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How to stop mice from bird feeders? I am not really sure why I can`t get this. Please impress me with your answer. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Q. Is it cruel to have bird feeders in your garden,...? if you have a cat?
we have a lovely garden that backs onto a nature reserve. for years we have had several bird feeders in our garden and it is such a pleasure to watch them being used over the winter (we especially attract blue tits).
over the summer we acquired a cat. he hasn't shown much interest in birds (yet?) but he has brought in the odd shrew and mouse.
the birds are returning to the garden and i've filled up the feeders again.
is it cruel to do this? if you own a cat would you advise against feeding birds?
"I have a large garden and many bird feeders and i have noticed that..."
I love cats and I love birds.
My cats never attempt to hassle my pet birds, because from an early age they learn these birds are family.
I have a large garden and many bird feeders and I have noticed that the massacres of wild birds happen mainly in spring, and occassionally in early summer.
In winter, the birds are still watched with excited little chatterings, but not hunted.
I don't think it has to do with the weather but more to do with seasons.
Spring means juvenile birds with no experience of putting basic survival instincts into practise.
These are easy targets for a playful cat.
My cats are well fed and don't really need to supplement their diet, but it is in their nature to play and hunt.
In summer, there is often a second clutch of baby birds, especially if irresponsible parents lost all of their spring brood.
Easy targets for cats again.
I am not heartless, and like most humans I like to interfere with nature, so I have rescued many birds with success. Buried more than I have rescued and disposed of remains after a cat has managed to eat one.
It is astonishing to see the self-sacrifice and determination and courage a parent bird has when trying to rescue their baby. Often works too!
Somebody said that if a bird allows itself itself to get caught, it isn't fit to live. Extreme statement, but somehow I think it is true, toned down.
Young ones, sick ones or very old ones are usually the prey. A bird in its prime, fit and "world-wise" survives.
Add to that all the babies that fall out of nests and die; all the juveniles that don't know how to avoid being hit by a car, other predators such as crows, rats etc.
Where I live, more deaths are caused by being hit by a car than by cats.
I think you need to weigh it all up in perspective.
If you don't feed the birds, many, perhaps most, will die from cold and starvation.
Yes, maybe, they will go to your neighbour's feeder, but birds are very territorial, and if their territory has been your garden so far, the stress of fighting for new rights elsewhere will weaken them and hurt them more than the threat of your new cat. So, I say feed them! At first it will be a new threat but they will adjust. Until they do, a few might die because your cat gets them (and a few more may die for reasons totally unrelated to you and your cat.)
It is not cruel. It is kind.
Take sensible precautions about siting the feeders and, yes, at first, a bell on the cat's collar might work (though cats are really clever, and once they realise the bell-thing, they will learn to move in such a way as to stop it sounding!)
If your cat gets a few birds, you might find the situation is the same as mine - juveniles in spring and early summer. Young birds with no savvy. Else birds that would die soon anyway, the old and ill.
It doesn't endager the species because the weak would die anyway, by hook or by crook!
It is a natural cull, a survival of the fittest.
P.S. My cats only catch sparrows. Sparrows are really numerous where I live. Agile little birds can out-wit a cat 90% of the time, too fast, too acrobactic. If the cat does get one of those, you can safely assume it's time was up anyhow and it died with its "boots on".
Keep feeding!
Edit. I am not American. I suppose it does depend where you live.
Q. Are there bird feeders made that do not scatter seed? i need to find a type of bird feeder that the birds cannot scatter any seeds, my landlord will allow me to put up bird feeders, but my old ones were attracting rats & mice, do they make any at all that the seeds cannot be scattered?
"And adapts to virtually all bird feeders..."
There is a solution - I purchased a seed hoop from YourBirdOasis.com (http://www.yourbirdoasis.com/ia5999.html). Here is the product description:
"Save money and your lawn with a Songbird Essentials Seed Hoop! Saves money by catching up to 90% of spilled seed! Protects lawn and garden from rotting seeds, weeds, and damage to grass. Keeps birds safe from ground predators and eliminates a food source for rodents. Is durable, lightweight and easy to attach, and adapts to virtually all bird feeders. Straps to birdfeeders via 6 cords each 36 inches in length. Has a wind guard which saves even more seed. Made of light weight exterior grade vinyl coated fiberglass mesh. The frame is of lightweight flexible tempered steel wire that can be twist folded and collapsed to 1/3 its expanded size for easy storage. The sleeve is made of exterior grade polyester. Hooks are corrosion resistant. Nylon cords adjust easily to virtually any feeder."
Q. How to keep outside country cats away from bird feeders.? i really enjoy feeding the birds, and watching them, but today one of the cats that hang out around our house, was walking away with a bird, in his mouth, the cats really don't belong to anyone, but the neighbor does feed them and i know i don't have any mice because of them.
what can i put out by the feeders to keep the cats way, from the feeders, because i just can't shoot the cats.
thanks, open to some new options
"Put the feeders in a place where the cats can't hide and pounce on them..."
I have the same problem, may be a big stuffed dog, will scare them away. The cats are only doing what is in their nature. put the feeders in a place where the cats can't hide and pounce on them. A place where the birds can see the cats before they can pounce. Most of the things that would scared a cat would scare the birds to.
