I've always enjoyed having bird feeders around, but for the past few years I've just tended to toss stale bread and crusts onto the roof of my barn porch. It's almost flat and rather centrally located so that I can watch the birds from just about anywhere in the back part of my house (or the back yard, if that's where I am) and it's cheap. The sacks of wild bird seed have gotten to where they cost too much for my husband and I when combined with all of the domestic animal feeds we have to buy, so the bread just works out better for us. Besides, the squirrels just manage to rob and tear up all the feeders we've ever had around here. They can't do too much to the roof over the barn porch and the birds are happy enough.
I feed the birds and squirrels the old bread we have. My grandson eats about 4 loaves of bread a week so we have lots of bread left over and I don't want to throw it away. The squirrels and birds have gotten use to me feeding them so they come up on the deck looking for food.
I don't feed the birds outside my house since any leftover bread/grain could attract unwanted pests and vermin. I'd rather go to the nearby park to feed them instead.
When I was younger, we used to have tons of bird feeders around the house. We made some too! It was always fun to watch the different kinds of bird that would come around. That was like 10 years ago and in much milder weather. Where I am now, the seasons are pretty harsh and there isn't as many birds around, due to the weather and location. Except geese...there are SO many geese here. We don't feed the geese though; they pretty much eat up our lawn and leave their droppings everywhere, heh. I wish I could see more cardinals/robins/etc., but they're pretty rare unless I go looking for them. I still love feeding pigeons whenever we go to a city park though
When I was younger and there was bread that had gone out of date, my grandfather would always take the grandchildren - me included - out into the back garden and we'd spill the bread out, but not without breaking it up first, so that the birds could eat it easier. As I got a little older, I began to do it by myself, but I have not done it in years now. I am not entiely sure why we stopped to be honest.
I think that's where I got it, too. From my grandparents, I mean. My grandmother, especially, always made a point of breaking up at least a couple of slices of bread a day for the birds. I always save the last of the popcorn in a bag for them as well. I imagine you probably just kind of forgot about doing it somewhere along the way. Maybe now is the time to start doing it again. I don't know why, but it's an act that always makes me feel a little bit more grounded in something--I'm not even sure what the something is, but it feels good. Anyway, if there are any kids in your life I'm sure they would enjoy doing it as much as you did when you were little.
I remember always being concerned about feeding the birds out of date bread. Did you guys feed them bread that was still good?? I id not know that birds could eat popcorn. I am very careful with birds, because since finding out about the whole rice thing, and bubble gum thing, and how it can effect birds, I had been sticking to feeding them what I knew their stomachs could handle. Yeah, kids love to feed birds. I have three younger siblings. But their childhood has lacked the bird feeding portion, and I am not sure why. I will have to bring it up to my mother.
I live by the water and there is a section that has geese, ducks and swans all year round because people feed them and they just won't leave. I should put posters up of the dead ducks being chipped from the lake and thrown away because they froze in their sleep while waiting for their morning bread scraps.
I have always loved to feed birds little scraps of old bread. But in the place we now live, a squirrel has become quite comfortable on our patio. He sits on the railing, angrily sharpening and gnawing his teeth on the metal. Last winter, he got the grill, made himself comfy, ate and nibbled through all the wires, and got his wife to deliver her lot of babies in bottom cabinet. This year, he instead found his way into the toddler bike seat, and got her to lay her spawn there. We can't get rid of him, he is very certain that he owns the balcony. So I really wonder if I should never have dropped those first few pieces of bread out there, hoping to feed a few birds...
I used to, but right now, I'm on a fixed income and things like this just don't fit into my budget anymore. I can barely afford to feed myself, let alone the birds. I do miss having the birds in the yard, especially the hummingbirds. But, sometimes you have to make some tough decisions when things get tough and money gets tight.
It is so nice to see this discussion. I love birds and I do feed them. I am not on a farm, I live in a quiet city. There are several species of birds here. I feed them bread crumbs, rice cakes crumbs, and sunflower seeds. Some birds are more receptive and don't fly away when I put the food out, but others fly away. I just do it anyway, because I they come back for it, or some other birds discover it.
I'm definitely feeding the squirrels more than I've been feeding the birds. They are the Hamburglars of nature. The worst part is my neighbour has bird houses. No, that's not the issue. He has bird houses pointed toward my property so that when they decide to relieve themselves it's all over my fence & deck.
In my point of view feeding area for birds should be sheltered from snow and rain so that the feed isn't buried by snow and soaking wet. I like to feed birds in my garden and many birds are fond of peanuts so I choose mostly peanuts.
I usually do not feed the birds in my house as it creates a lot of mews and dirt. I usually feed then outside the gate or in the park. Birds are really cute but the mess they make is not.
I have several different feeders up at my house and do feed the birds. In the winter I make extra sure there is lots of feed for them especially in our cold, snowy Canadian winters. In the summer I also have a hummingbird feeder which has a few lovely little visitors. The feeder for the hummers, I make myself to save a bit of money.
So I ended up asking my mother why she does not allow my three younger siblings to feed the birds, and her response was that she did not want any more birds than necessary coming around, because then we'd have to deal with the mess that they leave behind in the way of excrement, so that is why.
Yeah, years ago one of my neighbours fed the birds. They stuck around year round and our entire street was a flipping disaster. We complained to the city, the people before us did and the people since us did, but nothing has ever happened. He continues to ruin the homes and vehicles in the area with all that bird poop to this day. It's not a smart thing to do unless you live in a secluded area away from other people's properties.
I don't feed the birds in my back yard but I often visit a nearby park to do so. It's just a nice excuse to get out for a walk when I haven't got anything else to do. Here are some tips on saving money on winter bird feeding. Log In
I don't feed birds because they are damn too noisy. Nonetheless since I let the poultry I keep roam free in the backyard, and sometimes have their feeders out, the birds help themselves to the food. Strange thing is at times I've seen the birds and chickens feeding side by side. Gives a whole new meaning to "birds of a feather flocking together."
Really?? How freaking annoying!!!! I did not know that it could get that bad. As a child, I do not remember us feeding the birds causing so much of a problem. But we did it in a mostly rural area, and so to move it into the street, where people have cars and stuff, I could imagine how irritating all of the noise and dried on bird poop could be.
