Outdoors bird feeder

[Koteburo]

I love sparrows. Everywhere I've lived there are sparrows from Mexico to England, to Canada there's always our friends the cute, small, delicate and at the same time tough sparrows and I love them for that. I grew up hearing and seeing them.
Anyways I setup a feeder to help them through the winter that btw came early.
It's one of those gazebo style for small birds (sparrow size) but they won't come

I just did it yesterday though. I know they're very cautious so they might take their time to come. It's hanging from a tree branch. I checked the seeds online and the mix is good for sparrows too.
Any tips to let them know they can come over and have a snack here ?
My cats don't go there, they're indoors and our neighbor's cat is indoors too.
Heck not even the squirrels have come to take a look

[hazelrunpack]

Patience. It takes birds a while to locate new food sources and often times they keep an eye on a new feeder for a while before trusting it enough to come to it. Have you seen birds in your area? If you have, chances are they'll be coming soon. What kinds of seed are in the mix?

[Barkingdog]

Is there a lot of activity where the feeder is ,I know the birds will keep away from my neighbor bird feeder if there is too much going around.

[Koteburo]

It's a mix of White Proso Millet, jumbo stripped sunflower, canary grass seeds, oat groats, seaflower seeds, flax seeds, canola seeds

And no, not much activity. It's in the front yard however not many people coming in an out all the time.

There are birds in my area (lots) but always close to other bushes or trees, not really on the trees of our lawn. Lots of squirrels who I tend to every now and then leave little gifts during winter for them aka peanuts (I don't do it always because I don't want them to become dependent of me... Not good for the little furry guys)

Anyways I guess I'll wait and see if those cute little guys decide to come here.

[Barkingdog]

Maybe the birds can see your cats in the windows and that made them uneasy, just a thought. I bet when it get colder and less food to eat you'll plenty of birds using your feeder.

[Koteburo]

Originally Posted by Barkingdog

Maybe the birds can see your cats in the windows and that made them uneasy, just a thought. I bet when it get colder and less food to eat you'll plenty of birds using your feeder.

That's a possibility. And they're so cautious so yeah.
Nothing but wait now if it's when there's less food good in the end I'm just trying to give them a hand during the harsh winter... Aww those cuties heh

[hazelrunpack]

We have the best luck with BOSS (black oil sunflower seed) so you might want to get a small bag and add that into your mix. We don't use mixes at all unless I happen to win a contest or take advantage of a giveaway that involves seed. (Yeah, I don't go after money prizes! I go after the precious seed prizes! ) We just offer BOSS, thistle, suet and now freeze-dried or roasted meal worms.

I suspect, though, that the main delay for you is just that they have to find and get used to your feeders. If you see birds in the bushes but not at the feeders, you might want to move your feeder a little closer to the bushes. Birds feel more comfortable if there is cover within a few yards or meters. Keep the feeders at least 10 feet (~3 m) away, though, or squirrels can leap off the bushes to your feeders...and they eat like little piggies!

As for cats in the windows putting them off--we have our feeders just outside the fence (about 10 feet). The dogs sometimes line up at the fence and stare out at the activity under the feeders--both squirrel and bird traffic--and they're totally ignored by the wildlife. They learn pretty quickly just how far the dogs are likely to come, and I suspect that they'll get used to the sight of cats at the windows, too.

[Barkingdog]

I bet when it get colder and less food to eat you'll plenty of birds using your feeder.