Kill a Fox

[jr502]

julian64 said:

Perfectly possible with a non FAC air rifle, you just have to be closer.

And club it with the butt?

[Vipers]

jr502 said:

julian64 said:

Perfectly possible with a non FAC air rifle, you just have to be closer.

And club it with the butt?

Shoot it with an air rifle, legal????

I hope when your cats kill a bird/mouse you shoot it as well the cat that is.

[Melman Giraffe]

I now have a Taser will this work? I'm a bit concerned that he may get free after being Tasered and attack me!!

[julian64]

Vipers said:

jr502 said:

julian64 said:

Perfectly possible with a non FAC air rifle, you just have to be closer.

And club it with the butt?

Shoot it with an air rifle, legal????

I hope when your cats kill a bird/mouse you shoot it as well the cat that is.

Honestly these threads appear on PH every so often and they all go the same way. Want to kill a fox.

1) No you can't do that its inhumane.
2) They can only be killed with an FAC rifle as they have superhuman bone structure.
3) Anyone who says otherwise is simply maining them and is cruel.

Unfortunately my wife keeps chickens. Almost regardless of how you try to protect them, every so often a fox will decide that living next to kentucky fried chicken is good. At that point you have a problem because the world hasn't invented the coop that'll keep a persistent fox out, or badger for that matter, and they are both relentless. I've had wire netting bitten through, two foot deep holes burrowed under brick footings, and holes chewed through a half inch thick plank of wood before now.

The only option is to despatch them. The alsation seems to kill half of them because a dog is no deterent to a fox making camp nearby despite the voices on here. The rest, you either have to find their home and despatch them or any legal air rifle does the rest.

Its not like hunting them down in the wild and taking a shot from a mile away as they will be quite blatant if they're hungry and you can get to within ten feet of them sometimes.

The consequences of trying to live with the Foxes is that they will quickly multiply with an obvious food source and when they do get inside the coop they will needlessly maim everything in the coop for fun before leaving with a kill. You will find yourself having to despatch half dead chickens in the morning, with some quite gruesome injuries. Daft really as your average chicken is totally passive when attacked, and pretty much plays dead when on the roost at night, so apart from instinct there really isn't any reason for the fox to do it.

This sort of stuff has been going on in the countryside ever since the fox and chicken were invented. Unlike some of the posters on here who seem to know what can or can't be done, all the above is what I DO do, and end up HAVING to do on a regular basis.

[plasticpig]

julian64 said:

The only option is to despatch them. The alsation seems to kill half of them because a dog is no deterent to a fox making camp nearby despite the voices on here. The rest, you either have to find their home and despatch them or any legal air rifle does the rest.

You could alway invest in a llama

[Origin Unknown]

julian64 said:

Honestly these threads appear on PH every so often and they all go the same way. Want to kill a fox.

1) No you can't do that its inhumane.
2) They can only be killed with an FAC rifle as they have superhuman bone structure.
3) Anyone who says otherwise is simply maining them and is cruel.

Unfortunately my wife keeps chickens. Almost regardless of how you try to protect them, every so often a fox will decide that living next to kentucky fried chicken is good. At that point you have a problem because the world hasn't invented the coop that'll keep a persistent fox out, or badger for that matter, and they are both relentless. I've had wire netting bitten through, two foot deep holes burrowed under brick footings, and holes chewed through a half inch thick plank of wood before now.

The only option is to despatch them. The alsation seems to kill half of them because a dog is no deterent to a fox making camp nearby despite the voices on here. The rest, you either have to find their home and despatch them or any legal air rifle does the rest.

Its not like hunting them down in the wild and taking a shot from a mile away as they will be quite blatant if they're hungry and you can get to within ten feet of them sometimes.

The consequences of trying to live with the Foxes is that they will quickly multiply with an obvious food source and when they do get inside the coop they will needlessly maim everything in the coop for fun before leaving with a kill. You will find yourself having to despatch half dead chickens in the morning, with some quite gruesome injuries. Daft really as your average chicken is totally passive when attacked, and pretty much plays dead when on the roost at night, so apart from instinct there really isn't any reason for the fox to do it.

This sort of stuff has been going on in the countryside ever since the fox and chicken were invented. Unlike some of the posters on here who seem to know what can or can't be done, all the above is what I DO do, and end up HAVING to do on a regular basis.

