Poorly chicken

[sarkymite]

I'm getting paranoid. Since OH seeing foxy out the front I've had long chat with neighbours who say they see the fox walking up side of their house nightly, at 10.20pm, and it sets all the local dogs yapping. So I've listened out night after night and realise she's right. Dogs next door and the one behind them (which also borders our garden) all start up pretty much same time every night.

I've taken to a walk up the garden with a torch around this time but I'm not always able to stay up this late!

Also I've realised after reading some other posts on here that what I thought was cat poo, right by the run, is actually fox poo. We've also found it in other areas of the garden.

So I know foxes will persist and come back night after night after night. It has probably been visiting since we moved in and so far no mishaps, but I'm now finding parts of the run skirt where I'm thinking it used to be more well "stuck down" than that, and a shallow hole has appeared behind the run where activity is hidden by a tree and a fence. It's right where the skirt ends. I had thought it was the chickens making a dust bath when they free range but now I'm not so sure and wondering whether they've simply decided to bathe in a hole made by something else.

The other day I found a pole clip loose on the run floor but I can't for the life of me work out where it's come from.

Should I be doing anything to make it even more secure? What I've thought of as possibilities so far - will any of these help?:

* cable tie all the joints

* get some galvanised metal mesh to extend the skirt so it is twice as wide.

* use lots more tent pegs to hold skirt down

* place a sheet of galvanised mesh under the Eglu itself so nothing can dig in under that

* shut them into Eglu overnight (But v v not keen on getting up at silly o clock to let them out... why can't you get automatic openers for Eglu?!

 

What do you all think? FR time is already more limited than in the old days and I've shouted at OH for letting them out and leaving them unsupervised during the day. We have thick conifer hedges on 2 sides and lots of bushes, loads of places for the fox to hide. No chance of getting rid of the hedges either as the small and rotting fences behind them offer no privacy at all and it'd be thousands of quid worth of fencing to fix, though we have started removing the lower branches off the conifers so we can see under them, if you see what I mean- less cover.

 

I'm losing sleep over this which is stupid... I grew up with a huge fear of foxes as we had really bold ones in London where I lived and they lived in our back garden and dug a huge den which made our patio collapse. As a kid I was terrified of them and they got my neighbours guinea pig and rabbits. The adults used to threaten us kids that the fox would come for us if we were bad and I remember there being repeated unsuccessful attempts to get rid of them. So all this old buried anxiety has resurfaced and I'm literally sleeping with one ear open all the time as I k ow foxes are most active hunting when feeding cubs (like, now).

 

If I kept the Eglu shut overnight what time would I have to let the birds out in the morning?

 

[Adams Egg]

The additional measures you thought of will be all good. Foxes are ultimately lazy and extending the skirt will deter them from digging further. The Omlet run clips go brittle over time, due to the UV light, as all plastic does. Definitely use extra cable ties.

Leaving the door open if the run is secure is fine, I have seen foxes at 4 am in the summer sitting staring at the run whilst the chickens carry on scratching around looking unconcerned. Urban foxes are after an easy meal, so making it difficult will deter them. I would add an additional lock such as a carabiner clip to the run door and a brick or two at the back where the tray comes out.

[sarkymite]

Do you think the Eglu classic egg-port door also gets loose with time? Ours seems very wobbly, though I've tested it and can't actually get it open when locked (though I don't know if I'm being cautious as I don't want to break it!) .

Our classic was 2nd hand when we got it, it's really old, but the door seems to feel looser than it did. Or is that just my paranoia?!

[sarkymite]

. Urban foxes are after an easy meal, so making it difficult will deter them. I would add an additional lock such as a carabiner clip to the run door and a brick or two at the back where the tray comes out.

 

Also I'm not really sure whether we're dealing with urban or rural foxes here. We live on the very edge of suburbia, with open fields, farmland, waterways and woodlands just across the road, but in the other direction it's all suburb-type housing and the village centre.

[Millie-Annie]

You could try spraying all round with Scoot. I am spraying every couple of days at the moment, obsessed, yeah too true. It doesn't have good reviews, but the man we got advice from said that is because people only spray once and then wonder why they still get foxes.

 

I share your fear, I am completely traumatised by our fox. I even dislike dogs now if they are reddish brown, have pointed noses and pricked ears or are built like a fox. Its sad I used to love all dogs. I live in dread we will get another one.

 

I think cable ties are a good idea. I have the Omlet WIR for my guinea pigs and I have gone over all the joins with plastic coated wire.

[Cat tails]

I always lock mine in at night, not because of foxes, but otherwise they will wake up at silly-o-clock. Mine currently want to be let out around 6:30.

 

Rather than more ground pegs, I would put stones/slabs/logs on the skirting. My skirting has "disappeared" into the ground. Also placing the run on paving slabs instead of ground would help I guess.

[gavclojak]

I always lock mine in and let them out around 6-30ish which isn't too bad.

 

I have had regular visits from foxes for years, two of which sit on the roof of the run overnight. I often find objects moved around the garden so I know they are there. I do worry but to be honest it's our job to keep our girls safe not the foxes job to keep out our garden. I realised a few years ago I had a few areas of ingress so we did the following...

Replaced all the chicken wire on the enclosure with galvanised steel

Zip tied every panel of the cube and the attachment to the run

Screwed down the skirt then added concret slabs on top and across the front of the run.

Added extra bolts to the front enclosure gate

There isn't much more apart from that I can do.

[sarkymite]

Rather than more ground pegs, I would put stones/slabs/logs on the skirting. My skirting has "disappeared" into the ground. Also placing the run on paving slabs instead of ground would help I guess.

