Cat and foxes, should I be worried?

Headshot

Hi All.

I have 2 cats and they live a hybrid life where in the morning they go outside and up the fields and by 12:00 - 13:00 they come home and go inside for the rest of the day

Unfortunately we started seeing foxes (vixen and a young cub) and I'm worried about the cats, is it a legitimate concern?

Jim_Hodge

I'd be more worried for the Fox cubs, to be honest.

toolshead

It’s very rare that a fox will go for a cat.
Cats have decent weaponry and the fox would have to be very desperate to try and take one on. There is a very high chance of the fox getting injured. Cats bites are notoriously dangerous. They are just not worth it.

Jim_Hodge

Just as an aside. Could you keep the cats in your garden at this time of year, as they take large numbers of newly fledged birds from fields and hedgerows?

Headshot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512716#Comment_123512716

They don't go far at all.

The female is very shy and timid and doesn't leave the garden

The male goes into the field beside the garden and loves his mice and the fecker brings them into the house….

I constantly keep an eye on them because like you I'm concerned about birds

Jim_Hodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512743#Comment_123512743

That doesn't wash with me, I'm afraid. I've heard that too often. You can't watch them for hours on end. Wood mice and other small rodents are a vital part of the ecosystem too. If they take mice then they take birds.

Headshot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512772#Comment_123512772

Tbf they are only out for 4hrs at most and most of that is spent with me

I also have a GPS tracker on them and know exactly where they go.

You'll have to just take my word on it.

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512759#Comment_123512759

Why remove the posts and not just ban the troll mods?

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512772#Comment_123512772

My cats wander, there isn't much anyone can do to stop their natural instincts. I have bells on them and that seems to work so far, you can hear them coming a mile off!

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512816#Comment_123512816

Ok then, lets leave an obvious re-reg troll keep posting and delete the posts as they post them. They are posting the exact same content as the last times they were posting before being banned in case the mod here doesn't know.

Deregos.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058414125/cat-and-foxes-should-i-be-worried

A fox took my daughters Yorkshire terrier from our garden, on a cold winters evening in 2018. Like you, we now have two cats, male and female and I, too, had considered what might happen if one of the cats was to encounter a hungry fox again. Happily, I can report that It seems pretty clear, from when typing cat vs fox into YouTube, that cats are well able to stand their ground against the cunning of a fox.

con747

I have foxes go through the side field of my house in the country and can see them and cats on the cctv and the foxes avoid the cats every time. Some of the videos I have are comical of the foxes running away from the cats.

DBB

Folks, I'm not getting alerts for reported posts any more, I'm assuming another marvellous feature of the site as it is now 🙄

Apologies for not spotting sooner, and thanks to everyone for drawing attention to the issue. That poster has been banned now

All the best,

DBB

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513027#Comment_123513027

The thread below is a bit confusing whether reported posts are seen or not.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058411641/does-the-report-function-work

MrMusician18

You shouldn't be worried. Instead you should keep your cats inside

DBB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513033#Comment_123513033

It's not just me then! I can view reported posts if I go looking for them, but I have to actively go looking. I'm not getting the alerts by email that I used to get. That's annoying now, I must say.

I won't bite the head off anyone who PMs me directly if they've a concern about a post 😊

billyhead

Is there any good reliable deterrent (not cats) that can be used to keep a fox away from coming into an urban garden.

J_R

I would be more worried about the health risks to you and family.

Just did a "Google"

Wild foxes in Ireland can carry several diseases and parasites that can be transmitted to humans, though the risk of infection is generally low. Some of the diseases and parasites of concern include sarcoptic mange, leptospirosis, Echinococcus multilocularis (a tapeworm), and Toxocara canis (dog roundworm). 

breezy1985

Used see cats and foxes mix a lot in London. As some here said j would be far more worried for the fox.

RockOrBog

Foxes will generally leave cats alone and find an easier target, pound for pound cats are too dangerous.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512716#Comment_123512716

Just to expand on Jim's comment.

Nature decided at this time of year fledglings (baby birds) can fall out of nest and be unable to get back into the nest leaving them vulnerable to other animals, like foxes or rats. Nature solution was to have birds have lots fledglings.

You can reduce the impact of cats by giving them a suitable diet and playing with them. They will hunt less.

8mv

I've seen a fox and a cat in my back garden. Fox was finishing whatever was in our dog's bowl and the cat was just watching from a few yards away - wary but not too bothered. I think they avoid each other for the most part.

Rocket_GD

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512716#Comment_123512716

You don't have cats, do you?

Unless I lock them in the house all day (which I'm not going to do) you can't exactly control where they go to when outside.

We live in a suburban area and the male cat has caught two birds this year. I don't reward him for catching them but I'm not going to punish him for his natural instinct.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513396#Comment_123513396

I've never known a cat that will pass up on the opportunity to torture a smaller animal. No matter how much I have fed or played with them.

I mean this with love. Cats are b@stards.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513480#Comment_123513480

For sure. Apex predator and all that.

But many of them are really bad hunters.

https://youtube.com/shorts/EBo6fRffeQ8?si=uRWo6xeg6YCZISpj

Rocket_GD

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513480#Comment_123513480

Thankfully my cat is a proper predator, none of this keeping the bird alive nonsense, it's off with the head almost immediately.

Orban6

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513401#Comment_123513401

Only time I've seen my cats (rip) have any interaction with a fox was when the fox decided to eat their dinner. Lots of hissing but that's all. Fox had no interest in the cats.

I live in an area where foxes and cats (lots of them) have cohabited for decades.

magicbastarder

our two cats are house cats. they'r perfectly content. the previous cat was also a house cat.

cats don't just impact bird numbers by predating on fallen fledglings (or the parents); their presence in a garden will undoubtedly change nesting habits of birds, reducing nesting opportunities for them.

Flinty997

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513576#Comment_123513576

Birds are nesting in gardens because they've been driven out of rural environment by the destruction of their habitat there. That's human caused problem not cats.

The issue with cats is their sheer number. Their population needs to be controlled. Also a human problem. Get cats neutered and tagged.

Rocket_GD

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123513576#Comment_123513576

One of mine stays in the house a lot more but the male cat freaks out if he's not let outside. I'm not going to trap him in the house and be miserable to save 2 birds over the course of a year.

Boggles

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123512716#Comment_123512716

Not practical in most circumstances to be able to keep a cat in a garden.

Also if their main prey is rodents that will ultimately help other wild life including birds.