Fox in the garden who scares the rabbits

Lawrence1895

Yesterday, a neighbor of mine told me, that the saw a fox roaming around in my garden the night before. He was scaring the living daylight out of my rabbits, they were running in circles inside their hutch.

Has anyone else made experiences like this?

And is there a natural way to scare away the fox?

Don't want to hurt or harm the fox either, they are beautiful creatures, just don't want him near the rabbits.

The cat of mine is no big help though

Thanks

mymo

I have seen hutches broken and rabbits taken in London growing up, foxes in gardens are a real problem there. We kept our hutches in a shed for extra insulation in winter, so left them in all year round after neighbour lost 3 rabbits. We built outdoor dens with runs and shut them in the shed at night.

P.s, we had 2 dogs and 5 cats, fox would still come in.

ANXIOUS

A fox is classified as vermin, call a hunter and ask him to take care of it. No point risking your rabbits.

Magill

ANXIOUS wrote: »

A fox is classified as vermin, call a hunter and ask him to take care of it. No point risking your rabbits.

so are rabbits..

Do those ultra sound things work ?

ANXIOUS

Magill wrote: »

so are rabbits..

Great post
Theres rabbits are pets, in a cage.

Magill

ANXIOUS wrote: »

Great post
Theres rabbits are pets, in a cage.

Sorry... just seems like you've skipped straight to the last resort (IMO) as im pretty sure there are other ways of dealing with a fox other than calling a "hunter". Like the OP said, he rather not harm the fox.

Cherry Blossom

Lars1916 wrote: »

Don't want to hurt or harm the fox either, they are beautiful creatures, just don't want him near the rabbits.

ANXIOUS wrote: »

A fox is classified as vermin, call a hunter and ask him to take care of it. No point risking your rabbits.

I suggest you start reading posts before replying to them, or you could be sent on your way to stir things up elsewhere with your big spoon.

Kattra

Shooting the fox won`t solve the generell issue. A dead fox leaves an empty territory ... and that is quickly occupied by a new fox.

Most foxes don`t like human activity or lights. Perhaps putting up some gardenlights with motion sensors will solve the issue.

Otherwise there is some stuff available with the smell of human perspiration..(sorry if that sounds weird, just try to translate from german ^^ ), this normally repels wild animals like foxes. In Germany it`s for example "Hukinol" (Kieferle GmbH), but there should be similar products in irish shops for hunterequip.

paddyandy

A baby listener maybe they're not expensive.

Lawrence1895

Kattra wrote: »

Shooting the fox won`t solve the generell issue. A dead fox leaves an empty territory ... and that is quickly occupied by a new fox.

Most foxes don`t like human activity or lights. Perhaps putting up some gardenlights with motion sensors will solve the issue.

Otherwise there is some stuff available with the smell of human perspiration..(sorry if that sounds weird, just try to translate from german ^^ ), this normally repels wild animals like foxes. In Germany it`s for example "Hukinol" (Kieferle GmbH), but there should be similar products in irish shops for hunterequip.

You can tell me in German, I was born there

But the idea with the motion sensor sounds reasonable, because I have no clue how a baby listener could do the trick...I guess, i would hear the fox, but by the time, I'm out in the garden, the rabbits might go bonkers already.
And I'm not at home every night, sometimes, I do night shifts in work.

Sigma Force

Do the rabbits have a run attached to their hutch?
Most shop bought hutches and runs aren't suitable for outside use they aren't strong enough to deter dogs and foxes.
If the rabbits have a run the run should be wired underneath as well but eventually the foz will get in or the rabbits will become ill or die from the stress.

House the rabbits in the house or in a secure shed, weather is changing now anyway. If you can invest in a stronger run for the rabbits like the cilldara.ie ones or similar heavy galvanised runs..some runs would need the legs saw off and wire put on the top but they last a lifetime and are more secure they are designed to keep dogs and cats in generally so they can also work to keep dogs or foxes out.

The fox will keep coming in, unless you can work out some sort of fencing for your garden that is angled so the fox can't get in.

Another alternative could be an Omlet hutch and run, if you google Omlet you will find them they claim to be fox proof.

It's not a good idea to leave rabbits in a hutch/run at night in the garden..I know lots of people do it but it's not a good idea. A secure wooden shed or in the house is best.

doctor evil

Shop bought hutches can be very flimsy with the latch. You are better off changing this and putting on a proper lock.

Rabbits do very well in cold weather so it is mean to bring then inside into a centreally heated enviroment when they are used to being out.

Could electric fencing help? You will have to put this up very high and have tendrils going to the ground.

If you go the live trap route please don't release the fox elsewhere.

Sigma Force

Bringing a rabbit in at this time of the year is fine, it's milder outside but not cold enough to have the central heating all the time in the house. It's the perfect time of year to bring them in and isn't mean at all. It's only bad for the rabbits if there are constant fluctuating temperatures.
Rabbit cope ok outside if given the proper bedding but people seem to be forgetting how cold it was last winter no rabbit should be left outside when the weather gets like it did last year.
Their bedding builds up condensation and becomes wet over night and freezes.
A shed is a compramise between them living outdoors and being indoors as long as the shed is warm.

They are pets not wild rabbits, wild rabbits build burrows deep underground and can change their own bedding it's totally different to a hutch set up.

Normally you'd only need to keep them extra sheltered a few months out of the year but winter was so severe and if we get the same again that half the year it's going to be miserable and lets face it not many rabbit owners are going to stay outside for a few hours when it's -8 and give their rabbits the time they need it's more comfortable for rabbit owners too to have their rabbits in a shed or in the house.

Utility rooms or some sheltered porches can work in getting rabbits used to a change in temp. but at this time of year it's no problem to start bringing smallies indoors for the Autumn through till April.

Lawrence1895

doctor evil wrote: »

Shop bought hutches can be very flimsy with the latch. You are better off changing this and putting on a proper lock.

Rabbits do very well in cold weather so it is mean to bring then inside into a centreally heated enviroment when they are used to being out.

Could electric fencing help? You will have to put this up very high and have tendrils going to the ground.

If you go the live trap route please don't release the fox elsewhere.

Good idea with the proper lock, I guess, I'll put a small padlock on it.

Anyway, the neighbors from the other side have a motion sensor, which brilliantly shines into my garden, seems to work until now *knocks on wood*.

Discodog

Foxes are a permanent feature so it's worth making the rabbit hutch safe. Please don't touch wood & rely on a neighbours sensor. Foxes will soon get used to sensor lights. The safest & best option is to put the hutch in a shed. It will keep the rabbits warm, dry, safe & it makes cleaning out, handling etc much nicer on cold or wet days. You can get a shed very cheaply in B&Q at the moment.

You have to bear in mind that your bunnies appear to be an easy meal. Foxes can be incredibly persistent & have a surprising amount of strength.

This site despite it's unusual background has a comparison of the various ways of deterring foxes:

http://www.oxfordcroquet.com/care/foxes/index.asp