Help prevent disease:
To help minimize the risk of disease transmission keep your feeders clean. This is an important part of bird feeding, not only will it keep your birds healthy but it also keeps your feeders looking nice and lasting longer. Here are some tips to help keep your birds healthy.
- Once a month let the birds empty the feeder as far as they can. Shake out any remaining seeds. Wash in a 50/50 solution of hot water and white vinegar. (some say to use a 10% bleach solution) Rinse thoroughly and refill when completely dry. Then once to twice a year (spring and fall) remove all the hardware and clean thoroughly. We carry a variety of different size brushes to make this job easy.
- Throw out any wet or moldy food and disinfect any containers or scoops used to handle it. If you see the seed in the feeder is not being eaten, check to see if it has become moldy or wet from rain. You should store seed in a sealed airtight container in a cool, dry place. We carry the Woodlink seed storage containers with a pour spout and handle.
- Rake, shovel or shop vac seed debris and droppings from under your feeders on a regular basis to prevent the growth of mold and bacteria. We have several sizes of seed trays or our seed hoop that can be attached under a feeder to catch loose seed. Never feed directly on the ground. We have ground feeders that allow ground birds (doves, cardinals, jays) to eat healthy. They have removable screens that make cleaning a breeze.
- Discourage overcrowding at the feeders. If you only have one feeder, provide additional feeders and different kinds of feeders designed for different kinds of birds. If you have several feeders, you can space them apart.