What’s an alternative to Renardine Fox Deterrent?

Renardine (coming from the French word for fox, Renard) was a very popular, and arguably very effective, chemical repellent used for deterring foxes and badgers.

Also known as also known as Fox Oil, Bone Oil or Dippel’s Oil,  Renardine was a bi-product of burning animal bones at very high temperatures.

It was very dark in colour and had an incredibly strong smell, similar to creosote, which acted as a deterrent to the likes of foxes, badgers and other pests.

This meant it was very popular with gardeners and farmers who commonly soaked a rag in it and ran it around the perimeter of a garden, field or other area they wished to protect from foxes.

Renardine was introduced in 1895 and is the first preparation put on the market for the purpose of protecting sitting game from foxes and vermin. Its efficacy lies in the fact that its odour effectually drowns all scent given off by birds sitting on nests…
– F.W. Millard, Game and Foxes (1906)

Renardine was banned in 2005

Despite its long and seemingly successful history, health and environmental concerns meant that Renardine was banned in the UK from 30th June 2005 under the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 and can no longer be used, sold, supplied or advertised.

A similar product called RenCoco (mulched coconut shells soaked in Renardine), popular for putting on flowerbeds to deter foxes from digging, was also banned under the Control Of Pesticides Regulations 1986.

The banning of Renardine and Rencoco was lamented by many who believed the products to be the best fox repellents on the market.

Indeed, the biggest UK manufacturer of Renardine, Roebuck Eyot, continued to manufacture it after the 2005 ban, leading to the company being prosecuted and ordered to pay fines and compensation of over £58,000 in 2007.

What is the best alternative to Renardine?

The main reason Renardine was banned was because it was considered bad for the environment, so there is no direct, like-for-like legal alternative available.

However, a fox’s sense of smell is very strong and important to it’s survival. This means that it is still possible to use scented deterrents effectively to deter foxes from your garden.

Scoot Fox Repellent

The best scent-based fox deterrent is ‘Scoot Fox Repellent’ which comes in powder form. Simply dilute it in water and spray the solution around your garden or areas you’ve seen the fox.

The reason Scoot is such a popular fox deterrent is because it mimics the smell of another predator and makes the fox think its territory is being taken over.

Foxes place high importance on the security of their territories, so if they think another animal is asserting its authority, they will eventually move somewhere else in order to avoid confrontation.

Now, that sounds straightforward in theory, but it’s important to be aware of the drawbacks too.

Scoot needs repeated applications

Foxes are persistent animals. They will not be deterred for long if you only spray Scoot around your garden once.

In order to change their behaviour and break the habit of them coming into your garden, you need to spray Scoot every couple of days for about 2 weeks.

This is important.

If you don’t spray regularly, the fox will simply consider the Scoot a one-off inconvenience and will be back to reclaim your garden from the other ‘predator’.

Additionally, Scoot is biodegradable and will fade over time and after heavy rainfall. So it’s important to keep renewing the scent to make sure it remains effective against the fox.

If the need to spray Scoot regularly doesn’t put you off then it’s a very good fox deterrent. Scoot is effective and very easy to use without harming your garden or your pets.

Are you too busy to use Scoot properly?

A common complaint about Scoot is not having enough time to worry about spraying a deterrent in the garden every other day.

The kids need picking up, you’re working late, the weather’s bad, you need to get to Lidl before it shuts, the dog hasn’t been walked yet…. The list goes on.

A fox doesn’t care about any of this. If it attempts to come into your garden and doesn’t detect any kind of deterrent, it will go about pooing, spraying and digging just as it normally does.

A better alternative for a busy person would be to install an automatic fox deterrent – something that can sit in your garden repelling foxes 24 hours a day regardless of whether you’re at home or not.

The FoxWatch Ultrasonic Deterrent

The FoxWatch is a small unit that uses high-pitched noises to keep foxes away from your garden.

Every time a fox crosses the motion sensor, a series of ultrasonic noises are blasted out from the FoxWatch. The noises can be considered the fox equivalent of fingernails being scratched down a blackboard.

Foxes don’t like the noise and over time they will start to stay away as they learn to associate your garden with something unpleasant.

The FoxWatch is very easy to set up and provides your garden with constant fox protection without you needing to do anything further. This makes it a very popular alternative to Scoot, especially for people with busy schedules.

“The fact that I can put it out into the garden and forget about it is great. Foxwatch has kept my back garden clear of foxes for nearly a year now. They did come back at one point and on closer examination I found the Foxwatch had been turned off by mistake. Once I put it back on the foxes stayed away.”
Mr Longman, Croydon

Easy to set up in under 5 minutes

Each FoxWatch comes with a 12 Volt mains adapter and mounting stake. Simply plug in the adapter and screw in the mounting stake to the bottom of the unit.

Place the FoxWatch in a flowerbed, lawn or anywhere you think is most suitable in your garden and switch the unit on. It’s now ready for action.

For best results, ensure that the motion sensor window on the front of the unit is not obscured by shrubbery or overhanging branches.

If you know where the fox enters your garden, then place the FoxWatch facing that spot. If the fox triggers the unit as soon as it tries to enter your garden, then the quicker it will learn to associate your garden with the noise and keep away.

A low maintenance deterrent

The FoxWatch is made in Britain and design to cope with the wet British climate. It can sit in your garden doing it’s job without any further input from you. You don’t need to remember to do anything as the FoxWatch will automatically deter the fox on your behalf.

The FoxWatch is available in our store priced at £69.95 including free delivery to all UK addresses. It comes with a 12 Volt mains adapter, mounting stake, operating instructions, 2 year manufacturer’s warranty and a 90 day money back guarantee.