Cleaning fowl feeders vital for spring
Published 3:30 pm Wednesday, March 20, 2024
- (Photo by Jan Meesus/Unsplash)
With heat climate and longer days on the way in which, many Kentuckians will begin sprucing up their yards and gardens, and the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) reminds you to incorporate cleansing your fowl feeders as a part of the challenge.
As spring migration will get in full spring, feeders across the yard present a good way to draw and look at migrating songbirds. However, it’s essential the feeders are cleaned frequently in order that they don’t unfold illness.
“Bird feeders are high contact areas where you have a lot of birds congregating around one shared food source,” stated Dr. Christine Casey, KDFWR wildlife veterinarian. “If one of the birds visiting a feeder is sick, it has the potential to spread disease to other birds at the feeder.”
To hold birds wholesome, KDFWR recommends:
- Clean feeders each two weeks. Discard old meals and particles and wash the feeder with dish cleaning soap and water. Thoroughly rinse earlier than soaking the feeder in an answer of 1 half bleach and 9 components water. Rinse totally and dry fully earlier than refilling.
- Rake up seed hulls and different waste beneath feeders. Moldy or spoiled meals could make birds in poor health.
- Properly retailer meals in a closed container to maintain meals contemporary and forestall pests.
- For birdbaths, clear the bathtub’s basin each one to 2 weeks by filling it with an answer of 1 half bleach and 9 components water. Cover the bathtub with a trash bag and let it soak for 15-20 minutes. Drain the bleach/water combination in a protected space. Rinse the bathtub totally and let it dry within the solar earlier than refilling.
When cleansing fowl feeders, observe good hygiene: put on disposable gloves, keep away from touching your face, and wash arms with cleaning soap and heat water for at the very least 20 seconds after dealing with feeders and birdbaths.
Sadly, if a number of deceased birds are found at feeders, report observations to Kentucky Fish and Wildlife by way of the web sick or dead bird reporting portal or by calling the company’s Information Center at 1-800-858-1549, from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (ET) weekdays, excluding holidays.
