A fox in a hen house got way more than it bargained for when a group of killer chickens turned the tables on their traditional foe and pecked it to death.

• Students at an agricultural school in Brittany, France found the dead fox.
• They believe the victim entered the henhouse at dusk and became trapped.
• The head of farming at Le Gros Chene said the hens are the prime suspects.

The tale of the fox in the chicken coop never ends well.

But for one unlucky fox, it took a rather unexpected twist – when it was pecked to death by a gang of chickens.

The hen house was located at an agricultural school in France and the fox likely entered the coop at dusk last week and got trapped inside as light-controlled hatch doors close when the sun goes down. The fox – thought to be around five or six months old

The body of the fox was discovered the following morning by students at Le Gros Chêne school in Brittany when making a routine check on the creatures.

Pascal Daniel, head of farming at Le Gros Chene school in Brittany, said the hens are now the prime suspects.

“There, in the corner, we found this dead fox,” Pascal Daniel, the head of farming at the school. “There was a herd instinct and they attacked him with their beaks.”

The organic farm said the chicken coop is open all day and the hens typically spend most of the day outdoors, except when they are laying eggs.