Help needed

[Gileswithachainsaw]

So, how can I stop a fox getting into my garden. I'm petrified it's going to figure out how to get into my hutch and hurt my beautiful bunnies.

What can I do??

I don't obviously want to hurt it, it's just being a fox but I know the damage they can do and want to keep my buns safe.

Tia

Long and short of it?
You can't

I have two guinea-pigs and at the bottom of my garden there's an access road and the neighbours garages. There's a family of two adults, last year they had two cubs (who I hope have moved to their own territory)

They SIT there. They are so fearless it's unreal.
I keep a selection of small sticks, pears anything that I can throw at my wooden fence. I'd never hurt an animal but I'd skin these blighters if I could.

One was on the roof of my Pigs Shed literally a foot from my face. I had my pigs' two metal bowls that I clanged together so hard I dented them.

I think the only thing you can do is protect the furries. Foxes can dig like you wouldn't believe (they dug up my buried piggie twice from under three flowerpots - heavy , filled , terracotta pots)

Are your rabbits outside day and night in summer? (That's the time I find the foxes most active ). Is your rabbit run sunk into the ground?
We peg our run with long tent pegs but I don't leave the pigs out if no-ones home.
Our Pighouse has a wooden attatched floor (it's a Playhouse) so they can't get under it.

And Male Adult Urine is supposed to deter them. My DH declined but my teenage DS was happy to pee in a plastic bottle which I doused round the garden.
We have 6' fences - they can leap over no sweat.

I'll be watching in interest. I would LOVE to get rid of them.

I'd keep your buns in overnight.

My DH made our Pighouse really FortKnox .

We have a window that lifts out and on the inside he's screwed in wooden planks, a metal grill then fly mesh.
The window fits back in and it's bolted.

With your hutch you could add more re-inforced wire - proper wire mesh, places like builders yards can recommend.
And proper locks/bolts. We have a slide across and down lock. And a bucket of cement in front of the door.

The other worry is if they pester them. Make sure they have a secure shelter they can hide in.

But our GP2 was hasselled by magpies on the lawn while he sat up against the bars. Did the silly article think to move?
No

Keeping them in at night is sadly not an option. As a one off yes, think surgery or gale force winds. But long term no. Looks like we have some DIY to do on the hutch extra bolts etc.its supposed to be a fox proof hutch. I've chased it off two nights in a row now :( we have spare wood we could cut to make more latch things with.

I find if I accidently leave anything that smells of the guineas (like some stray dirty bedding or one of their binbags not put in the garage) they attract the foxes.

I haven't seen our mange ridden little vermin out recently.
(That's another reason to keep them away. Goodness what they deposit on the lawn when they leave their mess)

And it helps if your neighbours don't feed them

No neighbours feeding them. Just the draw back I guess of living next to a field that backs into farm land. Jumping 6ft fences? Well clearly a new fence won't help

They're those lap&larch ones (with the wooden straight 'bar' bit) so they get their feet to that level then jump the rest.

I don't 'admire' foxes.
I detest urban foxes with passion. They are lazy and looking for an easy meal.
And unfortunately with easy pickings (scrap food, earthworms from gardening, domestic pets, chickens, pond fish) they thrive and even the ill scraggy ones survive.
There was a post in Chat - one poster was treating a garden fox for mange . They are wild animals they shouldn't be 'treated'.

If I was allowed to I'd put that spikey intruder deterrant up on the fences.