Feeding the Birds and the Squirrels

[76Highboy]

With spring coming the birds will be getting thick. Once the trees begin putting on their leaves, my house is totally surrounded and nothing else is visible. We enjoy the privacy in our back yard, and my wife and I feed the birds and squirrels. Right now, we have 2 doves, robin's, sparrows, squirrels, and many other critters. Iv'e never seen a racoon, but I'm sure they are around. I plan on building a batt box so we will begin having bats around to kill the flying bugs. We have about a half a dozen bird houses and a bird bath. When we go out to feed the birds, the doves are somewhat reluctant to leave as they have become used to our presence.

How many others feed the wild animals?

[gun runner]

We just feed hogs, deer, wild turkey and javelina where I live. I have my .22lr marlin 60 for any nuisance birds because they poop on our vehicles which pisses me off. Oh yeah we get plenty of racoons, jack rabbits, possum, that we feed we do not feed the skunks tho We wait till they pass on by. Every once in a while an armadillo or two.As far as rattlesnakes,copperheads,chicken snakes and bull snakes we have plenty of Peacock,Chickens, and domestic turkey and barn cats to take care of them If I see a bat I kill a bat. They are well known to carry rabies and I seen in the San Antonio Express News where 2 or so people got bit by bats that had the rabies virus I believe just last year. We killed a bat about 5 months ago and when my mother had it down on the ground you could hear its teeth clicking together It came by the window and stayed there, it was daylight so that was suspicious. We feed just about everything but except the skunks and bats like I mentioned
The worst are vampire bats. is that what your dealing with?

[gun runner]

Oh yeah we dont feed the armadillo's either. I shoot them and then pick them up with gloves to prevent from getting disease. I believe its leprecy*

I know the Lone Star Beer company wouldnt like what Im doing

[76Highboy]

We want to have the bats for killing the mosquitos and other bugs. I have been around bats all my life and we have never been bit by them. They are well aware of their surroundings and are excellent navigational wonders. One place where I camp, the bats are amazingly populated. However, you can walk anywhere at night and never be touched by them. They can come within inches of the top of your head and snatch a bug, but never touch you. They are very fascinating to me.

I did not know that armadillos carried a deadly disease.

[gun runner]

Yeah armadillos carry lepraucy* I dont know if its exactly deadly but its a skin disease that I believe can turn deadly over time.

[gun runner]

Another reason for the bats is not only some can carry rabies but I just cant bear the thought when Im on the porch at night drinking beer that a bat would fly behind me and bite the back of my neck

[agedhunter]

We place old bread 50yds out in the back yard. we get it from the bread store. Deer wonder through all day long. crows squirrels and birds feed off it too.
storm predicted i'll put extra out tonight. had a dozen deer come in about 4:30pm yesterday.

Just a few minute,s ago

[76Highboy]

Originally Posted by agedhunter

We place old bread 50yds out in the back yard. we get it from the bread store. Deer wonder through all day long. crows squirrels and birds feed off it too.
storm predicted i'll put extra out tonight. had a dozen deer come in about 4:30pm yesterday.

Nice.

[jstgsn]

We always feed the song birds, couple years ago we had a Red Breasted Grosbeak and an Indigo Bunting both on the same day. (had never seen them up close before.) Thought I had a black cat in the yard a couple months ago, so I went out to chase it away. Normally they're gone as soon as I open the back door. As I got closer I realized it had a white stripe down the middle of it's back. Decided to let him stay as long as he wanted. (later found him in the middle of the road - and just like that ole song, he was "stinkin to high heaven". Lately we've been getting huge flocks of red wings with some cow birds mixed in. The cow birds have a habit of passing away in our yard. Thank you super colibri.

[Bocc44]

I feed all the animals. Love to see the deer ,turkeys and the many different birds everyday.
I made a cheap feeder out of PVC pipe. Works great. I now have a Moultree feeder spreading corn twice a day. I feed them year round.

They say not to feed the deer, but I dont see a problem with it. I see the same deer year after year, so it aint killing them. We see a deer daily we have named Eileen, she only has 3 legs (pictured). She has been coming around for 5 years.

[76Highboy]

Those are all great pics.

[gun runner]

+1

[Bocc44]

in the Spring thru fall it's Humming Bird central. So cool. Dozens of them daily.

[76Highboy]

I have never done a hummingbird feeder. I never see tham around. If I put a hummingbird feeder out will they come to it?

[gun runner]

I love hummingbirds. I can imagine they have a short life span due to their heart beating so fast all the time when flying atleast of what I heard. I heard their wings can flap up to 60x a second hmm?

[76Highboy]

Originally Posted by gun runner

I love hummingbirds. I can imagine they have a short life span due to their heart beating so fast all the time when flying atleast of what I heard. I heard their wings can flap up to 60x a second hmm?

That's how mant words my wife can say per second too. Hmm, weird.

[Bocc44]

Originally Posted by 76Highboy

I have never done a hummingbird feeder. I never see tham around. If I put a hummingbird feeder out will they come to it?

I hear ya. I always thought of them as unicorns. I went to the flower shop, asked the lady what plant attracts hummingbirds, she says "this one" as she points to a plant. I couldn't beleive as I looked toward the plant, there was a humming bird feeding...in the store!!!

So, I started with plants, and one came every day. Very breifly. So, then I tried this cheap, junk looking feeder, and i couldn't beleive it. Within the first week I saw hundreds of them.

So, to answer your question..YES, absolutly. You may only get a few, or a few doezen. But, feed them, and they will come!!

The one with the red/green neck is male, the more plain ones are female.

[jstgsn]

One of the greatest things with humingbirds is the wars. They flit around after each other at lightening speed. It's great. Make sure you keep the feeder clean though. If it gets mold in the openings it can make the birds sick. Great fun.

[Conman]

We have a bit of everything here; squirrels, birds, coons, possums, deer, turkeys.

Every day I put out peanuts (Menards has them in 5 lb bags and I use about a bag per month) black sunflower seeds and bird seed.

If I'm late one of them - may be a bird and it may be a squirrel - will come up and hit the full length glass back door!

So far they haven't been a bother.

A few snap shots:

[mjp28]

GOTCHA' you little bugger!

[76Highboy]

Those are excellent pics. My wife is agreeance that we should do a Humming brid feeder for sure.

Keep the pics coming everybody. How about putting some pics of the biggest wild hog you can get.

[Zhurh]

People feed the birds even here in Alaska. The grouse get under the deep snow & spruce and survive well enough, they actually make tunnels in the deep snow.

I've been trying for years to feed the local owls & hawks this old cat the kids brought home, no joke it's a survivor and the kids went off to school.

We got red squirrels, you can't ever wipe them out and they get into cabins and cause damage. My old neighbor actually has squirrel dogs and he walks a couple miles every morning shooting them red squirrels, he can't even put a dent into them and they don't need fed.

I sometimes cut some birch down for the moose, they luv the tops.

[BETH]

nice pictures Bocc, i feed the birds my grey squirrel and my black squirrel have not seen the white one this year and for the past week i have had a fat ratcoon on my porch at night

[cpttango30]

i feed bird. I kill squirrels. they root up all my flowers to plant peanuts. so me squirrels and my 22 with colobri ammo take care of that.

[mjp28]

Originally Posted by cpttango30

i feed bird. I kill squirrels. they root up all my flowers to plant peanuts. so me squirrels and my 22 with colobri ammo take care of that.

Squirrels can be nasty little buggers!

Worse yet we're overrun with raccoons, tear up the feeders....a neighbor traps them every week. (wish I could shoot 'em but no way here now)