 

I thought putting paving slabs on top of skirt would encourage the fox to try digging a little further out, where the paving slab ends? The skirt on ours is disappeared into the grass in places but I think that's what makes it work- the fox can't see it / understand there's a barrier. What worries me is the bits where it's now slightly proud of the ground, as if something HAS tried to dig it up...

[Cat tails]

I really couldn't tell you if it would or would not encourage a fox. I have no experience with foxes myself at all as there are no foxes around here.

I only know of people on here, like Gav, who put paving slabs on the skirting as a prevention.

[sarkymite]

. I do worry but to be honest it's our job to keep our girls safe not the foxes job to keep out our garden.

 

Wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. Much as I'm terrified of/about them I recognise that we co-exist and have competing interests as it were. I'm going to cable tie everything this weekend and put galvanised wire mesh under the eglu itself as I reckon the grey arch bits either side just where the skirt finishes are a weak point.

 

I'm also going to look in to extending the skirt so it's wider, and will consider paving in the future as we may move the WIR at some point in next ywar or two as we get to geips with the layout of the garden and that's a massive job so we could pave it's new location at the same time. Moved in 7 months ago and still not sure what we want to put where!!

 

I shut them in overnight last night and popped down at 6am to let out. I'll try for 6.15 tomorrow and then see if I can stretch it to 6.30. I find they make more noise if they aren't able to get up- maybe that's just because they're used to being able to get up at dawn. They usually get up around 5ish and move to the WIR where they have a lazy breakfast and then sit and snooze on the outside perches lol! Knowing they were shut in did mean I slept better even though I heard a fox calling at some point in the night (or did I dream it?!)

[Millie-Annie]

Thats fine if you only have chickens but how do you keep a tortoise safe? If I had nothing in my garden except chickens I would have more, but I am thinking more and more that I am not going to. I can keep them safe, but they will encourage foxes and I cant live with the fear for my guinea pigs and tortoise again, especially my tortoise

[sarkymite]

but how do you keep a tortoise safe?

 

I don't know what sort of environment a tortoise needs but I'd guess you'd need a similarly fox proof house and run set-up, wouldn't you? Presumably you could employ the same fox proofing methods for a tortoise?

 

How do you house/keep a tortoise, out of interest? What does he/she need?

[Chickabee]

Oh my I'd love a tortoise. All my runs ate pinned down with extra strong tent pegs, then I put logs and rocks around them. I also benefit from having big male dogs, that urinate around the garden. We had a fox "visit" a couple of times earlier this year. Somehow my girls escaped. I am rural so am clinging to the fact that they are usually nocturnal. Not had any visits since

[The Dogmother]

I would pop some slabs or sleepers around the edges of the run, and perhaps a couple of PIR solar lights along the passageway between the houses and at the end of the garden near the run - foxes hate that. I picked up some on Amazon for about £14 each.

[Chickabee]

Oh yes I've got some solar lights on my back run, they're brilliant. They are on motion detection and very sensitive. Excellent idea

[Millie-Annie]

Foxes hate lights????? You have to be joking. Our fox used to walk down the garden until the light came on and then sit and stare at us through the kitchen window. The people over the back had bi-fold doors and several security lights and he used to sit and stare through them too. As for mostly nocturnal, no way, 11am sitting sunning himself in the middle of next doors lawn was fairly common place

 

My tortoise is 53 years old, for all those years he has had he run of the garden. Not this year, this year he has a run, with a welded mesh top and an old double glazed unit and he hates it. He wont eat whilst he is caged, he just walks round and round and round it like a bear at the zoo. When I am home I let him out about midday and he wanders the garden eating clover, dandelions etc. For those few hours he is happy like he used to be. I hate foxes so much they have ruined my pets lives and traumatised mine

[gavclojak]

Funny enough the foxes that visit nightly and sit in the enclosure roof haven't been put off by any of the lights I have in the garden. I have a bright PIR lights and a few smaller ones. They take no notice at all.

I actually love all animals, would I say that if I had a fox attack? Well not initially maybe but I think that hatred would come from anger with myself. We have always had foxes in my area (10 miles from central London) and they are still scared of humans. I took the hens on knowing that and it was several years of hen keeping before I saw them. Just because I didn't see them, I was darn sure they were out there.

 

Despite the nightly visits, the Russians next door have a few guinea pigs in a little pen with a net for a roof so Bromley foxes obviously don't have a taste for guinea pigs!!

[Chickabee]

Oh Millie-Annie I really feel for you. I wish I had a magic answer. Are the local council interested or do they consider this out of their domain

[Millie-Annie]

Thank you Chickadee. No the council are not interested as foxes are classed as wildlife not pests or vermin. We got help from a wildlife management company who were very helpful and very expensive. This fox had no fear of humans and they were pretty convinced someone was feeding him. I am just glad my cat is no longer alive, she was old, wobbly on her legs and her eyesight wasn't good. Pretty sure he would have killed her. Probably would have left her headless like he did the chickens and the hedgehogs

[Baydeluxegirl]

I've just got my first chickens (3) in a second hand mark 2 classic I was given. The end panel of the run doesn't have a skirt, I'm sure it must have originally. Any ideas how I can improve fox-proofing on this, as I don't think it's possible to get a replacement panel.

[The Dogmother]

You can buy any parts from Omlet, just phone them up and explain what you need

[Baydeluxegirl]

You can buy any parts from Omlet, just phone them up and explain what you need

 

Great thanks, I'm on to it!!