How to feed birds fat balls

It shouldn't be too difficult when offering fat balls to wild birds, as people do it all the time in or out of bird feeders, made specifically to hold fat balls.

How to feed fat balls to birds in your yard must rely on a fat ball feeder as first, as it can be hung which will make it safer on birds, yet the suet balls can be protected by pests. With no feeder an option you can string fat balls up on a length of rope, or add a number of fat balls into a dish.

With most of us usually feeding our backyard birds a mix of seeds, peanuts or even dried mealworms in feeders, it really shouldn't be different with fat balls.

Fat ball bird feeder will do just the job, its a metal cage that will not only slow down nuisance birds taking over the suet balls, but it will prevent squirrels or raccoon's taking the balls away. Of course a fat ball feeder will also allow you to hang fat balls in complete safety.

I do recommend the type of fat ball bird feeder that is essentially a cylinder shape, wire mesh feeder with a capacity of 4 or 5 fat balls stacked on top of each other.

No investment on a brand new fat ball feeder is needed however, especially if you lack space in the yard for additional bird feeders.

Instead you can get the kids to help - with supervision on hygiene - to drill an hole through one or several fat balls, to actually hang them up outdoors on rope.

While bear in mind not all wild birds can access fat balls like this, such as American Robins who prefer a stabilized suet ball. On the plus, to hang suet balls on a length of rope can at least discourage nuisance birds... especially the bigger they get.

Keep in mind you need to attract birds to a suet feeder in a lit up area with the shade or too much cover avoided.

Same goes for suet balls hung or positioned anywhere around the yard outside of a fat ball feeder. Birds tend to feed in the sunshine or under a bright sky, thus only place fat balls where they are seen, and of course remain accessible at all times.

To cater to upside down feeding birds, like Chickadees or Woodpeckers, then consider an upside suet feeder that primarily holds fat balls in a facing down position only.

Fat balls go in fat ball feeder

No doubt about it, to accommodate most common backyard bird feeder birds, fat balls must really go in a feeder.

That is even more prevalent to those who are expecting visits by squirrels or other nuisance animals; of which to hang fat balls in a feeder you can utilize a squirrel baffle on a pole or hung above feeders.

What you must realize about fat ball feeders - the long cage type feeders made to stack up to five fat balls at a time - are made precisely for all fat balls, thus they are built to be compatible with all fat balls made available to buy in-store or online.

So much so the fat balls will be pushed up against the edge of the fat ball bird feeder where a mix of wild bird who do use suet feeders can cling around the side to feed.

With perches not applying to any type of fat ball feeder, its imperative the feeder in question can at least accommodate most birds in your yard with plenty of space allowed.

To use a long fat ball bird feeder, you simply pop open or unscrew the lid on top to insert 4 to 5 fat balls at a time.

I don't believe you should use a fat ball feeder at full capacity as its likely fat balls can be wasted at various time of the year, when wild birds dietary requirements change.

String up on rope

If you don't want to feed suet to birds without a feeder at this time, then don't despair as I have the solution for you with no additional expense needed on your part.

Well, a dollar or so maybe on a roll of thick rope which would be needed to hang fat balls without a hunk of metal ruining the decor of your garden.

Metal being the fat ball feeder of course, thus to string fat balls up with a rope can be more freeing to you while restricting certain wild birds.

What hanging fat balls up on a length of string entails is at the very least requires you to drill a hole all the way through the center of each fat ball you intend to use: a power dill, an handheld drill or a way to carve through the somewhat soft fat ball center is needed.

Take one fat ball with the core drilled out through the center; then thread the length of rope through; tie a bulky knot to prevent the rope slotting back through; proceed to make a hoop on the opposite end, then hang.

What you will end up with is a single fat ball tied to a length of rope up to a foot or more long, where the fat ball is able to slide up and down the rope, but unable to come off at the bottom that its intended to stop on as it hangs.

Where you hang this fat ball tied to a rope can be anywhere it can be found by birds, thus in a lit up area but on a tree branch or the bird feeder pole is a good start.

On a slightly different note, fat balls hung up like this can make it incredibly difficult for Magpies or Starlings to eat your suet balls - as the precarious hanging style makes it hard to, thus it can be a welcoming bonus.

One fat ball hung on one per length of rope can provide you a way to attract birds to the suet balls when they're hung up around the yard; whereas just the one fat ball on a rope does risk going unnoticed.

Just the one fat ball on the rope can indeed extend to three or four fat balls stacked on top of each other on a longer length of rope... but only if you know they will be eaten before expiring.

Pile on in open tray

Essentially what is the best fat ball bird feeder to feed as many suet-eating wild birds as possible, is not quite a feeder but more of an open tray.

