deterrents for the future.

[Jeannette1]

Thanks for the welcome and the advice. I'll try and find out more about fox deterrents.

 

It must be terrifying for the girls to have some barking, scratching fox pestering them all night (having said that I haven't seen the fox again in the back garden this evening but one was out in the street barking just now as I put the recycling out).

[Hens@HalfMoonLane]

I've put a section of paving slabs down and my eglu sits on that. I think it is pretty fox proof. Electric fencing would stop the fox worrying your hens. I got fed up last year of a rat getting in run so this stops both the rat and fox. I also get a new patio as half our rubbish one is now missing!

[Ain't Nobody Here]

You poor thing, what an awful thing to happen on your first day . . I agree, slabs everywhere you can manage to fit them will be a deterrant. There's also a thing called a Foxwatch (google it or search on the forum!) which some people swear by (others aren't so sure ).

 

At least he didn't manage to get in and you've been warned so can take action .

[Alis girls]

I have a Go and have tent pegged the run for extra security as it is static and wont be moved round. I must admit my pod is only on the ground and it hadnt occured to me anything would dig under the pod itself. Back to the drawing board methinks. Hope your girls are ok

[Jeannette1]

Hi all

 

My girls were fine this morning and eager to come out and explore (and we've had two eggs today!). I'm keeping a close watch on them this afternoon leading up to dusk. I've also put paving stones around the run and Eglu and have used tent pegs to pin the run down some more.

 

Not sure what time to put them to bed, but I don't suppose I get a lot of choice - they'll go in when they want/if a fox comes round and scares them.

[mollyripkim]

I'm glad your girls were ok and eggs too!

Mine usually toddle off to bed around 5.30 at the moment but I dont shut the pop hole door until around 7 in case they are not ready.

[scarlettohara]

If you don't want to put slabs round, buy a piece of weldmesh (B&Q) about 1M square, stand the Go on that and secure with tent pegs (fox won't be able to dig under). I actually use an old bbq grill which works just as well

[Jeannette1]

Thanks for the further suggestions, I've pegged down the run, put slabs around it and under the eglu. I've even leaned a slab against the back door just in case.

 

The fox has been back to look around but there's been no further sign of digging. He must be a regular visitor when I'm not watching because I saw him out there today and the girls were doing their thing inside the run and ignoring him. I threw a stone at him and he ran off.

 

I'm currently shutting them in at about 5.30pm, at about 5.15pm they start going in/out the eglu then by 5.30pm they seem to stay inside. There is a bit of clucking when I close the door, but it's quite dark down that end of the garden (it's under trees).

 

We're still getting eggs - about one each (some days we only get 2 eggs rather than 3). Have started canvassing friends about whether they'd like eggs as well as making meals out of them. Saturday is first cake with our own eggs!

 

[Wolfie]

How about Omlet's run pegs? They did have some with a damaged packet for £10 plus postage yesterday, - I know cos I bought a packet - but I can't see these now. Give Omlet a ring? I think peeps say these are better than tent pegs, impossible to get out of the ground once in!

 

I should put any spare run clips on the joins on your run, in case the fox jumps on the run.

 

Don't let the girls free range!

 

Get a pest controller in?

[chuckmum6]

Thanks. I have been worried about the back door - I'll see if I can find something. I presume a fox can't twist the door k"Ooops, word censored!"???

You could stretch a couple of long bungees around the back of the go and attach then to the run, this would stop the door dropping off if the fox did somehow manage to scratch it open (unlikely though). If you see it again make lots of loud noise to scare it away, maybe have a hose pipe/water pistol to hand.

[sage]

Hi welcome,

I think I would get pest control in to remove the fox.

 

Sage

[sadietoo]

If you have any clips left from assembling your run, I'd put them all on so there is no chance of it ripping them off (heard this has happened before)

 

Just wanted to say, if you don't have clips that cable ties make a perfectly acceptable alternative.

 

So sorry to hear you have a bothersome fox..they are a complete pain..unfortunately even if you take Sage's suggestion it is likely to be replaced by another pretty quickly.... We have an intermittent problem, our garden is like fort knox and they still get in occasionally, it does mean that I never Free Range unless I am in the garden too....

