Any bird feeders here?

[MrTom]

When I butcher my deer, I have a roaster that I use for rendering the deer fat I save handy. All of the body and internal fat goes into this pot as meat free as possible. When I finish with the lopping and chopping, I put the roaster in the oven at 325 degrees for 4 hours. The roaster then comes out and the solids get stuffed into plastic 1 pound coffee jugs and topped off with some of the liquified fat and allowed to cool completely then the cover goes on until I am ready to use it. I have a wire cage suet feeder that is round and a perfect size for the block of suet in the coffee jugs. Woodpeckers and Chickadees love pecking at these blocks and one will last about two months.

The roaster full of the liquid fat gets two jars of cheap chunky peanut butter stirred into it. It takes a while for the fat to cool enough to keep the peanut pieces in the peanut butter suspended in the fat but I have it fairly well timed now and will actually add a pound of sunflower hearts to the mixture to give the birds a little extra. As the fat begins to thicken and the solids suspend, I pour some of it into suet cake trays saved from store bought cakes and whatever is left is poured into cool-whip containers and gets used for stuffing 2" holes drilled in a 4" diameter birch log that hangs by a screw eye. The log is another woodpecker and Chickadee magnet, the cakes attract everything.

Where the collection of suet feeder is in the yard, I also have three feeder that are filled with sunflower hearts and sunflower seed mixed 50/50. Chickadees, 2 kinds of nuthatches, gold and house finches and of course woodpeckers all swarm to these seed feeders.

Along our driveway on the other side of the house I have a couple feeders that get generic seed and helps to keep the sparrows out of the good stuff.

I've tried hanging the suet as it comes off the carcass of the deer but the birds seem to be iffy on it. Render it, add some seeds and flavor and wow, do they ever like it. Anybody here do anything similar with their deer fat?

 

[MTY]

That's dedication!

 

[1874sharpsshooter]

I feed pheasant and grouse lead pellets thats about it

 

[deermanok]

When we lived in Connecticut, we got beef fat from the butcher shop and made suet cakes for our winter birds. We had some of those suet cages that we used.
Out here in Oklahoma, I have just a few simple bird feeders, loaded up with sunflower seeds.

 

[11th Corps]

Not as ambitious as the OP. I feed the birds store bought feed in the winter. I have purchased suet cakes, but they generally do not get eaten by birds or squirrels unless the feeder is empty of seed.
I buy oiled sunflower seed. It seems to attract the most Cardinals and Blue Jays with an occasional Oriole as well.

 

[sheriffjohn]

I dump my deer carcasses at my 60 yard steel target. Eagles, buzzards, coyotes, possums and a zillion tweety birds feast 'til only bones are left. Dogs drag chunks into the yard where chickens and more tweety birds do the same. Suet cakes in a wire feeder nailed to a burr oak work well, as do "Scratch Grains" (chicken type) in feeders.

Left over scratch grains on the ground attract mice. Tom cats catch mice. Life is good.

 

[Squeeze]

there is a huge lilac bush in my backyard I hang those suet cages in winter. One will usually last about 2 weeks Squirrels end up with most. Funny part is, you can easily tell the usual culprits, as there is always a few unnaturally fat squirrels about. ( I really try not to feed or attract squirrels, But I'm in town, and usual preferred control methods aren't allowed)

 

[Widude]

I used to put out the more ‘original’ suit & fat from deer, now it’s mostly the cakes from the store. I usually give the deer away now days. I don’t go all out with the birds, just black oil sunflower seeds & suit. I also maintain various bird houses for spring & summer.

As an aside, in my mind my ‘good luck’ sign while out deer hunting is the sound of the Nuthatch. When I hear them near I get ready for the big buck to stroll by. I don’t remember when it started, or if it amounts to a hill of beans. That’s my routine & Im sticking to it.