Cats, Foxes, Rabbits Some people have found coffee grounds deter cats from using parts of their garden as a toilet. Hasn't worked for me; my cats like the smell of coffee (!) And it doesn't seem to deter foxes either.
For example, foxes hate natural ingredients like chili pepper, garlic, capsaicin, and a chemical compound called alliinase. Sprinkling these foods around your garden will naturally prevent foxes coming near your home and garden. Foxes also hate water, flashing lights, and loud noises.
These foxes can easily be scared away by making loud noises such as yelling or blowing whistles, dousing them with water houses or squirt guns or throwing objects such as tennis balls toward them.
You can use certain smells to deter foxes, they are reported to dislike the smell of chilli peppers and garlic so try infusing in boiling water and spraying around your garden as a fox repellent.
White vinegar contains a lot of acetic acid which carries a particularly strong and potent smell. Foxes hate the smell because it messes with their sensitive olfactory glands. You can mix up a water and white vinegar solution and spay your bins and property with it although, this will need to be reapplied.
Instead of chucking them in the food recycling bin, your used teabags are a 'genuinely effective way of deterring foxes from your garden', Calum Maddock, a gardening expert from Homehow, explains.
The strong scent from human male urine (and only male urine) masks a male fox's pungent scent, and can often force them out. But you can buy urea-based products that do the same job (and won't upset your cat). The best can be expensive, so ask at a garden centre, or seek advice from the National Fox Welfare Society.
Add lights to your garden
'They will often get spooked and run away if any sudden lighting appears. ' You could invest in some good garden lighting ideas. But, there is an alternative option that is more likely to startle foxes – a motion-activated light.
The most common control method is baiting, which involves laying poison bait designed to target foxes. Other control methods available include Canid Pest Ejectors, as well as ground shooting, trapping, and fencing.
While there's a chance it was just passing through, you're likely to see foxes return time and time again if: There's a water source such as a pond, fountain, swimming pool, puddles or a pet's water bowl. There's a food source such as bins, pet food or you're feeding other wildlife such as birds or hedgehogs.
Fox Predators: Wolves and Coyotes
Coyotes are naturally the greatest enemy to foxes even though they belong to the same group. These two Canidae family members fight whenever they come in close range with each other. Amusingly, coyotes kill foxes to depopulate them with a primary target to preserve food for themselves.
Scent-based Deterrents
Another scent-based deterrent is citrus peelings, such as orange or lemon peels. Foxes do not like the smell of citrus, so placing these peelings around your garden can effectively repel them.
Using natural ingredients like chilli peppers, garlic and capsaicin will keep the foxes away. Try boiling the chilli pepper and garlic with some water, then mix it in a blender. Spray this mixture anywhere in your garden that you don't want foxes to go near.
He explained that gardeners can use lemon juice, boiled water infused with chopped garlic or chilli peppers to deter foxes. However, it's important to know that these methods should be used with caution, in order to prevent harm to animals.
To stop foxes pooing in gardens, make your garden as clear and tidy as possible. Foxes like overgrown areas as they provide shelter and places to hide. As well as cutting back plants, also tidy away objects that foxes find interesting, like old shoes and gardening gloves.
Noise also works to deter the pests as they prefer quiet, solitary spaces. Try hanging windchimes or placing motion-sensor scarers that deploy a loud noise once movement is detected. For more information on DIY deterrents and the signs of foxes, visit our article How to Get Rid of Foxes.
Yes - In addition to the fox deterrence characteristics of Nite Guard Solar the red flashing light located near an entry door or driveway can give the impression that a security system is installed there.
Something you can use to deter foxes are sensor triggered security lights. These animals are easily spooked, and don't like bright lights, so a sudden onslaught of bright light, triggered by their movement can prove very effective.
Plants like lemon balm, lavender and rosemary can be planted around the perimeter of the garden to create an unpleasant smell that foxes don't like.
An adult fox can pass through a hole 4" (10cm) square and can scale a 6ft (2m) fence or wall with ease. It is extremely difficult to stop foxes passing through your garden.
Foxes will eat whatever you leave for them, just keep in mind that other animals may get to the food first so try to avoid onions, garlic, chocolate, and the other foods you wouldn't give a dog.
Citrus peels and smells will deter foxes.
This method is beneficial because it serves as a fertilizer for your plants and will repel other critters, including insects.
Moth balls are a common home remedy to deter fox, but there is no scientific evidence that they work. Some people believe that the strong smell of moth balls repels fox, but there is no guarantee that this will work.
Foxes, on the other hand, do eat lemons - and apples and peaches and many other fruits too.