Help re "Mr Fox"

marley123

Hi all,

So all in my house are animal mad BUT we have run into a bit of a problem...
Dogs have been going NUTS down the end of the garden for wks now - thought is was possibly the neighbours cat they were barking at but on Monday afternoon was making a coffee & low and behold there was a huge fox in the top part of our garden close to the back door sniffing about - this was 3pm in the afternoon...

After a bit of investigating from my other half we have a massive bush down the bottom of the garden which looks like something has been sleeping in in at night & there are lots of random branches inside it... Yesterday "Mr Fox" appeared twice during the afternoon again..

Now I have 2 dog, a cat & 2 small children & am worried this is going to turn into a dangerous situation as god knows what would happen if my retreiver managed to catch it or the fox managed to get to the smaller dog or cat... Wary now of leaving back door open which we would normally do to let the dogs come in & out as they want....
Is there anything I can do to discourage him from coming into the garden?

drunkmonkey

Way Hey, you've a foxdog as well, I've got one that comes around looking for food, he's pretty big for a fox.
Don't think he's doing any harm, he hasn't let me pet him yet but he's not afraid of me. Hoping to befriend him in the future. I've not kids but I wouldn't let young children near him just in case besides that he seems harmless though.

Does anyone know if fox's bark, how do you know if there angry with you, any chance of them biting. Doubt he'll bite the hand that feeds but you never know.

BengaLover

Thats a hard one, cos ive been on both sides of the fox fence...We had chickens that were got by a fox, and tho we never caught him out or saw him lurking we detested that animal thoroughy!
5 miles away, between 4 and 5 pm EVERY day, a young fox comes out of the dense mountain brush 20 yards away from my mothers kitchen window and has been for months now, to the point where he gets fed, and will sit and wait for food, and will venture into the back door and sit about a foot away from my mother, its a beautiful thing to see.. altho he steals shoes and coloured stones from the garden..
Mum has a cat and the dont seem to bother each other, but with wild animals instict will always out.
Here he is with something he just had to have for his den - a red painted stone..

marley123

Well the fox that is Be-friending us is probably about 5 times the size of that little guy! He is HUGE - am just worried with the dogs etc... IF we had a good bit of land I wouldnt bat an eyelid its just with the kids, cat & dogs I don't want something to happen..

BengaLover

I know in cities and towns foxes can be more ready to hunt for food, but im not sure i fully believed the story about the fox that attacked and killed a baby last year.. Country foxes are just out for live prey that is suitably sized to deal with, like chickens and rabbits..
Do you hear him howling at night?

marley123

Only in the last wk or so.... there would be quite a few foxes out & about late at night which I regularly see when driving home at night but nothing compared to the size of this guy & as he is coming right up to the back door during broad daylight am just slightly worried that there will be an incident... If only he would potter about a km up the road to Killiney hill he would be better up there:)

BengaLover wrote: »

I know in cities and towns foxes can be more ready to hunt for food, but im not sure i fully believed the story about the fox that attacked and killed a baby last year.. Country foxes are just out for live prey that is suitably sized to deal with, like chickens and rabbits..
Do you hear him howling at night?

kildare.17hmr

The big dog SHOULD discourage him a bit but it doesnt seem to be. I really wouldnt take the risk of him hanging around. A fox will kill a cat if its hungry and will certainly kill a smaller dog too. some people welcome them but others dont like them around, everyone feels differently about them and it really depends where you live and if you have any animals that may be in danger. You could discourage him by not leaving out food for the dogs and cat, he is coming back because he is finding an easy meal somwhere. Chasing him away wont keep him away if there is still food available.

Trapping is an option if you are really worried.

marley123

Is there any Wildlife groups I could contact who would help with Trapping & release somewhere a bit safer?

sincere113

marley123 wrote: »

Is there any Wildlife groups I could contact who would help with Trapping & release somewhere a bit safer?

I think it is illegal to trap a wild animal and release somewhere else.

Its either trap and destroy or discourage him and hope he goes away. He is a threat to your pets though....

kildare.17hmr

marley123 wrote: »

Is there any Wildlife groups I could contact who would help with Trapping & release somewhere a bit safer?

