Today, I bought my first bird feeder, well its a suet cage with berry suet. I have a bunch of Cardinal birds around here. I am excited to see what the suet bring to feed.
I have fat balls stuffed with a variety of seeds for my birds. As soon as I put them out it's as though the birds were just waiting to pounce on them. I also put out peanuts and sunflower hearts. Every feeder has to be filled each day as the birds seem to be bringing all their friends and relatives with them.
I went out this morning to check the suet cage, and its gone, literally. The cage and all. I am pretty sure it was racoons, as the trash cans were knocked over and the trash rummaged through. Little thieves.
I feed the birds to watch all the different birds that drop by during the season. At first it was fun. Snapping pic and waiting so really interesting behaviours. Then the stellar jays moved in and bullied them all away. Then the mice, voles , ground squirrels what a nightmare. All the huge bags of seed is now stored away in metal containers. Now we are getting back to the natural travellers that go thru…without all the extra drama.
I never used to put out fats of any kind because of the starlings. Now there's a decline with them so don't get them anymore. So i make up my own bird cake that is similar to the suet balls but made with lard as the base. Can add anything to that and i put it in a margarine tub and hang it up but only in the autumn and winter when it's colder. Do get a squirrel and i had to get seed feeders with metal ports but it's nice seeing it.
@Pacnorwest I think its a sign. I shouldnt feed the birds. I really dont want more critters around, there are enough around here. I just got the suet from the store, same with the cage. Nothing fancy. I dont think I want to put in more money , just to have it stolen by raccoons. I did see this beautiful turquoise bright bird yesterday, it was not a blue jay though. It was quite small. I have no idea what kind of bird it was. I know nothing about birds.
Dear me, @Lillium_Lover, I'm so sorry you got your feeder stolen by raccoons. We feed the birds all year now due to lack of insects in the vicinity. The small ones get bullied a bit by Mrs. Woodpecker, and sometimes the magpies, crows or the gulls here for free food. Like Logan we have lots of starlings over in spring/summer, but they want cat food, not the seeds, nuts, or suet. Our metal cage feeders hang from a tree and keep the big birds from stealing entire balls of suet, or all the nuts. Whatever falls down is eaten by either small birds or the big ones checking out the fall-down menu of the day. I wouldn't be without any one of the birds, bully or not, maybe bar the hawks that help themselves to birds now and then. I do hope you find a solution so you can feed the birds.
LL, is there a dog groomer near you? If so, ask if you can have some of the fur from the dogs. Put it in a mesh bag, and hang it near your feeder. Raccoons are smart, and will avoid the scent of a predator (dog). We have three suet feeders that we put out in the fall, and two seed feeders that are out all year. The 'coons destroyed the platform feeder once, but after our cats moved in we haven't had any trouble. It isn't likely you can find a cat grooming establishment, but you might check with the local hospitals about people coming in with lots of cuts, bites, and scratches!
@Logan , I will see if he is out today, and try to get some pictures. I say he because its always the male birds that have all the bright colors and stand out from the females. (I learned that on Planet Earth, on the discovery channel) @Droopy, I had it hanging on a hook extension from a tree, yet it was not too secure. I suppose I should give it another try. I do like to watch them. @marlingardener, I did not know that about the coons and dog hair. Yeah, there are groomers around, but I do have 3 cats that like to be groomed. I could try cat hair too. Thank you for the tips!
