Another fox attack & another massacre

Demise of doves signals all out war..

DOVES settling in to their new home

A FEW weeks back I took possession of around 15 pure white doves from a farmer near the beautiful County Durham village of Wolsingham after my Indian fantails were picked off one by one by a pair of Peregrine Falcons nesting nearby. This time round would be better as hubby had set up a purpose-built apiary in which to allow the birds to acclimatise to their surroundings and become a bit more hawk savvy than their unfortunate predecessors. After placing the doves inside I then went off to get some corn and returned just in time to see the last bird escape through a hole and fly off! A few days later the bemused and amused farmer called me to say the birds had returned to him.

 We secure the aviary and set off again to collect the birds and this time, without an escape route, they seemed to settle in to their new home very quickly. We had placed a wooden dovecot inside the apiary and they seemed more than content to fly around safely without being targetted by any hawks or falcons in the area.

DIRTY DIGGER: Fox burrowed

under the gate entrance

 All was going well and we decided to move the wooden dovecots plus birds nearer to our home since they would have adjusted to their surroundings and lost their homing instincts to head for Wolsingham on release. Having spotted and heard the familiar screech of the occasional hawk, I was also hoping the birds would have become more cautious when birds of prey were out and about. Sadly, the next day, there was no such release for what greeted hubby was a load of white feathers, dove carcasses and blood ... the fox (almost certainly the same one who had burrowed under the henpen) had returned.  I could kick myself. I really never thought the fox would go for the doves since they were all perched high up in the apiary and some were already nesting in the dovecots.

EMPTY: But the remaining 

feathers tell the tale

 As for the fox if it wasn't already war it is now. I will not rest until he is finished off. Quite why the birds had not remained inside their dovecots or aloft on the rooftop rafters is beyond me, but the fox appears to have had a feeding frenzy taking out all but one of the occupants. The sole survivor, pictured above is now named Hope as in 'hope in adversity'. He or she has been put in a small cage and is residing in the courtyard until I know what to do.

 Yes, I do feel responsible because I had underestimated the ability of the fox and while he was doing what predators do I am determined this was his last kill ... at my expense anyway.

 My man with a gun has spotted him several times but so far he's been too quick. However I am told he appears to already have an old leg injury which may be the reason he is even more wily and wary than normal.

 Some legal traps have been set but sooner or later the game will be up for the fox which has, over the last 20 months, taken out two peahens, more than 20 chickens, nine turkeys, a pair of guineau fowl, one white pheasant, three quail, a pair of golden pheasant and 14 doves.

 Keeping my birds locked up in a stable all day is not an option, apart from being impractical I don't think it is kind or humane.