Q. Bird feeder question about spilling and rat/mice?? i have lots of birds in the yard and want to feed them but when i put out a feeder, it spills and i get mice/rats that come around. (i live on a hill and so we have little field mice) but also sometimes a rat will come (gross). does anyone know of a feeder that will not spill over? something sturdy? thanks!
"Our local newspaper did an article on bird feeders and that's how i found..."
Our feeder attracted rats as well. We only feed the birds black oil sunflower seeds. Little did I know, it's the sunflower seed shells that were attracting the rats and not the seed itself. Our local newspaper did an article on bird feeders and that's how I found out it was the empty shells. The first sign of a rat, the rat traps go out during the night. The rats moved in underneath the garden shed in the yard. I wasn't about to wait around for them to find their way into the house. We would just put the traps up around the shed. If you see one then you can be sure that there are more that you don't see. We killed about 4 or 5. I currently use a wooden feeder that I purchased from Wal-Mart for $4.98. The birds will still dump the empty shells after they crack it to get to the inside. The most important thing is to clean up the empty shells under the feeder every few days or once a week. The first sign of rodents, put out the trap. Be sure to bring the traps in early so you don't trap your birds. Another thing that you may want to try is suet. Suet is beef fat that is often filled with seeds, cracked corn, and peices of fruit. The suet can be bought where ever you are buying your other bird food or any department store. It hangs in a cage feeder close to the trunk of the tree and is only a couple of dollars. The feeder can be found next to the suet in the store. Suet will attract woodpeckers and a lot of your regular birds will eat it too. I use suet along with sunflower seed. The best thing about the suet feeders is that there is virtually no mess on the ground at all. I hope this helps and I'm sorry it's so long. And my spell check is not working. Good Luck!!! :)
Q. What type of bird feeder should i use to keep dove food off the ground? i have been feeding mourning doves for a year and the local rats and mice have discovered the sunflower seeds and are coming around in larger and larger numbers. doves are ground feeders, but what can i do?
"Changing the type of feeder will likely not change the mouse..."
Changing the type of feeder will likely not change the mouse and rat problem because you will still have seeds that spill to the ground regardless of what type of feeder you use. If you just want to get the birds up off the ground you could try to use a large platform type feeder which is more or less like a square board with a rim all the way around it. the problem is that birds that are accustom to feeding on the ground will still go to the ground either at your house or someone else's. It is almost impossible to bribe a ground feeding bird into a behavior which is not natural to them.
A different option for bird feed would be to use a seed like hulled sunflower where there is less mess falling to the ground because every bit of the seed is eaten. That could help with the mess that is accumulating on the ground, attracting the rodents, but you will most likely notice that they are still hanging around. Quitting the feeding practice for a few months could cut the rodent population down (for awhile)also but don't stop feeding in months when birds have trouble finding food (such as winter)as you will be cutting off a food source that they have been depending on.
Q. Do wild mice like safflower seed? i have a mice issue and they're enjoying the sunflower seed from the bird feeder quite a bit. i know squirrels and chipmunks do not like safflower. if i switch to an all safflower feeder system, will that eliminate a food source for the mice?
"Mice will eat what ever they can get..."
NO!!! mice will eat what ever they can get, if you know where they are then put some ceder pet bedding down it drives them crazy and drives them off.
This answer closely relates to:
Q. How can i stop my cats bringing in birds and mice? ok.. so my cats are gorgeous, obidient little gems. they are 2 years old and sisters. soveliss , my little black panther never used to hunt, the only presents she used to bring me was food she'd found outside like old packs of bacon, half eaten sausage rolls, custard cream biscuits, burnt pieces of toast and bird feeders.. seriously!!! and titch never used to bother she'd just watch her sister. but 10 months ago i had a baby and obviously i can't give my girls the amount of attention i used to.
but the last two weeks we've had a mouse, or a bird brought in daily or rather nightly.. they don't eat it they just bring it into the bedroom and leave it there (once they've chucked it around a bit) but it's both of them!!!
i know cats are natural hunters but i'm at my wits end, they've never displayed this behavious before i'm worried i may be doing something wrong, or not giving them enough attention.
they have the same regime as they've always had regarding feeding. please help!
we don't have mice in our home.. they are outside as we live next to a field. i have never ever scolded my cats i don't believe in it, they loose trust in you if you hurt them, or scold them.
they have bells on hteir collars for this reason /cry!
it's more of a hygeine thing really i don't want the mites or whatever from the birds and mice in my house because of having such a young child, and with her crawling now i would hate for her to get hold of whatever they bring in before i do!! lol
They are bringing you presents, maybe they are a little pushed out so they are behaving this way to gain your attention again, they will settle into a routine again but it will take time, there is nothing else you can do as they are born hunters.
Q. How will riddex affect my feeder mice? i just got the riddex plus. i have feeder mice and i feel...well they are already food so its not fair to make them suffer...so if anyone knows please tell me because the only thing i can think to do is keep them caged outside to make it a little easier but if they wont be affected to much i would rather keep them inside(lots of big birds of prey outside lol)
"Will not bother your feeder mice..."
Broken Hearted; Rest assured that your " Riddex Plus " will not bother your feeder mice.
Nor will it bother any other 'pests' in your home.
Plug in pest control is a placebo.
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