DISCLAIMER:I made a unilateral decision to give dog tablets wrapped in pastrami when I administer tablets to my dog. So far there haven’t been any ill effects.
Before attempting what I have done here you should consult your veterinary for advice. I take no responsibility for any harm caused to other animals by using this method. If you don’t like it don’t do it.
Introduction
Worming Tablet
If you have ever tried to give medicine to an animal you’ll appreciate how hard it can be to give dog tablets to a dog. Our dog Leo (a Border Collie) is required to take two worming tablets every three months. These are large as tablets go. Large enough to be shaped like a bone. My wife offered one to him. He sniffed it and walked away.
Why aren’t they supplied inside some meaty treat to encourage a dog to just woof them down?
I found an article in The Telegraph entitled, “Red squirrels are fighting back against the greys, experts claim.” It implies pine martens are saving the red squirrel as well as a grey squirrel trapping program. That was introduced to reduce the grey population and give the reds a chance of survival.
The red squirrel shown in the featured image was seen in Doxford, Northumberland.
Pine Martens To The Rescue
A Scottish Pine Marten
Apparently predatory pine martens are saving the red squirrel (see image above) as they are inclined to eat grey squirrels which they find nice and plump. The pine marten can catch the grey because they move slowly. This has been found in a study of red squirrels in Northern Ireland where the pine marten isn’t so rare as first thought.
Spring 2014 is on the way and I want to see goldfinches eating nyjer seed again. So after a wet winter I have cleaned my bird feeders. I’ve only had a Nyjer Seed feeder for two years and have kept it out during both winters. I might not do that next winter since the rain soaks into them through the feeding holes and ruins the Nyjer seeds below the top perches of the feeder. Some start to grow, the rest rot and go mouldy. Any goldfinches that come along can’t eat the seed and in the end it’s just wasted. Above the perches it stays dry so it can be salvaged. In my case I separated the good seed and made sure it was dry by spreading it out on a dustpan in the sunshine.
I completely dismantled my feeders for mixed seed and nyjer seed and washed all the parts in soapy water and then reassembled them when dry.
Fieldfare – Turdus pilaris – a member of the thrush family.
When Fieldfares visited Alvaston Derby I was ready with my camera.
On 22nd January 2013 Fieldfares visited Alvaston Derby where I saw them. First I saw them in my garden and later in my friend’s across the road in the same street. Fieldfares migrate to England in winter from northern Europe but this was my first sighting of them. It was a bad winter in early 2013 So I’m sure they came looking for food.
What a wonderful experience. I wish I had taken a photo. I looked out of my lounge window and a young goldfinch was resting on my patio within 0.5m of the window. It didn’t attempt to fly off so I went outside. I knelt down on the ground and got within 0.5m of it. It was trying to sleep with its head resting over its back. Its wings were neatly folded so I thought it looked OK and not damaged.
For some while I have been using a white rectangular butcher’s meat tray as a bird bath during freezing winter months and dry summer months when birds need access to fresh water. It has rested either on the ground, or on a garden seat, or on top of a large Victorian plant pot when the summer flowers have died back. The stark whiteness of the tray and the depth of water (10cm) have, I think, put birds off. The only ones I have seen using it have been occasional blackbirds. Also I feel they need it near the ground but not actually on it.
My New Bird Bath
So yesterday I realised I could make the bird bath, shown in the featured image, using a plant pot and the type of saucer that plant pots stand in. Probably any would do so long as the saucer holds water and fits neatly into the top of the plant pot which is used as a stand. The saucer I used has a half round lip which I suspect suites birds feet. I like the terracotta colour, it suits my garden.
So far I have seen dunnocks (hedge sparrows) and a starling drink from it. The depth of water is 4cm (1.5″), the internal diameter of my pot is 35.5cm (14″), the external diameter of my saucer is 38cm (15″) and the height of my pot is 30.5cm (12″).
All I have to do now is move it around the lawn every day or two so the grass doesn’t die off. I might seek a spot on the border. Also VERY IMPORTANT change the water and keep the saucer clean and keep breaking the ice in the winter. Animals and birds need clean water just as much as we do.
I just want you all to know how successful my bird bath has been this summer. It has been enjoyed by many of my garden visitors. blackbirds, sparrows, dunnocks, starlings have often been seen having a drink and a dip. They flutter their wings to splash water all over themselves. The blackbirds have sometimes spent several minutes in the water, hopped down onto the grass and then shaken their feathers to get the water off only to go back and do it all again. Young blackbirds have done it too.
I haven’t seen wood pigeons bathing but I have seen them drinking. They bend down and scoop the water into their beaks and then hold their heads up and stretch their necks to let it run down their gullet.
Over time it gets green stuff growing on the plastic. To clean it I spray it with HG Mould Spray (a strong bleach) and leave it for 15 minutes. This gets rid of anything nasty. I then give it a very thorough rinse with clean water before refilling it.
2nd Review – 23rd Jan 2013
Leo at 4½ years
I had a problem with my bird bath in the autumn (fall). I acquired a dog (border collie) and when we play outside he goes over to the bird bath to take a drink. This isn’t a problem for the birds but he (Leo) had a poorly tummy and we suspected he may have been drinking dirty water from this source even though I tried to keep it clean as per my previous posts. So with all the rainfall we’ve had in the UK I have put the bird bath away for winter. The birds can get water from my neighbour who has also set up bird feeders and a water supply. I will have to come up with a new scheme in the spring so watch this space.
3rd Review – 12th June 2017
The bird bath is still going strong although I noticed I am now using a different pot to support it. I’ve got it standing on a path so it doesn’t kill the grass.
I set it up in the dry weather of spring and summer. The birds love it but I still take it away in the winter months. We’ve had rain and not many frosts this winter so birds should have got water from a natural supply.
Wood Pigeon In The Bird Bath
Apart from drinking the water they can regularly be seen bathing. Sometimes birds will splash around in the middle for a while then go and sit on a nearby fence. While on the fence they fluff their feathers up and shake their wings. They often return to the bath for another dunking and go back to the fence again. I recently saw a magpie do this at least three times before leaving my garden.
There was plenty of Northumberland wildlife – Red Squirrel included – near Doxford Cottages this May (2012). I have seen the following within 6m of my living room: Brown Rat, Red Squirrel, male & female Great Spotted Woodpecker, male & female Chaffinch, male Robin, Blue tit, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Green-finch, Nuthatch, Wood Pigeon, Crow, Rook, Jackdaw, Sparrow, male & female Pheasant, male Blackbird.
All these creatures have been attracted by a peanut feeder, wild bird seed feeder and a squirrel feeding box. The birds, and brown rat, that can’t feed from the bird feeders (and those that can) have been attracted by the fallout from the feeders on the ground beneath.
