So, my advice would be that caution is always preferable.
Foxes aren’t as much of a threat to your herd as, say, coyotes or wolves, but they do nonetheless pose a significant risk.
There are many steps you can take to ensure the safety of your goats against foxes, though, so let’s look into this.
Do foxes kill goats?
Yes, is the simple answer, although there are a lot of caveats to this.
For the most part, even the largest fox would have a tough time bringing down an average-sized, adult goat.
They are large and heavy animals, and if they are horned, a single glancing blow could be deadly for a small fox.
So, foxes won’t generally want to attack fully grown goats.
That said, they will not shy away from attempting to run off with a young kid.
This is the typical strategy of most prey animals, anyway—attack the weakest members of the herd.
In terms of your goats on your property, the same rules essentially apply.
Foxes generally won’t bother trying to kill a fully grown, adult goat, but they will go for any kids you have on the property.
I should also stress that, in some circumstances, goats have been known to try their luck even with fully grown sheep and cows.
So, you should always take the utmost care and protection in your goat’s enclosure to ensure they are safe.
Are goats able to defend against a fox attack?
Can goats defend against foxes?
In most cases, a goat’s instincts will drive it to run away rather than to stand and fight.
This is just the sort of animal they are.
That said, if they are cornered, they won’t simply give up.
Foxes are typically going to be smaller than the average goat, and so the goat already stands a good chance of being able to defend itself.
If it is a bulky male with horns, then it has a good chance of seriously injuring an attacking fox.
In any case, you really shouldn’t rely on this happening.
Goats can and will defend themselves, but foxes are instinctive hunters and could easily deal a deadly blow to a goat.
So, to give your goats the best chance, you need to make sure you defend them yourself.
Let’s look into how to do that.
How to protect my goats against foxes
There are a few ways you can protect your goats against foxes, and with these methods combined, you should have no problem with foxes even coming near your property.
The first thing to do is to make sure everything is kept clean, and that the foxes aren’t being attracted to your homestead by the smell of garbage or animal droppings.
Secondly, fencing is necessary.
Foxes are known to burrow under fences, too, so it’s great if you can plant the fence a foot or two down, as well.
Electrified fences are also a good option.
LED motion sensor lighting will keep pretty much anything away at night, too—or at least it will help to do so.
The best step you can take to defend your goats against foxes, and indeed any predator, really, is to keep guard dogs.
A pair is usually best, as foxes would not go near somewhere being defended by two dogs.
These dogs will have a strong instinct to protect your goats, and will keep the foxes away in the first place.
As long as you take these steps, you’ll have no problem with foxes on your property.
Related – Best Fencing For Goats
Do foxes eat wild goats?
In the wild, foxes aren’t very likely to attack goats.
They would only really do so when there were kids to be had.
As I said, foxes are relatively small animals, and they typically prefer small mammals like rats and mice.
This is much more manageable for them to hunt.
But they are also opportunists, and wild goats exposed in the wild would have little protection against a wily fox swooping in at night to snatch a kid.
But it’s still not very likely.
Foxes are deeply problematic for homesteaders in general, but when it comes to goats, they really shouldn’t be much of a problem.
As long as you take the right steps to protect your goats, foxes shouldn’t ever come near your property in the first place.
Even if they do, they have no small task in taking down a full-grown goat, or even a kid that has its herd defending it. but you should always exercise the utmost caution.