Wildlife - Pet Care at a Glance

Although the animals and insects that comprise ‘wildlife’ are not pets, you can make your garden, backyard, or even a window ledge a prime spot for these visitors. Doing so also helps the planet by maintaining biodiversity.

The most noticeable visitors to your garden will be wild birds but, depending on the size of your garden and what you provide in the form of attractions, you may also get butterflies, squirrels, hedgehogs, frogs, newts and toads, all manner of humming, buzzing insects, swans and ducks and even foxes or badgers.

Birdsong

Watching wild birds flit around looking for food and singing their songs is delightful.

We tend to associate feeding wild birds with winter but they actually need feeding all year round; food shortages can happen at any time. If you provide them with food on a regular timetable the same birds will get used to visiting your spot. A strong metal bird feeder with numerous ports will attract many birds at one time.
Feeders can be hung outside your window too – you don’t need a garden to attract wild birds.

In Winter weather put out good quality food, twice a day, if possible. They need high fat foods at this time to maintain their fat reserves so they survive the bitter nights. Don’t let uneaten food gather round your bird feeders as poor hygiene can cause illness.

In Spring and Summer birds need high protein foods so buy black sunflower seeds, fruit and nut mixes, mealworms, waxworms and mixes for insectivorous birds. Avoid using dog or cat food as these attract predators.

Be aware that fat, bread and peanuts (unless in a suitable mesh) can be dangerous to nestling birds who may choke on these foods.

Birds need fresh water for drinking as well as bathing. A bird bath, no deeper than three inches at the centre and out of the reach of cats, is a fine addition. A fountain will attract a diverse selection of birds as they react to the sound of running water.

A bird nest box placed securely on a tree trunk will be an additional boon.

The Hungry Caterpillar

Certain insects are vital for different species of birds. Attract caterpillars for blackbirds and song thrushes and earthworms for tits and chaffinches. Caterpillars like fennel, parsley, dill, wild lilacs, wild plums and cherries, buckthorns and hollyhocks.

The Butterfly Effect

To attract adult butterflies plant flowers in sunny places and provide some rocks or stone walls which they perch on to soak up the morning sun. Plant a variety of nectar sources to encourage more butterflies to visit. Buddleias, cosmos, marigolds, sweet peas and sunflowers are ideal.

Pond Life

You can create a wildlife pond to attract visitors. It’s best not to have fish in this pond if you want to attract species such as newts (the fish will eat baby newts as soon as they hatch.)

Make sure your pond has shallow edges to allow frogs and other amphibians to get in and out of it.
Its overall depth should be between 2-3 ft. Place moist vegetation, such as a leafy mulch, at the edges of the pond. This provides amphibians with food, shelter and hibernation. Include pond plants such as water violets and marsh marigolds and keep the pond free of sludge, debris and dead algae with a good quality pond treatment.

A large pond may even attract swans and ducks. You can buy nutritious swan and duck food which floats on the surface of the water. This is a good alternative to bread which provides little in the way of nutrition.

Where the Wild Things Are

A hedgehog friendly garden should include evergreen shrubs to give them year round cover and protection. Also include flowers and bushes for Spring and Summer shelter.
Feed hedgehogs with a commercial food that blends dried fruit, nuts and nuggets that do not appeal to cats and dogs. You can also attract squirrels, badgers and foxes with a commercially prepared protein-based food that promotes dental health.

Put food out each evening in a quiet area of the garden along with a shallow dish of fresh water.

The ‘Unwanted’

One person’s unwanted visitor may be another’s delight but some common species that you may want to deter include rats, moles, squirrels, rabbits, deer and birds of prey and other birds – and other people’s cats.

You can buy plastic owl scarers which deter cats and some birds from vulnerable areas in your garden. You can humanely trap magpies rooks and jays in a special trap and there are similar traps for moles, rats and other rodents. You can find a wide array of repellents too.

Deer and rabbits will eat virtually every garden plant. Deer are great jumpers so you may need to install deer wire fencing at a height of around 8ft or 4-6ft fencing with a row of shrubs set back from the fence to deter jumping.

Rabbit wire fencing needs to be around 3ft high and buried in to the soil at least 18 inches deep as they are great diggers.

An ultrasonic cat repeller deters unwanted cats from your garden. These units release a high pitched sound when the beam is broken yet it is inaudible to humans.

Harmony

The main thing to consider when designing your outdoor space is to provide a balanced environment that attracts the animals, birds and insects that you want, while deterring those that you don’t. Once that is achieved, you will derive many hours of pleasure from watching the wildlife in your garden and from knowing that you’re providing a great habitat for a wide range of creatures.

DISCLAIMER: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained here it is for educational purposes only. The writer of this article and flynnthedog can not diagnose any physical, mental or behavioural condition in animals nor prescribe treatment. We urge you to consult your vet if you have any concerns about your pet.