Hiya

I know some people on here keep chickens so I wonder if anyone can help me with the following dilemma.

We are setting up a chicken and duck run with 4 foot wooden posts and 9 strands of wire. We are thinking about alternating the wires so that some are connected to earth rather than live, so that the fox gets a bigger shock, and even if his feet are all off the ground.

However I am worried that this will means that if we or our dogs touch a live and earth wire accidentally, we will get one heck of a shock, far worse than we would if we just had live wires on the fence.

Has anyone got any experience of such a system or got any comments for or against, please?

(The background is that we recently lost a duck to a fox who got over our electric net, the fox visits every night and has been seen as early as 4pm, so we want to make the run as foxproof as possible.)

Thanks for any advice anyone can give.

Cheers
Alex

Hiya,
Not sure about the electrical fence but i know foxes are big diggers so make sure you bury the fence under the ground as well as doing whatever it is you decide to do above ground!

Is it legal for you to set up the fence to give a bigger shock? How many volts exactly would it give you?

Hi Freds Mum

Yes they are terrible diggers, but apparently they won't dig near an electric fence because they are so scared of it so they avoid the area altogether. I hope so anyway. There are loads of mice, rats and bunnies about so hopefully the fox will start paying them more attention, and my chickens less attention!

Cheers

Hi Pinklilies

Yes it is legal, and recommended by lots of sources e.g. DEFRA, as it's a better way of keeping foxes out. But I don't want my dogs to touch it by accident and get a really sore nose! The volts depends on the model of fence energiser, ours does 7500 volts in theory I think, but we seem to get more like 6000. Some of the bigger ones do 10000 or more. Quite a jolt.

Cheers

Hi Louisdog.
Can't help you on the technical matters, however have a look at the practical poultry forum as there are many there who can give you excellent advise on electric fencing.

Hi Mud Mops

Thanks, will have a look on there tomorrow. Are you a member there, do you keep chickens? I have seen a few threads here over the years about chickens so I know there are a few of us who keep them as well as keeping dogs :-)

Cheers
Alex

One of the gundog trainers at the Club that I go to went to give an apple to a horse, not realising the electric fence was switched on as it had been turned off earlier, I thought he was having a heart attack when he clutched his chest!! 

Yep it seems to make you really jump as much as anything else!

My 2 year old nephew likes to hold onto the electric fence!!! My sister and brother in law live on a farm so the fence is very low voltage to keep the cows in, but still electric and does give a slight shock. My nephew stands there holding on to it with gritted teeth. So funny to watch!!

Lol sounds like my old next door neighbours, who were beef farmers, and the wife grew up on a farm and used to horrify her parents cos she loved swinging on the farm's electric fences!

Must be a boy thing.  My OH says when he and his friends were (silly) little boys they used to challenge each other to pee on the electric fence. 

Ohh!  Did he grow up to be an electrician?? ;-D ;-D

we have electric around our fowl and yes at 1st the hounds did get the odd whack, but after a day or two they learnt to keep well away so no problem. Unfortunately the foxes are still a real problem and we have even seen them climb a tree to jump in over.

Peeing on the fence - OUCH!! :-o

Sam, do you use electric net around yours or strands of wire? Have you ever known a fox get through electric fencing, apart from via a tree? I am still scratching me head trying to figure out how one managed to get through the electric net and in with my ducks, it definitely gets in as we get droppings on the inside of the run. No daytime visits yet touch wood - maybe my dogs are keeping him away.

Cheers :-)

Hi Loiusdog,
Yes I have 30+ chickens (and it started off with my son getting 3 for his b'day!!!) and yes I'm a member of the poultry forum. It has been a godsend for me as I didn't realise how many problems a chicken could have!
I know there was a thread going about stopping a fox getting over electric fencing a while back, it maybe of help.

Hi Mud Mops

I have been looking at the PP forum earlier on, there are loads of useful threads on there, thanks. :-) Lots of sad stories too when the fox manages to get in. :-( I have applied for my username so I can hopefully post on there soon. More than 30, that's loads! I'd love to have that many :-D

Cheers

Wasnt rthat Beevis and Buthead?????
'Dont pee on the electric fence' ???????????
SORRY, Will go get my coat!!!!!
Lea :)

louis, I believe that "our" fox (well until we shot him!) could simply jump over the netting....we use netting not strands.....even at 4 feet it was much too low....so then we did like the gamekeeprs do and put 2 single strands at ankle and knee height about 18 inches off the netting & that seemed to do the trick for the rest of the foxes although we do still shoot many.