You could call it a bird feeder tray which is basically a metal wire dish to add a number of fat balls in at any one time. Birds will eventually perch around the rim - sometimes seen to walk over fat balls - with little risk of fat balls rolling.

Well, fat balls do risk rolling around on such a flat surface only a mesh base for water to drain can provide some kind of stabilization to rounded suet balls.

Pile as many fat balls as you like in a metal bird feeder tray, hung up on a pole or place balls in a dish anywhere else around the yard.

You must lay flat on the tray all fat balls, whereas to pile fat balls on top of each other does risk a collapse.

Fat balls can make a mess in bird feeders but less so in a tray, and when they do its easier to clean up.

In spite of that, fat balls sat on top of a mix of other bird feed like seeds or peanuts, will ensure little direct contact with the suet fat balls, that press against the metal surface.

What flavor will matter

How you can feed birds fat balls thus far certainly relies heavily on ways to present hanging fat balls to wild birds, though, have you thought about what type of fat balls must be offered.

What you may not of realized thus far is that fat balls come in all kinds of flavors, in a way to accommodate many wild birds specific dietary needs.

What is in fat balls is primarily beef fat of course to make up the suet ball; only then are a mix of popular bird feed added to attract different bird species to the fat balls.

Universal fat balls flavors are seeds, mealworms, fruits and nuts - with sometimes a mix of each are added - but you'd want to go far seed or mealworm flavor at first - or a mix of both together in fat balls to attract as many bird species in your yard.

Example wild birds attract to specific fat ball types will include mealworm-filled fat balls for American Robins or Bluebirds, with Finches liking seed fat balls - whereas Warblers won't mind a bit of seeds and mealworm fat balls.

Best possible way to feed birds fat balls of any flavor will always be in an open feeder, because where Finches or Warblers like to use feeders, Bluebirds or American Robins tend to avoid feeders if they can, including unstable fat ball feeders.

How to avoid feeding suet balls

Admittedly, it isn't easy to attract many birds to feed on a suet ball hung up on a length of rope, thus you must be mindful of some birds unable to cling to such a difficult object.

I do believe feeding wild birds' fat balls in a corresponding classic fat balls feeder - as oppose to a fat ball wreath feeder - still to be the best course of action.

Where you will go wrong is feeding birds fat balls made up with a mix of fruits for example, when most birds' diets have moved on to eating mostly insects in the wild, thus mealworm-filled fat balls will be needed.

Common songbirds who do eat our fat balls do tend to prioritize it more in winter, when their feeding behavior will turn to prioritizing fatty foods, like suet, peanuts and seeds.

How to feed fat balls to birds out of bird feeders will depend on elevated surfaces in nature, like a tree stump and on occasions, a tree branch.

A pile of fat balls are easier to find as opposite to a single fat ball blending in with the environment its sat on.

Fat balls hung up in tree can be eaten by tree dwelling wild birds whereas to hang fat balls on the bird feeder pole will ensure the suet is accessible to all birds.

Remember fat balls, like any type of bird feed left out in the elements, begin to decay in warm or even cold weather, thus you only have a short space of time for birds to eat the fat balls before it must be thrown out.

Feed wild birds few fat balls at a time until you get an idea on how many fat balls can be eaten in the short time it takes for them to expire.

Summarize

Make no mistake about it, fat ball bird feeders serve a purpose, by making fat balls highly accessible to as many bird species who come to your feeders.

Situating a fat ball feeder alongside feeders for seeds or peanuts - or an open dish full of dried mealworms - is a guarantee the fat ball feeder will be at least seen by every visiting bird coming to your feeders.

Isolating fat ball feeders is never a good idea whereas to share an hanging position on a branch or pole along with other feeders is the only way to present fat balls to birds.

When a fat ball feeder isn't available to you or indeed you refuse to use a feeder at all, due to environmental issues perhaps... then grab a string of rope in store.

Drill a hole through one or many fat balls with a power drill or do it by hand, then thread a length of string through it with a knot on the end. Bulky knot on the end will prevent the fat ball sliding down to the ground, as it will be probably hung on a pole or branch.

Certainly a technique open to Warblers or Finches whereas its be an effective way to keep nuisance, large birds like Crows, Starlings or Magpies accessing the fat balls.

Stack additional fat balls on top of the one if you like while the length of string can be used again - with an option to wash the string in a bucket of hot soapy water.

To allow as many wild birds to feed on your fat balls at a time, you'd want to pile them on an elevated surface around the yard. As well as putting a dish of fat balls on the ground to possibly accommodate ground feeding birds only.

Fat balls can be left out of any kind of feeder, including a bird feeder tray, to instead place fat balls within a natural environment like on a tree stump or visible branch.

Fat balls do have expiry dates remember thus its important to only use what you know will be eaten in a timely manner, before the fat balls begin to decay.

Share this article: