[Honey65]

Since getting our 4 ex bat hens a few months ago, we've let them free range all day while we're at work.  They take themselves to bed about 4pm but we don't get home to close the coop until 6pm. 

Our garden has 5ft fencing all round on a concrete plinth.  The only access to the garden if through the house or garage.  Its a very built up area so plenty of urban foxes around though I've never seen one on the garden since we moved in (2 years ago).  Also, no foxy 'presents' left - in stark contrast to our last house where the garden was covered in fox poo! 

Anyway, the constant scatter of chicken poo is starting to get on my nerves and I am totally aware that probably the 1st sign of a fox could be an empty (or even worse) coop.

What should we do?  Keep them caged? Buy a big enclosed run? 

What do you all do??

[bravemurphy]

A fox could easily climb the fence.

We let ours out when we are here and the one dog likes to make sure they are all present and correct 

[compostqueen]

The fox will call!  It's an inevitability! I'd get them in a good sized weldmesh run, with covered roof (such as the wavy bituminous stuff from Wickes)  You could move their coop inside the run so everything is comfy for them but they still have room to roam during the day when you're at work.  I wouldn't dream of leaving mine out if I wasn't there. I had a visit from foxy, and it was unbelievably traumatic, so I made sure it never happened again

I'd get it seen to asap.  I got a local chap to build me one and put it up for me 

[grinling]

foxes will dig under the fence you have.
Build a run using weld mesh or chicken wire, but either will need to be to be buried at least 1 spade depth and 1 spade width L shape. Have it tall enough to stand up in and roof it, useful for wet/snowy days. Have the house raised up as well to help keep rats out. Mine stay under teh bushes at the mo, but also enjoy the sliced pumpkin.
Find with a run, that essential for worming as no extras allowed inc grass, and also for checking over the chooks as they can be trapped and picked up. I have 2 interconnecting runs, one is solid covered, the other is chicken wired and full of leaves for them to scratch in, before being composted next spring.

[Mrs Bee]

The fox will call!  It's an inevitability! I'd get them in a good sized weldmesh run, with covered roof (such as the wavy bituminous stuff from Wickes)  You could move their coop inside the run so everything is comfy for them but they still have room to roam during the day when you're at work.  I wouldn't dream of leaving mine out if I wasn't there. I had a visit from foxy, and it was unbelievably traumatic, so I made sure it never happened again

I'd get it seen to asap.  I got a local chap to build me one and put it up for me 

I agree absolutely with everything Compost Queen has said.  We have done all this and have an electric fence around the run too.
 The damn foxes come into our garden in the middle of the day and we can't let them into the garden unless we are there. It only takes us answering the door for 5 minutes or so and the fox can strike.

Happened to us one Sunday lunch time and we only just got there in time.

The lady we got our chooks from warned us to stick to either free ranging or not, 'cos if they get used to free ranging and then you have to stop and keep them in they expect to come out and they get cross about it.
That happened to us after we stopped letting them out of the run. It made us feel really rotten.

[Honey65]

Thanks guys.  I think I knew you were going to say that though.  I will get on (well, not me exactly!) to building a run today.

Mrs Bee - I suspect ours will be very grumpy with me.  HOw long did yours take to settle down?

[Mrs Bee]

Several months.

And even after several months they tried to dodge between my feet and escape when I went in to the run.

I really hate confining them but I would hate it even more if the fox tore them to bits.

 I just kept telling them that the big bad fox would eat them and I had to keep them safe.

[barley]

My mums neighbour lost 5 hens yesterday in the middle of the afternoon
she went to see what all the commotion was about and the fox didn't even try to run , it just stood there looking at her

she did manage to save 6 but that's nearly half lost - 

there is a dead fox down the road been run over so there is more than one around at the moment

[joyfull]

Mine free range all the time, however a couple of years ago I lost a lot of mine not to a fox but to a couple of mink attacks. As I live surrounded by farmland our local farmers have dealt with the mink and since then we have had no more problems.
However if I knew there was foxes around then I may have to try and catch them to put them in an enclosure (hard to do when they sleep in the trees).

[Honey65]

Do you think an enclosure made with electric fencing would be adequate?

[joyfull]

yes so long as you don't have overhanging items like trees or sheds next to it which could allow a fox to jump in. If you do go down this route them make sure you test the fencing periodically to make sure it is still live 

[Mrs Bee]

And use the special little tester that comes with the fence not your fingers, 'cos it 'urts.

[Sassy]

foxes will dig under the fence you have.
Build a run using weld mesh or chicken wire, but either will need to be to be buried at least 1 spade depth and 1 spade width L shape. Have it tall enough to stand up in and roof it, useful for wet/snowy days. Have the house raised up as well to help keep rats out. Mine stay under teh bushes at the mo, but also enjoy the sliced pumpkin.
Find with a run, that essential for worming as no extras allowed inc grass, and also for checking over the chooks as they can be trapped and picked up. I have 2 interconnecting runs, one is solid covered, the other is chicken wired and full of leaves for them to scratch in, before being composted next spring.

Be aware a fox can and will chew through chicken wire!