On the occasions I've gone out and bought the 'fat balls' and placed them in it, inevitably they get a little bit pecked at, but not much. Pretty soon, they go moldy. It seems to me that you need to hang them out individually, unless you have birds which are particularly keen.
Now, I occasionally make 'fat cake' for our birds, and hang it in upside down yoghurt pots, etc. They do seem to like it. So I was struck by an idea. I got an empty kitchen roll tube and made up some mix (no real recipe, I'm afraid, seed/oats, peanuts crushed in the food processor, shredded cheese, little bit of suet, enough lard to make it harden okay...). I pressed it into the cardboard tube, really firmly so i got as much as I could inside. Then I wrapped it in cling film and put it in the fridge:
About 36 hours later, I removed it from the fridge and sliced it open with a knife.
Got my feeder, and bingo! Perfect fit.
They loved it. Great tits and blue tits ignoring both seed and peanut feeders and focusing on the 'fat tube'. 
The most recent photo shows it like this:
Although shortly afterwards it skewed, and Andy pronounced it 'structurally unsound!' Today it is in two halves, in the bottom of the feeder. Today:4/10, medium
12 comments:
You are oh so clever! Awesome!
That's so clever!!! Hee hee. Love Andy's comment though too. Ha ha!
Oh, that's perfect - good for you for thinking of that!
We have similar types of things here in the U.S., although I've rarely seen one in use (probably because I've been living in flats for much of my adult life).
Very niffty.. I have a similar feeder that holds smaller nuggets... when one or two nuggets get pulled out .. they all pour out. I'll have to give your idea a try. Thanks for sharing.
Have a blessed weekend.
Debbie
That is a great idea. I have been wanting to bring more birds into our yard. I will have to try it.
Blessings Always
Ingenious idea, and it looks like the birds are enjoying it an awful lot !
Besides admiring your clever idea, I really enjoy the way you use pictures in your posts. I'm inspired.
Since I visited your blog, can you visit mine?
A comment wouldn't go a miss either dear.
The update is that there is now none left. The birds are somewhat miffed as I've not got around to making a replacement yet.
Although the birds might seem a bit 'miffed', they will return soon enough if you put out some more food.
Very good blog !
Oh, I don't doubt it. Meanwhile the local male blackbird has taken to expecting raisins every time I walk out the door. Or he dangles on a thin branch outside the kitchen window, cranes his neck and stares at me until I oblige. He doesn't seem to mind it's a Tesco Value pack!!
That is soo cool! What a great and thoughtful idea!
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