A MAN has been left devastated after his seven hens were killed by foxes which got into his garden overnight.

Peter Prendergast has issued a warning to other people in the area to be wary following the incident.

Mr Prendergast of Hawthorn Close, Dinas Powys said his wife discovered the "slaughter" on Monday morning (February 13)

He said his wife had discovered the hens bodies and saw that there had been damage to the back of the pen where they kept them.

Some hens had been carried into a neighbour's garden.

The hens were reared by his wife since they were chicks and at one point were producing seven eggs a day for the family and neighbours

Now he wants to raise awareness about the potential danger of foxes in the area to other domesticated animals, as he knows others in the area who keep pigeons in their gardens.

He says that foxes are becoming more common in the suburban area and thinks they be attracted by rubbish.

Mr Prendergast said: "It was savagery and a massacre. It was a slaughter.

"My wife has seen a fox at the window in the night recently and our dog goes mad when he sees it."

Mr Prendergast said they suspect it is a family of foxes and that they must have been biting at the cage for some time to be able to get through.

They also recently installed a camera outside the front of their house and say they have seen the foxes in the garden.

"I am sad and upset. "The destruction is unbelievable," he said.

"People should be aware of what is going on. We love our animals and appreciate our environment.

"The hurt is bad as you form an emotional attachment to them."