Foxy troubles Post Reply

[frenchlyric]

Hello!
Just wondered if anyone has any advice on whether it's possible to get rid of foxes (I think one in particular) or any tips on how to deter them?
This fox, which I think lives in the garden next door, is so bold and has now attacked our dog (who's not small) twice in our garden when he's been out for a pee (sorry tmi) in the evening. I suspect he's chased the fox but the fox has certainly stood up for himself and administered quite a nasty cut on his nose. And when we go out after we're alerted by our dog crying out, the Fox then faces up to us too. Not frightened by clapping or shouting - I actually thought it was going to chase our dog into the house. I can't believe how brave it is! And although I know it's night-time etc, I have a baby boy and it does worry me having such a bold critter next door.
Any advice much appreciated ..?

[kewty]

Hi

There is a fox that uses our garden as it's commuter route. It has yet to cause any serious issues, but it has gone into both our neighbours houses and caused damage. I did get onto the council about it, and they said that there was nothing they could do, and it was up to us to call in a pest controller at our expence. However, as the fox isn't living in our garden, I think it might be tricky for a pest controller to catch it, especially as it looks as though it has just had cubs. We have a 3 y/o and another one due any day, and I am petrified that the fox will attack our children especially over the summer when our garden doors will be open quite a lot, and I don't see why we should have to keep our doors shut and not enjoy our garden.

I have looked into various deterrents some are pet friendly and some aren't. The better ones are not pet friendly, and even though we don't have any pets, some of our neighbours do. I am reluctant to fork out £x for something that might not work and I don't want to cause any grief for neighbours pets. I have heard that human pee is a very good deterrent!

At the end of the day, I am not sure which route to take, and having grown up in the middle of the countryside, and I know there will be a lot of people who will disapprove, but I wish I could shoot it!

With regards to your aggressive fox, it sounds as though it needs to be dealt with asap. Would your neighbours go 50/50 on the £ of a pest chap?

Good luck, and please let me know which route you decide to take and if it works.

Kx

[tamara]

This is gross but it does work.

You need a man to wee in the garden, the foxes then think an aggresive predator has "claimed" the land and they steer clear.

Has to be bloke though.

[Helgibbs]

Hi
Sorry you are troubled with foxes, I posted on the following link last year. Have a read through and see if it is of any help.

http://www.nappyvalleynet.com/how-to-ge ... t6923.html

No trouble here yet, so far this year, but have 'Silent Roar' in my cupboard ready....

Helen
x

[mcsk]

Hi,

We had urban foxes too... Having noticed them we made sure no rubbish was left hanging outside the bins, all bin lids were positioned on very tightly, no shed door was left opened, no food leftovers/bone snack were thrown to dog outside. No children alone outside most importantly.

Those foxes are way too friendly unfortunately. The council doesnt do enough to get rid of them when it should be their job to ensure public safety and health.

In all honesty I would go with the male peeing:-)

[GES77]

We used a company called Fox-a-gone. Apparently foxes have 3-4 dens in close proximity so that they can move their cubs safely if something happens. Thankfully, our garden was not the main den and they filled the hole (under our shed) and sprayed the garden with a deterrent spray. A year later and no sign of the fox!

[Elenita4ever]

Hi -- when my daughter was born last year, she was sleeping in her moses basket (at about 3 weeks old) and a young male fox broke inthrough a slightly open window in the kitchen (about 4 ft off the ground), pee'd all over the floor and then tried to jump into the moses basket.

Luckily, I had just got out of the shower and my friend called on my mobile (next to the basket) at that precise moment - so I saw the fox poised to jump in with the baby. I screamed at the fox and it tried to get out but couldn't manage jump up to the window from the inside. I grabbed baby and tried to get out the front door but fox doubled back as it felt cornered and bared its teeth. Finally it turned round and made a running jump at the window and got out.