 

Good luck...oh..and welcome to the forumxx

[the-real-tinkerbell]

just becareful as a fox may be able to open the back ,2 dogs from my street opened mine and killed all my exbatts

[bevmatt]

If I had a fox that was that tame - definitely get a pest control guy in...

Get husband to water the garden around the pen (if you know what I mean - it deters the foxes)

Also I would put a piece of weldmesh the full length of the run underneath the run. The fox can then try and dig under but when comes up will be stuck under the weldmesh. I know it means your birds won't be able to scratch easily but at least they would be safe. YOu could also fill the pen with bark chippings - about 2 inches thick on top of the weld mesh and they could scratch around in this.

HOpe this helps.

Bev

[Jeannette1]

Hi all

 

The fox does come through the garden but there's been no further signs of digging, so far. I have been thowing stones at the fox - they hit the fence with a loud thwack and he seems quite nervous to be in the garden now.

 

I think a fox or maybe a cat has been on top of the run but there's a cover over it. I'm using a paving slab to stop the door opening, but I like the idea of bungy ropes. I've used tent pegs so far, but the shop at my allotment's open tomorrow and they have the same type of pegs Omlet sell (but much cheaper). I'll try those.

 

Unfortunately my partner won't water the garden - he read a website that says it doesn't always work so he refuses to try.

 

Thanks again for all the suggestions, it's really helpful.

[sbeau66]

We had a fox snooping around or chickens when it was colder, we chased it off with sticks and rocks, later we found it dead it had panicked and ran onto the road, problem solved,,,,oops

But i don't have an eglu, I have a standard chicken house.

I am seriously considering getting one as i'm hatching some silkies which i think my bigger chickens will bully.

Its the fox thing that worries me, are eglus secure or not. can you go out at night, and perhaps come home late, with the chickens safe even with their pop hole still open? or can a fox turn it all over and trash the wire and get in.

I would like to hear more before i buy one

[Egluntyne]

I never close the door between the run and the Eglu housing. On the Eglu, the side door on the main body of the housing is what is called the pop hole.

 

A determined fox might be able to tunnel under the run on dry or sandy soil. Many of us put them on paving slabs, which renders this impossible.

 

As for turning the run over, it wouldn't be able to do this if you weigh it down with boulders.

 

There is lots of info on these matters in this section.

[Olly]

With regard to the suggestion of getting pest control in to remove the fox, this will work temporarily but unfortunately it's very unlikely that this is the only fox in the area. In most cases, another fox will move into the territory within six weeks, the difference is that you won't know when it has arrived. I wouldn't spend money on pest control, I'd invest it in making the run as safe as possible. All urban foxes are bold because they are so used to human interaction- it's a fact of life that urban chicken-keepers have to live with.

 

Omlet products are designed to be fox-proof, it's true that foxes can learn to open a simple slide bolt for example, and so all the Omlet catches require a finger and thumb to turn them, foxes not having developed this useful appendage! The slabs or weldmesh are a good idea to stop him digging, I have found a Foxwatch to be effective at deterring the fox from hanging around, although I know other people don't rate it.

 

Do be very careful about free-ranging your hens, dawn and dusk are risky times but foxes can and will pounce in broad daylight, they can scale six-foot fences, and dogs, human hair, and male 'watering' are only deterrents, not preventatives. Please don't be downhearted, I've kept hens for four years now and never lost one to a fox despite there being a lot of them around here. Also - another sad fact of life - the average life-span of a town fox is less than a year, so the chances are this particularly cheeky one will not be troubling your hens after a few months.

[Jeannette1]

Well, it's been a month and so far we've had no trouble except on the first night. I've fixed various weak points in the fence and rarely see a fox in the garden now. I also make a point of locking the girls into their eglu at dusk.

 

Having said that, when I was late home one night (about 7pm) this week there was a fox sitting on the mesh skirt trying to look into the pop hole (even my 3 exbatts sit at the back of the eglu and it's hard to see them in there!). Presume he was working on a strategy for getting in???

 

I'm going away overnight soon and will have to leave the pop hole open. I think I will put a cover over the side near the pop hole and at the very end so the fox can't see the chickens and they can't see him. I'm fairly confident the run is fox-proof, as long as foxes haven't developed their strategies and will start digging a few feet away from the run. I am a little bit worried though