I don't have any inside pets so I feel that the birds are my pets. They know when it's time to be fed and during the cold months, when I get out of bed, they are sitting there waiting for me to come. I enjoy watching them from the kitchen window.
With the sleet, freezing rain, and a little topping of snow that we have just had here in the eastern part of the US, there have been so many birds at the feeders to watch.
In this photo, which I snapped from the kitchen window, of the butterfly bush located next to the bird feeders, I see 6 birds in the bush and one on the birdbath post. How many do you see?
Please do not use any type of netted bag(s) to feed the birds. I did this for a number of years without a problem. Then one time, I had to rescue a bird that had gotten its leg tangled in the netting. It was a horrible experience for the bird and me. If I wasn't home to help the bird, it would have died from stress, cold weather, or who knows what. Use the wire square holders.
Although many of us have fond memories of feeding bread to ducks and geese, or of Grandma saving bread for the backyard birds, it is now strongly discouraged. Not only are the nutrients unsuitable for a bird's nutrition, but moldy bread can cause a host of health concerns.
I feed wild birds all year, especially with the hard winter they've had, but it's hard to keep enough (not to mention costly) to keep buying replacement suet cakes. I do make them sometimes, but decided to try just spreading some peanut butter on some stale raisin bread I had, then placing it into one of the suet cake holders.
This is a page about using a clear bird feeder. Clear acrylic bird feeders that attach to the window allow you to really enjoy watching your feathered visitors closeup from inside your home.
Song birds definitely enjoy a suet cake in their feeder during the winter months. It is the perfect food for winter, as long as it doesn't get too wet or freeze.
There is an annual feast at my place. Sometimes, it continues for weeks. From inside my home, I know it has begun, yet again. I hear a cacophony of shrill shrieks and continuous 'caw caws'. I go outside to investigate the clamor.
This is a page about filling birdhouses and feeders. Filling your bird feeder without spilling seeds everywhere is easier if you use some simple tools, many of with you already have around the house.
I love feeding the wild birds during the cold months. I spend a lot of time standing at my kitchen window watching them.
Why do male yellow finches gorge for days? I have a male on the feeder gorging on seed and now. He's so fat he can't fly. This happened about 2 years ago as well and that finch was there for weeks until one day he was gone.
By Marianne
Can I feed leftover nonalcoholic fruitcake to wild birds in the yard?
By Judy
This is a seasonal tip that I used last week, and hope that it will be a while before I use it again. But when there is heavy snow falling for hours, the feed that I put out for the birds (and the squirrels) disappears under the snow.
