BIRD SCHMIDT

Birdwatching in Flin Flon Creighton and Beyond

Meet the Schmidts

Dangers

Birding for Pets

Birding Hotspots

Our Life List

Birding Trip Reports

Our cats, Vinny and Theo, named after the Van Gogh brothers, love to watch birds as much as we do.

Vinny and Theo's Favorite Bird

The Black-capped Chickadee really excites the cats, and this bird will often look in the window at the cats and scold them

Vinny and Theo's Least Favorite Bird

The Common Raven causes the cats to duck when it flies by

Birding for Pets

Seriously! Birders who have pets should realize that their pets like watching birds as well. Good birders will arrange their house to suit the birding needs of their pets. Windows near trees serve as perfect places for pets to sit and watch chickadees visit the feeder.

A soft chair or a folded blanket on a table provide added comfort for those pets who like to nod off to sleep after a long morning of birdwatching.

Bird Safety

The yard itself should be designed to promote the safety of the birds, and not supply the pet with camouflage for a surprise attack on the bird feeder. Unfortunately, we speak from experience. The deck we so carefully planned proved to be a perfect place for neighborhood cats to sit and wait for the birds to arrive and we've witnessed a few successful hunts. For the sake of the birds we moved the bird feeder out of the striking range of cats.

The birder must take in to account that the bird will likely not come to the feeder if it can see the pet, so do the birds and the pets a favor by placing the pet's sitting area to the side of the window.

Also, make sure the feeder is not located in such a way that the reflection of trees and the feeder will cause the bird to fly into the window.

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Contact us if you have any other advice for birders with pets.

Last updated September 21, 2004