What type of AR do you use Julian? We keep chickens also and are having bit of an issue with a fox

[IanMorewood]

Antifox device......

[julian64]

Origin Unknown said:

What type of AR do you use Julian? We keep chickens also and are having bit of an issue with a fox

Not sure you'd want my gun. Its a Daystate Airwolf, its meant to be more of a target gun and has a rather inflated price. My son uses a BSA lightning, and I think these are much more reasonable, although probably loses a bit of accuracy to the daystate.

[Origin Unknown]

julian64 said:

Origin Unknown said:

What type of AR do you use Julian? We keep chickens also and are having bit of an issue with a fox

Not sure you'd want my gun. Its a Daystate Airwolf, its meant to be more of a target gun and has a rather inflated price. My son uses a BSA lightning, and I think these are much more reasonable, although probably loses a bit of accuracy to the daystate.

Er yea, just a little pricy! Looking at a cheap electric fence as a starting point

[julian64]

Origin Unknown said:

julian64 said:

Origin Unknown said:

What type of AR do you use Julian? We keep chickens also and are having bit of an issue with a fox

Not sure you'd want my gun. Its a Daystate Airwolf, its meant to be more of a target gun and has a rather inflated price. My son uses a BSA lightning, and I think these are much more reasonable, although probably loses a bit of accuracy to the daystate.

Er yea, just a little pricy! Looking at a cheap electric fence as a starting point

It won't work I'm afraid. We used to have one, but the foxes are quite capable of jumping and so are the hens. Hens don't fly but they'll make a six foot fence with a bit of a flapping jump, even the clipped ones. You really need a roof unfortunately. We have a fully enclosed chicken wire run about twenty feet long and about ten feet wide, with about a six foot height. I've shot at a fox on top of that! Our shock fencing gives you a reasonable jolt but only when you were well grounded. The foxes seem to have some sort of insulation in their feet as they were able to go up to it and push underneath, especially if the ground is dry. If you do go fencing make sure it is the type with the live and earth in the fence itself and not just making use of the soil to be the earth is that makes any sense. It seems to stop dogs okay, but not foxes. Our dog is a live in garden dog, and I think thats the best start.

However once you've got a nearby fox it seems to be an inexorable race to the finish, either the fox will eventually get the chickens, or you, or the dog will have to get the fox. Not found a way to reach a steady state. Maybe a lama?

[Japveesix]

julian64 said:

At that point you have a problem because the world hasn't invented the coop that'll keep a persistent fox out, or badger for that matter, and they are both relentless.

We have both foxes and badgers in our garden regularly. We shut the chooks away safely each night and the coop seems pretty foxger proof to me after over 2 years.

My sister did have an attack on her lot which killed 4 and maimed another, but that was by her neighbours dog (sadly no-one was around to shoot it). Then she bought some new chickens, secured the run (eletric wire and bricks around the base of the run) and she's seen 3 foxes fighting next to the pen at night yet had no problems at all with them getting in.

julian64 said:

The only option is to despatch them.

No it isn't. It's one option.

julian64 said:

The consequences of trying to live with the Foxes is that they will quickly multiply with an obvious food source

You think one attack on some chickens in a year, taking maybe 1 or 2 birds is enough to have a dramatic affect on the population or even the breeding success of a pair?

julian64 said:

and when they do get inside the coop they will needlessly maim everything in the coop for fun before leaving with a kill. there really isn't any reason for the fox to do it.

You seem to be suggesting other people are being irrational in their love of foxes, or opposition to shooting them, etc yet you suggest they kill for "fun" and "no reason". Surely you know better than that having obviously dealt with foxes regularly. They have very good reasons for killing all your chickens, even if you don't agree with them.

I've lived in the countryside and am aware that hunting, culling etc are required in a lot of situations but I disagree completely that the only option available to someone who has a problem with foxes is shooting it. For a start you're just creating a nice hole in the population for a new young male/female to occupy - never ending cycle really.

[otolith]

Your moggy's cat-fu is weak, it needs to CTFU.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPDEGF9OAFo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s3jM1K2riI

[bitwrx]

julian64 said:

Origin Unknown said:

julian64 said:

Origin Unknown said:

What type of AR do you use Julian? We keep chickens also and are having bit of an issue with a fox

Not sure you'd want my gun. Its a Daystate Airwolf, its meant to be more of a target gun and has a rather inflated price. My son uses a BSA lightning, and I think these are much more reasonable, although probably loses a bit of accuracy to the daystate.

