Feeding the Birds

Pink.

Hi,

I'm afraid I don't know the answer to the veggie suet but we have a couple of older threads that might help:

Food for wild birds

Feed The Birds Day


Pink

full-time-mum

iwanttosave wrote:

I think our local birds have black listed me

I put out 3 lots of nuts and stuff last week and stull no birdies

It can take several weeks or even months for birds to feel confident to use a new feeder.

If you make sure that it is fairly cat proof and not too many bushes for cat hiding underneath, you should eventually be rewarded.

Hang in there.

full-time-mum

Toxic_Lemon wrote:

I'm not sure about Veggie suet. Here's a link to the RSPB website about what is good for birds and it mentions vegetable 'oil' as a no-no. See what you think:

RSPB food for birds

Looks as though the real stuff is best but whether it is actually dangerous to use veggie suet, I don't know. Have sent them a question so will report back if and when I get the definitive answer!

full-time-mum

OK, this is what the RSPB say

A rough guide is not to put out food that you would not be prepared to eat yourself although dried fruit is usually safe for a few months after the use by date. Vegetable suet is acceptable as a substitute although not as nutritionally useful as animal fat-based products.

Personally, I've eaten fruit that is way older than this ...

Off to make seed cake now I know I can use the veggie suet.

allIcouldwishfor

I thought the whole point of dried fruit was to preserve it. Surely it doesn't go off? Mind you, I rarely pay any attention to sell by dates.

cathybird

hi full time mum, this is probably a silly question but when you say coconut you mean a real coconut not dried coconut don't you? Dried is a complete no-no for birds because it swells up in their stomachs so much, it can kill them

LizD_2

Perhaps it depends on the type of birds, but our garden is small with several bushes, which our birds seem to love. They'll fly out of the buddleia (sp), onto the seed feeder and back again. We get sparrows, blue and great tits, wood pigeons, collared doves, blackbirds, robins, greenfinches, chaffinches and thrushes. Oh, and we have loads of cats in the area!

cordial

The usual problem I have is keeping the squirrels at bay!

Fizog

Birds will feed somewhere they feel safe. Between a tree and a bush not close but enough for them to be confident to observe, swoop. eat and have an escape route. They approach my feeder everyday as if the FBI are watching their every move.

LizD_2

cordial wrote:

The usual problem I have is keeping the squirrels at bay!

Solved that with a squirrel proof feeder! We do leave peanuts for our Nutkins; I know they can be a pest, but I'd rather see them than not.