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Fox trot
For most of us, foxes are probably the most impressive wildlife we ever see in our gardens.
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Gardeners' World Web User
05/02/2009 at 12:19
I loved your posting Denise,at least you made her last days happy ones
Gardeners' World Web User
09/02/2009 at 13:19
Reply to everyone. Foxes are obviously a hot topic, and thank you for all the comments. Its heartening to have so much feed-back from visitors to this web site. During the recent snow, I was able to confirm something I had read about, but never seen before. Cats and dogs leave a double trail of footprints behind them, left and right. Foxes leave just a single trail of step marks, as if they are walking a tightrope. Oh, and one final thing to the receivers of fox dung. This is an important wildlife resource and many dung beetles feed in it. There has been much concern that stock animals (cows, horses, sheep, goats, deer), given systemic pesticide medicines are producing incecticidal dung, killing off the beetles that would normally recycle their droppings. This has serious ecological consequences, increasing the numbers of flies breeding in the dung. Cats and dogs treated with anti-flea medicines may also have dung less readily removed by the eager beetles, which find themselves poisoned instead. Fox dung, unpolluted by toxic chemicals, is a valuable reservoir for this fascinating and important beetle fauna.
Gardeners' World Web User
16/03/2009 at 14:38
Reply to Paul S Having lots of frogs is no guarantee of spawn. Since males outnumber females, you might have all one sex, even though they are trying to clamber on top of each other. Frogs are relatively long lived and 10-year-olds are common, so if they fail to spawn this year, they will be back in 2010.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/04/2009 at 14:43
I have had two fox cubs as pets and they have grown into wonderful animals, they are highly intelligent and brilliant at keeping unwanted pests out of the garden, especially cats that dig up my borders and leave their faeces for my grandchildren and myself to get our hands covered in.and they kill my bird ! !. The foxes also contol any vermin such as rabbits,rats and squirrels we have.. So my neighbours and I are great fans of our beautiful pals
Gardeners' World Web User
06/07/2009 at 13:42
Can anyone help? I have repaired all the holes from the foxes digging and picked up their mess, put up with the screeching but how do I save my lawn that my grandkids play on? the foxes wee has burnt it all in patches please help x
Gardeners' World Web User
27/07/2009 at 13:50
Hi can anyone advise how I would work out what has dug a hole in my garden? I have been away for a long weekend out of East Dulwich in London and have arrived back today to find a big hole has been dug between my shed and a neighbours house. It has never happened before and I would like to just fill back the hole but now worry I might have a pest/pests invading my garden! Given it's only about 40 ft square its not huge so I want to make sure the pest is removed before it causes more damage. How would I know if its a fox and should I just fill back the hole?
Gardeners' World Web User
03/08/2009 at 20:19
Reply to Jade Foxes are stubborn and difficult to deter, but you might be able to encourage them out of your garden. Fill in the hole and reinforce it with wire netting or cover it with bricks. Check it every day, many times a day if possible as if you are trying to make a nuisance of yourself to the potential squatters. Good luck.
Gardeners' World Web User
23/08/2009 at 07:37
Can anyone help.I'm trying to help my brother before he goes insane!He has had foxes in his garden for many years and has always enjoyed watching their antics.He has a flea infestation in the house and has tried every DIY pest control product there is,things seem to improve and then he is bitten again.What I would like to now is has anyone had this problem and how did you deal with it.I should say that we are sure they have come from the foxes,as he has been repairing hedging that the foxes have destroyed,to do this he has had to crawl under buses to reach, and he also sits on the grass.If anyone could offer any advice Iwould be very grateful thank you
Gardeners' World Web User
26/08/2009 at 07:51
I don't mind that a fox gets into our back garden but it deposits it a present so you can imagine when we are on holiday it is not a very nice picture to see the lawn in a mess. What can we do? I am sure that it is a fox as it is too big for a cat or smaller creatures that would venture into a garden.we need help. Thank you. Margaret
Gardeners' World Web User
07/09/2009 at 20:46
Reply to Harry I doubt the fleas have come from the foxes. Fleas infest animal nests, and those in homes are cat and dog fleas that breed in the sleeping baskets or corners of the carpet where the animals regularly sleep. If your brother has picked up fox fleas by lying in hedges, they cannot give rise to a viable population indoors.
