Bird table and bird feeder (anti predator)

3 Posts

Hi.
Can someone recommend me a bird table that's difficult for wildlife killing pests like cats to get on? Unfortunately the bird table we have is only 1 metre off ground level which isn't tall enough as there is a particularly athletic vicious domestic cat (absolutely horrible things) in the area, so we want to try and make it a bit more difficult for the killer to attack the birds.
Additionally a bird feeder that's difficult for a squirrel to use (we don't really have so much of an issue with the squirrel other than it seems to hog all the bird feed leaving very little left).
Thanking all the bird lovers in advance.
0
Latest MSE News and Guides
Replies
My cat is as useful as a chocolate teapot when it comes to chasing anything in the garden so I don't have your problem with her going up on the bird table. As davesnave says it's cats instinct to chase things (apart from mine lol) so it's a case of living with it.
Have you thought about either using a pole feeder or raising your table up by a larger amount?
The only normal people you know are the ones you don’t know very well
I can think of ways of squirrel proofing a bird table but it would have to be really high to discourage a cat. Wouldn’t a bird feeding station well away from a jumping off point and with a squirrel baffle be better?
My MSE way was to enclose an ordinary feeder from the £1 shop inside two old hanging baskets joined to make a globe shape, held together with clothes pegs so easy to refill. I place a plant pot saucer inside the baskets under the feeder to catch the bits. If the bits fall on the ground they encourage ground feeding birds which a cat can catch.
I haven't seen a squirrel on it yet but the jackdaws have found them and are real acrobats. Working as a team one bites the fat ball in half and the others pick up the pieces and fly off.
The only normal people you know are the ones you don’t know very well