“Citronella - gets rid of bugs and foxes!” Citronella candles do smell quite nice though, so you could always burn them while you're outside to keep away the bugs anyway.
Citronella is a completely natural foxes deterrent.
Citronella is a popular ingredient in scent-based animal repellents due to its strong, off-putting smell, but without causing any harm to wildlife or plants. If foxes are fouling, spraying urine or digging in a particular area of your garden, then this is a very effective deterrent to get them to stop.
Citronella oil is gleaned from various species of lemongrass and has long been used to repel mosquitoes. It is an effective repellent because it confuses the sense of smell of the fox and causes it to be distracted from entering your garden.
Foxes despise strong and sour vinegar smell because it disturbs their olfactory glands and reduces their smell capabilities. Make a water solution of white vinegar and spray buildings and equipment on your property. Remember that rain removes traces of this solution, so you should reapply it occasionally.
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.
Foxes have an extremely strong sense of smell and are particularly sensitive to scents like peppermint oil, garlic and chilli powder. These smells can act as effective deterrents and will keep foxes away from your garden.
Citronella is a well-known mosquito repellent, but it can also be used to keep mice and rats away. These animals hate the lemon-like smell of citronella, so using it around your home can help to deter them. You can buy citronella candles or oils or plant citronella plants around your home.
Oil of citronella repels target pests rather than killing them. It works by masking scents that are attractive to insects. Thus, insects find it difficult to locate their target to feed. Oil of citronella may also work by masking odors attractive to animals.
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.
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.
The expert added: “So strong yet natural scents, such as eucalyptus or peppermint, act as a natural deterrent for the foxes, without causing any harm to them or your garden.” “Simply put, foxes are repelled by such strong scents.”
Citronella is toxic to pets
Citronella candles and oils are a popular mosquito repellent, but the citronella plant is toxic to pets. Use caution when using citronella products around your pet, and make sure they don't have access to any citronella plants in your garden.
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.
Use scents foxes hate
'Try infusing garlic and chilli peppers in piping hot water and then spray this liberally around your garden to deter foxes from sharing your space. ' Foxes also hate the smell of male fox pee, so spraying a product such as Predator Pee around the yard will put foxes off.
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.
Citing a study that found internal ingestion and intraperitoneal injection of methyl eugenol, a constituent compound found in citronella, to be “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen,” Health Canada took what many consider to be a drastic step to eliminate insect repellents from store shelves nationwide.
Citronella oil is traditionally used as an insect repellent, however, it's legal status has never been established in terms of efficacy and safety, and therefore it cannot legally be sold as a repellent.
Citronella products contain a compound that is very attractive to bears, so it's best not to burn citronella candles or use any citronella-based bug sprays. Surprisingly, bears have been known to take bites out of hot tub covers.
Citronella is considered toxic to dogs if ingested and has the potential to cause adverse skin reactions with contact. That being said, there are many products on the market that do contain citronella, such as flea collars, topical and environmental sprays, wipes, and shampoos.
Citronella repels spiders like it repels mosquitos. Citronella essential oils are found in the lemongrass plant, which can be grown in the area you wish to keep clear of spiders. Using a citronella essential oil spray can also keep spiders at bay indoors.
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.
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.