So you can imagine that we have tried EVERYTHING to get rid of the foxes. So here's the run down:

Male pee - does sort of work but you have to do it every 2-3 days and each time it rains because as soon as it wears off their back

High frequency sound devices - they are motion sensitive and make a sound that foxes don't like. Well, we could hear the sound too (it wasn't that high pitched) so it annoyed us - but the foxes didn't care.

Pest control - we got a quote to have the foxes terminated. It's not cheap. They lay traps and then put them to sleep humanely. But the pest control guy was really honest and said that foxes are territorial and if you kill off one family then its only a matter of time before another move in - especially in such a built up area.

Fox-away liquid - similar to male pee tactic - works but you have to do it every 2-3 days and as soon as it rains or they're back.

Finally, we agreed (with our neighbour) that the best way would be to have a low voltage electric circuit installed around the perimeter of our garden(s). This gives a mild shock but does not harm any wildlife (not birds at all). As the wall surrounding our garden is high (over 6ft) it would be out of reach of children - and would only be a mild shock even if someone did touch it. We were quoted £500 for a 10m by 10m garden perimeter, running the wire around twice (2 circuits) about 20 cm one above the other. The circuits run on batteries that need to be replaced about once a year. That was through the London Lawn Company. We haven't installed it yet as we need to permission from the neighbours either side and backing on to our property and haven't got round to contacting them yet.

As some of you have mentioned the Council were absolutely useless even when I rang them in tears because I thought my new born had narrowly missed being mauled (or worse) - only my friend calling at the exact moment saved us from what could have been a tragedy.

Until we get that electrical circuit installed we can only leave windows and doors open a few centimetres (with string or a catch so they cannot be opened any further) unless I/we are physically in the garden.

Anyway, hope that was useful - and good luck getting rid of your foxes!

Elena
xx

[Mum2Monkey]

A year ago we had similar problems. First our garden was destroyed, then the cats were repeatedly attacked. We tried everything - calling the council, chemicals that you spray in the garden, husband peeing everywhere. Our neighbours even got in on the act too. (I secretly think the men actually enjoyed their nightly peeing contests).

However, it reached the stage where our cats were permenantly at the vets or hiding inside. Then the female fox started coming into the house. First just for the cat food near the back door, then the kitchen properly then further in. I'd clap my hands and shout and it and by the end it would just stand there looking at me. As if to ask what I was doing in "her" house. The female became particularly "dominant" during the cub season. I had a little baby around this time and couldn't take him in the garden and had to make sure the doors and windows were closed as if not the fox would be straight in.

So, in the end, after about 9 months of trying everything and finding the fox standing outside the nursery door, we found the only thing we could do was club together with our neighbours and arrange for a pest controller to shoot the male and female foxes. (We waited until the cubs were big enough to fend for themselves). We were all really upset by this and wanted the foxes to be relocated, but that seems not to be an option. However, at the end of the day I had to think of my little boy.

My only advice is try to get a pest controller that comes recommended. He'll then sort out the various permits / notifications with the police and council. You also probably want to get your neighbours on side or at least let them know there will be a man with a gun about. You leave dog food in your garden for a week and then he turns up about 10pm and stays for a few hours until the job is done. He also disposes of the foxes.

This is such a horrible subject and even now I feel so bad about hiring someone to kill foxes (I'm even a vegetarian!) but I totally sympathise with you about how bad the situation is and until you've lived with foxes gradually taking over your garden then home, you really can't believe the impact they have on your life. I know foxes are worst at this time of year as its the cub season and there is a chance that things will get better for you in September when the cubs are bigger - however in my experience the only thing that works is a pest controller.

Good luck with it.

[Dachshundsrule11]

I had a problem with a fox in our garden a few years ago. It use to sit in the same corner of our garden, admittedly it wasn't in good health. After many phone calls I spoke to a man who advised me to lay Holly in the area it liked to sit. He also said to get one of those large pump water guns as they don't like to get wet.
Anyway I cut some Holly & lay it in the corner of the garden that the fox liked to sit & it never came back again.
A very simple solution if the fox has a favourite place it sits or lies in your garden.
You could try the pump water gun as well.
Good luck