ARE visiting cats scaring the birds away from your feeders and birdbaths? There are things you can do to deter them, say experts.
In the run-up to Big Garden Birdwatch (rspb.org.uk), where people are asked to record species for an hour between January 28-30 and send their findings to the RSPB, it might be time to put some deterrents in place to give you the best chance of spotting birds in your garden.
The RSPB says cats are unlikely to have a major impact on bird populations, because they tend to go for weak or sickly birds which would have died anyway.
But if you don’t want your cat delivering a feathered gift to your back door, there are ways to deter it, says conservationist, ornithologist and cat owner Dan Rouse, author of How To Attract Birds To Your Garden (DK, £16.99).
Here are some top tips from Rouse and Helen Moffat of the RSPB.
Use a collar with double bells: “If my cat is playing in the hedges the birds know that he’s coming, so it would give them time to hide,” says Rouse.
Fill bird feeders when the cat isn’t around: “Feed the birds outside of…
