General Chat

The rain is now melting the snow, but my regulars were sitting on the hedge waiting for their breakfast this morning.

Gentle nudge please

Thank you
xx

Woke to another covering of the white stuff, here in East Sussex ... still comming down

Have had visit from cock pheasant ... so restocked again lol

Now have my regulars ... Blackbirds, Robins, Pied Wagtails, pair of Chaffinches, BlueTits, Great Tits, Coal Tits, starlings, Hedge Sparrows & Nut Hatches.

JUST LOCKED UP FOR THE NIGHT 12;45
AND THE PARAKEETS IN THE TREES ARE VERY NOISEY

...have to admit I don't feed the birds - with 3 cats, that's asking for trouble.
However, I don't prune my plants until spring, and have been watching a male blue tit and a male bullfinch feeding on my Leycesteria Formosa (Himalayan Honeysuckle/ Pheasant Berry/ Flowering Nutmeg/ Granny's Curls) for the past 3 weeks at about 3pm every day when I've been here.
It's a wee bit overgrown so all the berries are about 8 ft up- and it's too thin for the cats to climb!

Gentle nudge please.

Thank you
xx

hi all , we give the birds a bread and fat sandwich every morning ,(2 slices plus fat ,chopped small )they love it ,also nuts ,seeds,fruit ect, iris

Cock Pheasant was standing on the table this morning ... well at least I did not have to clear any leftovers from yesterday lol

Stocked it up with nuts & nearly the last seeds ... will try to get some more, but the local shop has sold out & oh has banned me from getting into my little Fiesta.

Cannot get to work as road is all steep hills ... they are only opening from 9.30 - 12 today ... hopefully road will be gritted today, but as only a B road I might be asking too much lol

Had a Bullfinch visit my garden this morning, what a beautiful picture it made with its bright colouring against the snow

........my birds must be finding food elsewhere.......put a load of fresh bread out at lunchtime, and its still there....

Chopped apple and an out-of-date cake are on their menu this afternoon, in the back garden for the ground feeding birds. Plenty of fat balls are hanging in the container on the nearby tree.
I do sometimes put scraps out the front, but the seagulls descend like something out of the film The Birds, and I'm not keen to encourage them.

Gwyn

The strange things is that our birds eat most things on that list but I can't get them to eat rice.

Well I've done my bit. weetbix,crackers. toast,porridge oats, a few bits of cooked tattie and a few soaked cat biscuits.

Had to clear 5 inches of snow off of the table this morning before I could restock it. All the time I was doing it a cock blackbird sat on the hedge 'swearing at me'. Obviously he thought I was being a bit slow lol

I was looking because i've got some oats and i thought i would have to soak them but it tells me not to....so i won't.

I am glad mashed potato is mentioned as I have some left over tonight.That will be off down the garden tomorrow now.

Just found this

http://www.rspbliverpool.org.uk/helpingfood.htm

Mesh bags – a warning
Peanuts and fat balls are regularly sold in nylon mesh bags. Never put out any food in mesh bags. These may trap birds’ feet and even cause broken or torn off feet and legs. Birds with a barbed tongue, eg woodpeckers, can become trapped by their beaks.


Bread: has very low nutritional content and is essentially a filler. All types of bread are acceptable to birds, but ideally only if it is just one component in a varied diet. Soaked bread is more easily ingested than stale dry bread, and brown bread is better than white. During the breeding season, crumble the bread into tiny pieces so that it is only eaten by the adult birds, and never put out an amount that will last more than one hour. Dry chunks of bread will choke baby birds.

Dog and Cat food: Meaty tinned dog and cat food can be very useful for birds, and form an acceptable substitute to earthworms during the warm, dry part of the summer when worms are beyond the birds' reach. Blackbirds readily take dog food, and even feed it to their chicks.

Peanuts: are rich in fats and are of major importance to tit and greenfinch flocks during the winter and cold spring months. Never place out loose nuts during the breeding season. Salted peanuts should never be used for bird food.

Rice and cereals: Cooked rice, brown or white (without salt added) is beneficial and readily accepted by all species during severe winter weather. Porridge oats must never be cooked, since this makes them glutinous and can harden around a bird's beak. Uncooked porridge oats are readily taken by a number of bird species. Any breakfast cereal is acceptable, put out small quantities at a time. It is best offered dry, with a supply of drinking water nearby, since it quickly turns into pulp once wetted.

Coconut: Give fresh coconut only, in the shell. Rinse out any residues of the sweet coconut water from the middle of the coconut before hanging it out to prevent the build-up of black mildew. Desiccated coconut should never be used as it may swell once inside a bird and cause death


The RSPB recommends five kitchen scraps:
Uncooked porridge oats
Cake crumbs
Potatoes – baked, roast and even mashed
Grated cheese
Windfall, soft or over-ripe fruits

These contain fats and sugars which help birds with their one aim: surviving the winter in order to breed next spring.


+ lots of other good advice

I think i'll go and get some cat/dog food

I feed the birds at school with the left over sarnies etc they have tuna,ham, potted meat, cheese plus sausage rolls ,buns and I also feed wild bird seed and nuts. The Christmas hols have cost me a fortune as no sarnies. I have fed webox dog meat and bread liberaly spread with marg plus the seed and nuts. Originally it was for the birds that live and nest in the school grounds,it is an old school with all types of trees and shrubs (a pain in Autumn ). However, the word has got out, I blame the one black headed gull who happend to see me. The next day it was waiting on the roof and as I aproached it called she's here and about a dozen more came from nowhere. Now they are welcome to some but my poor crows who nest here don't get a look in, the smaller birds do because I feed them on an old horse chestnut tree stump which is surrounded by more trees. I am going to have to take out a mortgage in the Feb break if they keep spreading the news. (I may not be able to answer anyone as I am only allowed 1 go at the reply button). Elaine.

I would love to put food out for the birds in my garden but I have a cat. He sits on the table looking through the window for them.

Two of my neighbours put food out so I have to look on the fences before I let him out.

I'll give them some cheese and some apple tomorrow then.