Tuesday, February 04, 2014

“WHAT? ANOTHER BIRDFEEDER?”

So said my neighbor as I carefully opened the huge box the UPS guy just delivered. DSC_0816“Well, the birds really like the old feeder where they can get in and eat safely, but you see, the squirrels pretty well demolished it a few years ago… and I just can’t get rid of it because the little guys love it so.” And they do. And the squirrels did. And they continue to demolish it every chance they get.

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One very ambitious and determined old squirrel decided several years ago to chew his way thru the bottom of my birdfeeder – the one where he could not reach far enough thru the cage to reach the food. The one with a tray that caught the seed and did not let it spill as easily as he would have liked.

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He must have broken his teeth crewing  enough for the drain holes to begin to rust enough for him to rip the metal a little more each time he worked on it. And he could chew on it by the hour! Eventually,  he had holes big enough that the seed just fell straight thru but he still wasn’t satisfied. I added a cut up pie plate to the feeder to catch the seed. That did not last long… not that I really expected it to last… but it has been interesting to watch him, or the next generation work on getting inside this cage. Yep, you read that right. This fellow wants to get INSIDE!

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And so, it was time to buy a new feeder… but the old one is so much fun!

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4 comments:

Caddie said...

I would never have dreamed squirrels would/could chew metal. Determined little critters, aren't they? Maybe you could buy a bag of chicken scratch-feed just for them. Much cheaper than any birdseed. I get 25# for about $10. My birds love the cracked corn but leave the oat,wheat or whatever the other seed is.

I've never had a squirrel at my feeders but chipmunks, yes.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Hope the squirrel or friends don't do the same with the new feeder. That was some determined critter.

troutbirder said...

Darn squirrels. Intelligence and persistence make them hard to beat...

Ginnie said...

That last picture is a riot!! It's a wonder the squirrel ever got out again. Good luck with the new feeder.