Gardeners' World Web User
16/10/2009 at 19:35
I live in a town and attempt to keep chickens. I have lost many to foxes who would not be in the area if it were not for people who think it is cute to feed them. I would gladly dump my shredded chicken bodies on their lawns to make them understand what it is they are encouraging, as would my neighbours who have had pet rabbits and guinea pigs literally torn limb from limb.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/11/2009 at 08:09
i have a cat flap on my shed so my cat can shelter from the weather when im not home.yesterday when i went to my shed i had the fright of my life,there was a fox sleeping in his bed,i dont know who was more scared me or the fox.what is worrying me the fox had got mange all over its backside and i am worried my cat might have caught it
Gardeners' World Web User
23/11/2009 at 10:53
Reply to Hatty Mange is caused by a mite infestation of the foxes. It can be transferred to domestic pets, but since they are more closely related to foxes it is dogs which are most at risk. Quite how high that risk is, I do not know. Cats are. apparently, very unlikely to get it. The main thing is that foxes are unlikely to be taken to the vet to have their symptoms treated, so infestations become gross, chronic and eventually fatal. Pets, on the other hand, are regularly monitored and can be easily treated at first appearance of any signs of the illness. Have a look at this web site for some more information: http://www.thefoxwebsite.org/disease/diseasemange.html
Gardeners' World Web User
27/07/2010 at 19:30
Although early on we lost chickens to Mr Fox, we now have a love/hate relationship... We've completely fenced in our chickens with thick wire mesh and have buried the same under their run. We've not lost any for a couple of years, but that doesn't mean I give them a free range in the garden - as we have had some taken in broad daylight from our patio in the past. Best plan with keeping chickens in your garden is to completely mesh them in and makesure they're not allowed out unsupervised. Which is always a bit of a problem if you have kids! Ahemm! http://www.keeping-chickens.co.uk
Gardeners' World Web User
13/10/2010 at 15:56
I remember too the story about the fox and the chicken. Yeah, fox's ate chickens that is why chicken's afraid to the fox. Funeral Urns
Gardeners' World Web User
12/11/2010 at 08:32
My Wife & I enjoy ALL the Wildlife visiting our garden, [Except Rats] but including Foxes. We feel however that the best advice we were given was in that it is best to let the 'Natural Fear' of man remain. The Fox is both a Carnivore, a Scavenger and an Opportunist. To Foxes there MAY WELL be no difference between a small baby put out in the garden and a chicken or pet rabbit. This can, albeit VERY RARELY, result in a tragedy. In FAIRNESS to Foxes our feeding deer can result in tameness too, this 'loss of fear' when the raging hormones of 'The Rutt' arrives can make Rudolph potentially very dangerous. [Ask the Wardens at Windsor Great Park] As for us we have tried to encourage wildlife generally whilst bearing in mind the above, Grey Squirrels, [Delightfull though they are to our Kids & Grandchildren still decimate our native Reds. We find Woodpigeons & Magpies, together with city centre with city centre pigeons clear nuisances. As retired 'Para Medics' we feel the latter will likely be the source of much disease in a future Pandemic. So can we REMEMBER that when we 'Interface' with all forms of wildlife?.
Gardeners' World Web User
19/05/2011 at 17:43
Reply to Harry's comment 29: We too have had foxes in the garden in past years without any problem from fleas but this year they are in the house, perhaps it is associated with the dry weather. I conclude that is has to be the foxes as we don't have any cats or dogs. The clincher came this afternoon when I put out a white sheet on the grass before enjoying the sun and yes, several fleas were onto the sheet in a short space of time, so much so that my idea of a snooze in the sun was cancelled. It is annoying both because it means I can't enjoy lying on the grass and because we have had fleas in three of the rooms at times over a four week period. A total of about 15 - 20 have been killed. Masking tape works well! I am reluctant to powder the garden with an anti-flea powder as I am sure if it can kill fleas it would be detrimental to other wildlife.
Gardeners' World Web User
19/07/2011 at 09:29
Fox are not safe to other animals because fox are fed from them. Funeral Urns
Gardeners' World Web User
28/08/2011 at 10:37
Hobgoblin did you solve your flea problem? We have exactly the same thing now, fleas in the house and the garden presumably from the foxes. I don't mind the foxes themselves but the fleas are driving me insane as we can't enjoy our garden or our house for that matter! We've had the house sprayed but I can't find a way to get them out of the garden.
Gardeners' World Web User
28/11/2011 at 18:37
Can anyone help? For 2 weeks now we've had nearly 2 dozen frogs paired up in our pond. Loads of croaking but no frogspawn! Can anyone suggest why? This time last year we'd had two lots of spawn. Thanks for any help. Paul
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