Yes, I reckon ours must've just jumped the netting, even though they are widely believed to be foxproof/resistant. You have given me another idea, thanks, if we get probs with the new run then I'll add a couple more strands 18" away.

At the minute we are happy to coexist with the fox but this depends on him keeping away from our stock!

Hi there

We used to keep hens, ours were free range and we didnt have a big problem with foxes like I mentioned on a previous post it was the Herons that came and picked ours off.
Remember the day we found our Buff Orpingtons all in tact dead with a big hole pecked right through their necks!"and the heron nearby watching!

We found that by keeping a talk radio channel on worked well, we were told this by the lady who we bought our first hens off, hers too were also free range and she had speakers all over the field with the radio playing, worked a treat.

Please dont resort to shooting the foxes and enjoy youre hens! 

Hi there

We used to keep hens, ours were free range and we didnt have a big problem with foxes like I mentioned on a previous post it was the Herons that came and picked ours off.
Remember the day we found our Buff Orpingtons all in tact dead with a big hole pecked right through their necks!"and the heron nearby watching!

We found that by keeping a talk radio channel on worked well, we were told this by the lady who we bought our first hens off, hers too were also free range and she had speakers all over the field with the radio playing, worked a treat.

Please dont resort to shooting the foxes and enjoy youre hens! 

My ex father in law is a chicken farmer with about 2000 free range chickens. He uses the netting but it is very high 6/7 foot. He has never had a problem with foxes. Not sure where he gets the high netting from but can ask him if you like?

Blimey so it's true about the heron, I thought it was a typo. Yikes. Well we have a heron that visits the pond right next to the chooks (grr, poor fishies) and no chook casualities yet, touch wood. I have heard the thing about the radio, might try that, also in the summer I'll leave the back door open so the dogs can keep a watchful presence.

Hopefully I won't have to resort to having him shot! The fox is rather beautiful and looks in prime condition especially after his meal of duck :-( Anyway as far as I can see, shooting would be pointless as another one would just move into the territory, especially as we live right next to acres of woods. Our neighbours on both sides have given up keeping chickens after the fox kept getting them all.

Cheers

Paula thanks for your reply, I'd love to know where your exFIL gets the net from, sounds like it is just the ticket, it must work as a professional has to get it right and can't really afford any losses can they. I have never seen such tall net advertised in poultry mags but maybe it's just aimed at commercial farmers at the moment.

Cheers

I should see him over the weekend so will ask him for you.

I once read that you should get a man to wee at random places around the outside of the chicken run (mind the fence though ) as it will deter the fox if they smell a "superior" male animal. Not sure if this is true :-D

sorry but the heron theory.....:)  :)  we found 6 dead geese and the horse in the same field but dont imagine for one moment that the horse did it!!! :)

Bet the horse was relieved that he had got away with it ;-) :-D

Sam we saw the Heron take one of our baby warrens and fly off with it a few yards before dropping it!
The poor Orpingtons had walked out into one of the paddocks by the pond where one of the herons nest, it is quite common that they kill hens!
They also take the baby ducklings off the canal too! Horrid!  (But I still wouldnt shoot them for their crimes!)

I wanted to shoot our heron or wring its neck as it got two of my biggest tamest fish (as well as many others) and didn't even eat one of them, but apparently they are protected. Grr.

Must admit gone off them since the hen episodes!

Actually wouldn't dare go near enough to wring its neck anyway, horrible big bill. And I find their incredibly long skinny legs a bit disturbing! Ugh!

Thanks Paula.

Zarah I heard that too, probably only works if you have a small chicken run or lots of men in the house, and understanding neighbours :-D

having lifted our pure Buff O. hen off her nest and into her shed tonight, I cannot imagine any heron unless it was on steroids, being able to lift a B.O !! :) Think well have to agree to disagree on that one!

louise I know someone who shota heron that was continually stealing their koi, no matter what they did it stole hundreds of pounds worth. Anyway after shooting it (with an airrifle) they lived in a quiet cul de sac in the village and had a tiny garden with no where to bury it, so they put it out for the bins in a bin liner but as the bin men carried it down the drive its beak poked out through the binbag :o
Luckily the bin man was sympathetic and ignored the beak sticking out!

Sam it didnt lift the Buff Orps , they are huge as youll know, just pecked them to death, but if flew a few yards with a baby warren!!
WIsh i had a pic of it now if you dont believe me!!

I wouldnt lie lol