How to get a Fox out of your yard (and keep them out)
The Red Fox, also called the American Red Fox, is a species commonly found in North America and one of the species of wild canine living in the northern part of the continent. From a distance, they are very easily identifiable with a vivid and rich brown coat and brush-like tail. While there might be some uncertainty about how they arrived, what carries no such uncertainty is the problems they can cause. Farmers, livestock herders, and chicken farmers know very well the problems they can cause; however, city and suburban dwellers are faced with their own unique issues with the fox.
Adapting to live in towns and cities, the fox has evolved to live alongside humans and this can cause a lot of problems ranging from property damage, pet issues, and your yard being full of excrement. People have searched long and hard how to get rid of foxes and how to keep them out, that’s why we’re here now. Let’s look at the methods to banish this pest from your yard.
Firearms
Actually this won’t work! Sure, you might just manage to kill the fox but what next? You not only have a large dead animal (full of ticks, lice, fleas, and other things you don’t want to be near) in your yard, you now have to deal with it in a manner compliant with your local public health laws. You probably have also broken a few laws regarding firearms so you have legal consequences to resolve and it’s entirely possible that the fox in your yard is now the least of your problems. Please, don’t use firearms as a fox deterrent as it simply won’t work and will create more problems.
Fences
A good quality and well-maintained fence will work wonders for keeping foxes out of your yard. Regularly ensure that there are no gaps or breakages in your fence for the foxes to squeeze through. Foxes are fairly intelligent so any small gap will be exploited, especially if there is a potential meal on the other side of the fence. Another crucial tip to remember with fences is to dig at least 12 inches down and either use hardware felt, or cloth, or extend the fence into the ground. This is because foxes are diggers and will easily dig under a fence quickly to get into your yard if they really want in.
This brings me to my final point about fences, make sure that the height is at least 6 feet on the outside, sometimes land can dip and bulge and this could create an easy way in for foxes; potentially leading to a visit from animal control.
Let’s get technical
The influx of technology has brought with it new and “amazing” methods to deter foxes and other wildlife ranging from the bizarre to the pretty impressive. Most commonly used are scare devices. These are typically motion-activated, such as scent spreaders, LED strobe lights, and noise emitters. Some of these noise emitters will continually sound a pitch that cannot be heard by human ears but is very irritating to the foxes. Obviously, if you have a dog this won’t be pleasant for them; but this does bring us to our next item.
Dominant urine
Not the most pleasant of subjects but one that is natural and has been seen to work. Foxes are wild, territorial animals and if they can smell urine in your yard they will keep their distance. Male human urine has shown to be effective but not as effective as canine male urine. If you already have your very own good boy, then letting them urinate in your yard isn’t a bad idea as this smell will alert foxes to the fact your garden is already taken. Foxes gain nothing from challenging an existing lodger as this could lead to potentially fatal injuries, they seem to find it best to just keep moving and looking for a meal elsewhere.
An answer from the spice rack
Not such a strange method is using items from your spice rack to create a chemical deterrent. Foxes, like all canines, rely on their highly sensitive sense of smell and this guides them to good places and warns them about places to avoid. This method is similar to the urine as it creates a smell that foxes will avoid.
Using garlic and chili, boil these ingredients in a large quantity until the water is fully infused with the oils and smells from both garlic and chili (a great side effect is that your house and garden will smell amazing to humans) and add this water to a hand sprayer. Spray around the outside and the perimeter of your yard and the combination of smells will be unpleasant for foxes and keep them away from this area.
Hopefully, you found this useful and one or more of these methods will help keep these curious, but destructive, animals away.