If it was trapping it would be dispatched humainly by shooting

marley123

Ok well thats a big no no... will just hope that he goes away!

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

If it was trapping it would be dispatched humainly by shooting

kildare.17hmr

marley123 wrote: »

Ok well thats a big no no... will just hope that he goes away!

Then best bet is to discourage as best you can, make it harder for him to get in and less attractive by keeping food indoors.

Any pics?

CardinalJ

Had a do and three cubs under y shed a few months ago.

We got rid of them by making it hard for ten to sleep.
I they can't sleep they'll go somewhere else.

You could try putting lights down there as well.

homerhop

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Does anyone know if fox's bark, how do you know if there angry with you, any chance of them biting. Doubt he'll bite the hand that feeds but you never know.

Foxes have a very distinctive bark but if cornered approached make more of a hissing sound than a growl. Very high chance of them biting if tried to pet...they are a wild animal. Wildlife experts advise against trying to tame wild foxes and advise you keep human contact to a minimum as to avoid them getting too brave.
If it is wild leave it that way, you are doing no favours to the fox trying to tame it, although it may look cute it will give a nasty bite, just think if it were a wild rat would you still try to pet it?

homerhop

sincere113 wrote: »

I think it is illegal to trap a wild animal and release somewhere else.

It is not illegal. The problem with releasing a fox into a different location is that you are droping it into the range of another fox and they are quiet terratorial. If it is an urban fox and you release it into the countryside the chances of it surviving are not stacked in its favour.

Whispered

I agree with homerhop, there are worse things than being humanely dispatched. One of these would be starving to death in unfamiliar territory or being injured and left to die slowly by a rival.

homerhop

let your big dog and even the small one down the bottom of the garden as much as you can, The fox will not want confrontation with them and will get fed up and find a safer place to hang put, dont leave food out as it is a handy meal.

planetX

I have cats, a dog and a fox down the garden - there seems to be room for them all. I just hope we have enough mice and rats to feed everyone:rolleyes:

breadandjam

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"If you wish to get foxes out of your garden then it's best done using repellents. For more information: The Urban Fox Project Tel: 087 2977931."

[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]from an article on the [/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Derek Mooney page on RTE

[/FONT][/FONT]http://www.rte.ie/radio/mooneygoeswild/factsheets/fox/index.html

Delancey

OP , I suggest posting your question on the Bird Watching and Nature forum , the folks there have good knowledge and experience of wild animals like foxes.

Chris_Heilong

Anyway, they are a natural species to Ireland and are Amazing Survivors, we should respect them for that, They out lived the wolves here that where demonized in a similar way to how foxes are today, you could make loud noises and run at him when you see him, give him a scare, enough times he will move on.

JustAThought

kildare.17hmr wrote: »

marley123 wrote: »

Is there any Wildlife groups I could contact who would help with Trapping & release somewhere a bit safer?

If it was trapping it would be dispatched humainly by shooting

Wernt you recently barred from the cats thread for offering to shoot someones pet cats that were wandering; and for admitting to stealing cats and dumping them miles from where you found them.
I seem to recall you got a hammering for that; here you are now on a different thread looking for something else to kill/ shoot.

OP stay away from this trouble.

Foxes are part of the indigenous wildlife of the country; they keep small furrows like mice and others at bay so you won't have any mice or rat issues! They are forragers and are typically nocturnal . They are becoming endangered due to loss of habitat & being baited/ poisoned. My aunt has one in her ( city) garden for years now; & it just does it's own thing and lives quietly down the back of the garden in the tree. ( not up the tree!!) She has three kids two dogs and a cat; no problems.

sincere113

JustAThought wrote: »

Wernt you recently barred from the cats thread for offering to shoot someones pet cats that were wandering; and for admitting to stealing cats and dumping them miles from where you found them.
I seem to recall you got a hammering for that; here you are now on a different thread looking for something else to kill/ shoot.

JustAThought : What's the link to the above?

I wouldn't say he's looking for something to shoot.

