A fox trap

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A fox trap
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wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Fri Feb 05, 16 10:39 pm Post subject: A fox trap
(Not strictly for the pot, but it seemed the best match) I have a fox. Or possibly several (they have dug at least three tunnels under the greenhouse. I am concerned about subsidence!) I also have a fox trap. It catches chickens very effectively. How can I make it catch foxes?! I bait it with raw meat scraps. Which the chickens eat.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46192
Location: yes

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 12:55 am Post subject:
cat food(you might have by catch with that one but once you have had a good laugh it can leave with everything but it's dignity intact ) blood roadkill

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 8:46 am Post subject:
Can you fence out the hens in some way a fox could still get passed? What do you intend to do with a captured fox?

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 10:29 am Post subject:
Shoot it (not personally. I have a properly equipped and qualified person on standby) There are cats locally, but they seem to avoid the chickens. I bait it at night when the chickens are away, but Monsieur Reynard shows no interest. I dont mind releasing other critters, I'd just like to catch the foxes as well.

SteveP

Joined: 23 Jan 2008
Posts: 155
Location: North Devon

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 10:39 am Post subject:
Cover the base in soil or straw so it doesn't walk on the wires. Place bales at the sides and on top. The fox will go into a hole more readily than an open metal trap.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46192
Location: yes

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 12:09 pm Post subject:

another consideration ,as with all trapping,is scent.

wear gloves when baiting and setting preferably gloves rubbed in soil or dung

as they seem to have moved in under your greenhouse if your sniper has time a night shoot might be productive if the area is safe for such activities or radjel can be baited into a safe kz.

dusk and dawn near radjel's house or on well used routes to it's happy hunting grounds or forage bins is quite effective

it will go for chooks eventually and they do hunt by day if they recon they can get away with it

a slightly different approach is to discourage them by scent ,human urine makes them very wary of an area.

i like em but they are incompatible with chook keeping as even the best made pens can be breached given enough motivation and time.

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 12:38 pm Post subject:

A trapping friend rubs his hands with horse manure before he handles any of his traps.
He buries his smaller traps for a couple of weeks when new to remove artificial scent as well.
I don't know if this is overkill but he makes his living from vermin control so possibly not.
My first thought when I read this thread was use a chicken as live bait but that's very unethical, inhumane & probably illegal.

hots

Joined: 23 Sep 2010
Posts: 397
Location: Suffolk

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 7:53 pm Post subject:
What do you intend to do with it when you've trapped it??

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 8:11 pm Post subject:

Shoot it. I have friend who is a pest controller and shoots.
The trap is a bit new and shiny. I can put it in with the birds for a while to get more chicken-y.

The fox hasn't moved in under the greenhouse, it's just trying to get at birds which are temporarily billeted in there. I am super impressed at the tunnelling.

Chicken bait, I wouldn't, but anyway if the trap is open the birds can get out. For the record, it seems to take three birds to trigger the mechanism. I could do with a dead one, so naturally they are all in perfect health.

I quite like them too. But they are just too agile and resourceful. You can't keep them out, so there's nothing for it, really. I need to get the undergrowth tamed before shooting is a possibility, but if I can't get it trapped we will start to be more assertive. I want them get them before they start having Cubs.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Sat Feb 06, 16 11:06 pm Post subject:
Dig a shallow hole and then put the bait into it and then place your cage trap over the hole and the bait. Of course, this only works if your cage trap is triggered by a treadle. Its what I do,

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 16 10:41 am Post subject:
Thanks, I'll try that with burying the bait and covering with straw. It is a treadle trap. I suppose I can at least rely on the chickens to test it. I thought I might put the trap in with the birds for a while as well. That'll stop it bring all new and shiny.

SteveP

Joined: 23 Jan 2008
Posts: 155
Location: North Devon

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 16 8:34 am Post subject:
When I baited a treadle trap I didn't rely on the fox standing on it. The bait (rabbit) was tied to a piece of bailing twine that was looped around the back of the trap and tied to the treadle from below. When the fox takes the bait it pulls the twine and trips the trap. Two chances of catching it

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 16 9:38 am Post subject:
Two types of cage trap. The treadle where the fox treads on the treadle and the other one is where the fox pulls at the bait and triggers the trap. I can't see what advantage there can be in tying the bait to the treadle.

hots

Joined: 23 Sep 2010
Posts: 397
Location: Suffolk

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 16 12:25 pm Post subject:
It's responsible that you're going to shoot it, for a while there I was concerned that you might be one of the idiots that trap them, then 'set them free' near other folk's birds............

SteveP

Joined: 23 Jan 2008
Posts: 155
Location: North Devon

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 16 12:55 pm Post subject:

Bodger wrote:

Two types of cage trap. The treadle where the fox treads on the treadle and the other one is where the fox pulls at the bait and triggers the trap.

I can't see what advantage there can be in tying the bait to the treadle.

If the bait is tied to the treadle it will be tripped if the fox treads on it and it the fox doesn't

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