I have a quick story to share with you which further emphasizes the need to pay attention to your backyard I spoke of in my last post. It's a story about seeing a need and filling it and the feeling you can get doing that. This story involves one of my favorite feeder birds, the Carolina chickadee. A few years ago, before I ever had any Eastern Bluebirds in my backyard, I … [Read more...] about Just In Time Chickadee Housing
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Top 5 Benefits of Paying Attention
Paying Attention Is Good For All Concerned I can't tell you how many times I've heard birders talking about something that's happened to them that's caught them by surprise. I've had people tell me how they turned around and their feeders were getting mobbed by birds they didn't intend to feed. Or people like myself who found they had inadvertently made some birds sick. What … [Read more...] about Top 5 Benefits of Paying Attention
My Apology To My Goldfinches
Recently, I've had a bit of a heartbreak in my backyard. I need to tell you about it so you wont' make the same mistake. House Finch Eye Disease I've blogged before about the importance of paying attention to your feeders and yanking them down the minute you see any of your house finches with the eye disease they can get. I'd been pretty lucky this year that I had not seen … [Read more...] about My Apology To My Goldfinches
The Saddest Part Of Bird Feeding
It's As Natural As Birth Every birder dreads it. You're enjoying just sitting and watching your backyard friends feeding, playing and singing. And then, you spot it. Sitting on one of the arms of your feeder station: a little guy that seems quite unsure of what it's doing there. You continue to watch but they don't move. You walk out to the feeder and they make a feeble … [Read more...] about The Saddest Part Of Bird Feeding
5 Things You Should Be Feeding Wild Rabbits
As I mentioned back in an earlier post about feeding wild rabbits in 2011, I have wild rabbits in my backyard. They show their wonderful faces mostly during the spring and summer. This year has been a little different because I have seen at least one of them every now and then when I take my dog Maggie out before bed. Only about once or twice a week but still more than I've … [Read more...] about 5 Things You Should Be Feeding Wild Rabbits
Brome Birding Squirrel Buster Update
I thought I'd give you a quick update on my experience with the Brome Bird Care Squirrel Buster Peanut Plus feeder. Since I did my review a few months back, I've had some time to observe how well the feeder works in my backyard. I had originally tried to put the feeder on a pole system but was unsuccessful because the hardware it hung from actually made it hang too low. … [Read more...] about Brome Birding Squirrel Buster Update
Walmart To Start Handling Pennington Seed
Heard It Through The Grapevine I was in Walmart the other day and ran into John who worked in the garden center. I was looking for the Morning Song Squirrel and Critter Food and I was unable to find it. That's when John saw me and asked me what I was looking for. When I told him he said most definitely that they will not be carrying that any more. He said that Pennington will … [Read more...] about Walmart To Start Handling Pennington Seed
Connecting During The Holidays and Beyond
Connecting With Family This past weekend, my wife and I went to visit her family a few hours from here. It was really good to get out of the house and usher in the holiday season with this trip. The occasion was the annual Christmas party that they have. It was good to see people I normally do not throughout the year. Normally, everybody's got something going on and it's hard … [Read more...] about Connecting During The Holidays and Beyond