He's offered a balanced opinion on this thread.......

Birdnuts

Kildare was simply pointing out the legal position on foxes which can be legally trapped and shot. I would also add that the use of poison is now banned in all cases - except as covered bait for rodents.

star-pants

JustAThought wrote: »

Wernt you recently barred from the cats thread for offering to shoot someones pet cats that were wandering; and for admitting to stealing cats and dumping them miles from where you found them.
I seem to recall you got a hammering for that; here you are now on a different thread looking for something else to kill/ shoot.

Backseat modding is against the charter. It is up to the moderators to decide to make warnings, not the posters.

kildare.17hmr

JustAThought wrote: »

Wernt you recently barred from the cats thread for offering to shoot someones pet cats that were wandering

Eh no I was not banned from any thread nor did i offer to shoot anyones cat. I made a sugestion to try talk to the owners and if that failed and they were still a problem the person could trap them and get them dispatched, Perfectly legal i might add.

and for admitting to stealing cats and dumping them miles from where you found them.

I suggest you go back and read that thread again because that was another poster that sait that and i slated his comment because it would be cruel to the animal.

I seem to recall you got a hammering for that; here you are now on a different thread looking for something else to kill/ shoot.

Others disagreed with my comments which is fine but it certainly was not as you have just made it out to be. I offered advice to the op, more than what you have, i actually know quite a bit about foxes and have a fair bit of experience dealing with them and observing them. alot more than you have id imagine and just for your information iv often sat and watched foxes for hours, with a gun in my hand and never fired a shot. I watched 3 cubs earlier in the year for about 2 hours while their moter and father went off and came back and didnt shoot them ether.

They are becoming endangered due to loss of habitat & being baited/ poisoned.

eh no their not Got a lonk to prove that off the wall statment???? Foxes are thriving, ask anyone who regularly goes out looking for them! I was out last tuesday night and seen 10/12 in the space of a few square miles, the more i shoot the more seem to move into the area to claim it as their own. i have seen no drop only a rise in mumbers and a lot of people i know would agree with that. Poisining is now illegal and is not very common.

My aunt has one in her ( city) garden for years now; & it just does it's own thing and lives quietly down the back of the garden in the tree. ( not up the tree!!) She has three kids two dogs and a cat; no problems.

Thats great for your aunt but what about her neighbours who might have animals that are on the dinner menue of urban foxes??

they are wild animals, feeding them and treating them like pets is so selfish and not in any way good for the fox. What happens when a fox becomes dependent on someone for food then the person moves or dies or gets fed up and stops feeding them? the fox dies a slow painful death.

Next time your gonna make false accusations and give untrue advise i suggest you do your homework first:rolleyes:

Hellrazer

For the record heres my warning from the other thread :

Kildare .17hmr--Ive also received reports about your post and the gun club comment.We`re talking about pets here and not feral cats.
Most users (along with myself) would agree with a gunclub shooting the feral ones but not pets so in this case I think your comment is way out of line.
You seem to have a serious problem with cats roaming,actually with cats in general and are too quick to suggest "shooting them" so consider this a warning.
Im asking you to choose your posts carefully before posting them.

Justathough was completely wrong to bring this up.
Ive let your post stand kildare.17hmr in order to let you defend yourself but can we now get back on topic??

ABEasy

Heard if you 'scent' their burrow they will move on. By scent I mean pee, not sure if this true or not but worth a shot.

homerhop

Scenting their earth doesnt work, its another one of them urban myths.

alie

homerhop wrote: »

sincere113 wrote: »

I think it is illegal to trap a wild animal and release somewhere else.

It is not illegal. The problem with releasing a fox into a different location is that you are droping it into the range of another fox and they are quiet terratorial. If it is an urban fox and you release it into the countryside the chances of it surviving are not stacked in its favour.

Human urine is a good deterent, it will pit him off coming into your garden, most foxes have mange which can be passed to pets .

kildare.17hmr

alie wrote: »

Human urine is a good deterent, it will pit him off coming into your garden, most foxes have mange which can be passed to pets .

both of those statements are wrong