Er yea, just a little pricy! Looking at a cheap electric fence as a starting point

It won't work I'm afraid. We used to have one, but the foxes are quite capable of jumping and so are the hens. Hens don't fly but they'll make a six foot fence with a bit of a flapping jump, even the clipped ones. You really need a roof unfortunately. We have a fully enclosed chicken wire run about twenty feet long and about ten feet wide, with about a six foot height. I've shot at a fox on top of that! Our shock fencing gives you a reasonable jolt but only when you were well grounded. The foxes seem to have some sort of insulation in their feet as they were able to go up to it and push underneath, especially if the ground is dry. If you do go fencing make sure it is the type with the live and earth in the fence itself and not just making use of the soil to be the earth is that makes any sense. It seems to stop dogs okay, but not foxes. Our dog is a live in garden dog, and I think thats the best start.

However once you've got a nearby fox it seems to be an inexorable race to the finish, either the fox will eventually get the chickens, or you, or the dog will have to get the fox. Not found a way to reach a steady state. Maybe a lama?

Not quite true about the electric fence. You're right about the trick being a good earth. The trick is to have live and earth wires sufficiently close such that a fox will bridge the gap should he get too close.

http://www.rappa.co.uk/advice-centre/23-wire-heigh... (scroll down a bit)

Does fairly well with our outdoor pigs, but we do get the odd occasion when a fox figures it out. (Having said that we do know a man who likes to come shooting foxes.)

[MrAdaam]

otolith said:

Your moggy's cat-fu is weak, it needs to CTFU.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPDEGF9OAFo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s3jM1K2riI

[julian64]

bitwrx said:

Not quite true about the electric fence. You're right about the trick being a good earth. The trick is to have live and earth wires sufficiently close such that a fox will bridge the gap should he get too close.

http://www.rappa.co.uk/advice-centre/23-wire-heigh... (scroll down a bit)

Does fairly well with our outdoor pigs, but we do get the odd occasion when a fox figures it out. (Having said that we do know a man who likes to come shooting foxes.)

Mine looks like the orange stuff. But the wires weaved into the plastic only have the 10K volts on them. The earth strap pushes into the ground, and the contact is made between your feet and touching the wire. If you are wearing something sufficiently insulating like wellies you don't get a shock touching the wire. If you put one hand on the grass and one on the wire you get a shock.

Maybe I need live and earth wires all woven into the fence so the contact is made by crossing them while touching the fence only?

[ROOODBOY]

Personally, I'd prefer to shoot the cat and leave the fox be!

[Y282]

Lol@"ctfu"

[ClaphamGT3]

julian64 said:

plasticpig said:

Condi said:

Eh?

Foxes arnt immune to air rifles, but you would be stupid to try and kill one with an AR. They have nowhere near the stopping power required, unless you happen to be st hot and can hit a temple, or the heart at 30 yards. For your average person they dont stand a chance. At least use a shotgun, but even then you have to be a pretty decent shot, and close enough, to get a clean kill. Most farmers or vermin controllers use a rifle. Unless your sure you can hit the animal at least twice in quick succession with a shotgun then dont even bother trying. Nothing worse than injuring an animal and letting it go off to die hours later.

As with any vermin control - yes it has to be done, but for gods sake do it properly. Just because they are a nuscance doesnt mean they need to suffer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLwX9DxICR8

Perfectly possible using a FAC rated air rifle with a dialed in laser sight. But as you say you do need to be a good shot.

Perfectly possible with a non FAC air rifle, you just have to be closer.

Agreed, I've done a couple in our garden with a high-powered .22 AR (albeit at close range with a decent telo). A .410 would be more than an ample and, at London garden range, a 12-bore is going to leave you with Mr Foxy-Woxy puree to pressure wash off the decking.

Like the man says though; for heaven's sake do it humanely

Edited by ClaphamGT3 on Friday 16th September 22:54

[nammynake]

ROOODBOY said:

Personally, I'd prefer to shoot the cat and leave the fox be!

+1

[GTIR]

CTFU!

Yer.