Fox coming into garden trying to get rabbits

sexmag

Hi,

So i live in a north dublin housing estate and have kept rabbits for years without any issues. They are in a nice hutch that has two levels and is completely surrounded by wood and firm wiring so they safe from most of the local cats and magpies etc

However recently my rabbits have had babies in the last few months and some of them just mysteriously die. I put it down to the weather weve had the last 6 mnoths as cold and then hot but tuesday night i believe ive figured out the problem.

The rabbits were making comotion and i went out the back to see what was up and an orange blur jumped onto on our shed then just as it was about to leap into our neighbour behind us's garden i saw it was this fox.

Our garden faces onto another garden and we are surrounded by high walls so ive no idea how it got in other than just jumping over our neighbours wall.

It happened again last night so it knows ive rabbits and is trying to get them

How on earth am i to keep this fox from coming into our garden, the wall is high enough but it seems to come over the shed?

Knine

Your best bet is to move the rabbits indoors or if you can't do this then build an enclosed run around the hutches to keep the foxes at a decent distance away. Rabbits can die just from the fright. A fox will likely try to pull the hutch apart to get them.

aaakev

You could catch the fox and get rid of him that way. He will keep coming if he knows a food source is there

Knine

aaakev wrote: »

You could catch the fox and get rid of him that way. He will keep coming if he knows a food source is there

Get rid of one & there will be more.

aaakev

Knine wrote: »

Get rid of one & there will be more.

Its more than likely the same one all the time so quite possible the op wont have others coming in if that one is gone

sexmag

thanks for the replies

Indoors is not an option and we have a stone shed however the roof isnt well kept and the fox has come across at such speed my gf thought it was about to come down but if we put them in their it would only be temp and that doesnt stop the fox.

I could try catch it, i would be experienced in that regard, if it is the only one then that would solve it, if not then we are back to square one.

Its just so odd, weve been here years,had rabbits for years, our garden is quite enclosed and weve never seen one plus theres a dog next door that goes mad when a car door slams up the road so not sure where it was the last few nights to not sound the alarm. Maybe because next door had a baby they keep.him in to stop the noise and the fox is taken advantage

aaakev

If you go to the hunting forum im sure someone would be able to help you out

JJayoo

Set up a small electric fence and let the fox get a few whallops from it. They are smart animals and it will learn to associate your garden with danger. But you would have to move the fence around so the fox doesn't get used to sneaking in a certain way.

When I say fence I don't mean you have to surround the garden/rabbits, it can be a single wire somewhere around the rabbits that the fox will brush against.

ganmo

JJayoo wrote: »

Set up a small electric fence and let the fox get a few whallops from it. They are smart animals and it will learn to associate your garden with danger. But you would have to move the fence around so the fox doesn't get used to sneaking in a certain way.

When I say fence I don't mean you have to surround the garden/rabbits, it can be a single wire somewhere around the rabbits that the fox will brush against.

They’re also smart enough to avoid it after the first whack, and by avoid I mean by a cm not the whole garden like you’re suggesting.

tk123

aaakev wrote: »

Its more than likely the same one all the time so quite possible the op wont have others coming in if that one is gone

Possibly you don't live in Dublin.. I do and there are tons of urban foxes so I wouldn't just assume it's one. Brazen as anything - I'm surprised it even ran away from you OP. I know people who've had them sitting on a bench in the garden and they haven't moved when approached lol

Graces7

is there any way you can screen the hutch at night so at least the rabbits cannot see the fox? and/or a humane trap?

JJayoo

ganmo wrote: »

They’re also smart enough to avoid it after the first whack, and by avoid I mean by a cm not the whole garden like you’re suggesting.

That's why I said you have to move it, but even still when a fox gets hit by the current it doesn't take a step back and logically assesses the situation coming to the conclusion that this wire is to be avoided, it will take off running not knowing what has hit/attacked it. If you have ever had a dog touch an electric fence then good luck trying to catch them.

https://youtu.be/Vr5ZS-et70M

DBB

Moved to hunting forum as you'll get more salient advice here I think.
Please note a new charter applies now.
Thanks,
DBB

Jackdaw89

Like I say to a good friend about his hens a good pen is far more efficient at stopping Charlie then I’ll ever be.