Fox Watch

From Urbanchicken

Foxwatch is a small electronic device that detects heat and motion within a certain distance and radius and emits a loud sound audible to foxes (and dogs) but not humans. It is battery or mains powered and a battery will last approximately 3 months. You turn on the device at night, and it can sit on a holder which is pushed into the soil. The battery will wear down faster if it is detecting movements such as people, pets walking past. It flashes red when it detects a movement e.g. putting the chickens away for the night, which is reassuring, and has a way of testing that it is working.

The concept behind it is that when a fox enters the area it will trigger the alarm and the fox will be deterred. The fox supposedly makes the connection between its behaviour and the noise and avoids the area. Bold foxes, the manufacturer says, can attempt to stand up to the device, but should eventually be deterred after a few weeks or months when they can't defeat it. For this reason it is not be instantly reliable. There is also a disclaimer that it will not work on deaf foxes. You would be unlucky if your fox was deaf and you bought the device-but you can't really know this! It costs roughly £50 and we have just bought one to run on batteries. The website below has more information. http://www.conceptresearch.co.uk/fox.htm