John Bryant of the Fox Project was right about leaving rabbits unsupervised in the garden. Rabbits are particularly vulnerable because:

1. They cannot escape predators by going into burrows as they would do in the wild.

2. In the garden they are in an enclosed area.

3. They are domesticated and therefore not as alert and aware of potential dangers.

The responsible owner will supervise or at least be present in the garden. If people are genuinely concerned about the freedom of the rabbit then I would advise against keeping one as a pet in the first place, unless it is a rabbit re-homed for welfare reasons.

We do not have to chain up dogs and cats because, unlike the rabbit, they are not prey to predators that can include dogs, cats and foxes.

It is suggested that all foxes should be culled on the grounds of health and hygiene! In fact foxes can assist in this regard by keeping down the numbers of rats and mice.

DEFRA do not consider the fox a pest and there are a number of laws protecting the welfare of the fox.

The Fox Project has helped thousands of people deter foxes humanely. Killing foxes instead would simply lead to other foxes quickly moving into the area in question and would mean the fox population would breed a higher number of cubs to compensate.

Name and address supplied