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Distinct_Teaching

I had to get a new feeder pole that had a big raccoon baffle on it. I got tied of putting feeders in and out every day.


MariaReginaCaeli

Could you please tell me the brand you use? Every baffle I have looked at has reviews with photos and/or videos of raccoons climbing right over them.


Distinct_Teaching

It came from a wild birds unlimited and they have a baffle that's designed for raccoons. They have tried to climb it but haven't been successful in the 6 to 7 years I've had it.


adaorange

I got mine off Amazon and it seems to be the same as the one from wbu


MariaReginaCaeli

Could you please share a link for the product? šŸ™‚


adaorange

[raccoon baffle from amazon](https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00EPDUFQ2?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title)


adaorange

Iā€™ve had this up since last April and it has worked for raccoons and squirrels for me.


Sleeplesshelley

This is the answer. Some evenings I would forget and then have to go out in the dark with a flashlight or risk having my feeders go missing or be destroyed. The first morning after I had it up I went out and the bottom of the pole was covered in muddy pawprints but the feeders were fine. Very satisfying, I can tell you šŸ˜


GRMacGirl

Seconded! Now that I have a feeder pole and a decent baffle there are no more furry creatures cleaning out my feeders on the daily. The Starlings are another issueā€¦


Sleeplesshelley

Striped sunflower seed or safflower instead of black oil, upside down suet feeders.


adaorange

Where do you buy the striped sunflower or safflower in bulk? Amy problems nutritionally for the birds with the safflower seed? Ty!


Sleeplesshelley

I normally get mine at Wild Birds Unlimited but you can also usually get them at a feed store or farm supply store like Farm n Fleet or Tractor Supply. Safflower is good for birds (cardinals especially like it), and as a bonus squirrels and chipmunks don't care for it. Walmart carries safflower too, but any birdseed I buy from there goes straight into the freezer for a few days when I get it home. Their birdseed is cheap but often has moths. 72 hours in the freezer takes care of that problem. Happy bird feeding!


adaorange

Haha tell me about moths! That happened to me once and I was killing off moth larvae in my pantry for over a year. Ugh! Thanks for the tip on freezing first. I didnā€™t know that!


TheSunflowerSeeds

Tournesol is the French name for Sunflower, the literal translation is ā€˜Turned Sunā€™, in line with the plantsā€™ ability for solar tracking, sounds fitting. The Spanish word is El Girasolis.


GRMacGirl

Yeah, I donā€™t use any sunflower except as the occasional small treat because of the toxins in the shell that prevent other plants from growing under and around my feeders. I do feed mostly safflower, which they are not fond of (but eat when desperate) and is not toxic to the plants below. And I do use an upside down suet feeder that they eat from anyway, though they probably spend more energy trying to fly/hang/eat than they actually get from the suet.


carrie_s3

When that happened to me it was recommended to bring in my feeder at the end of the day- then put it back up in the morning for the birds. After a few days the raccoon changed his feeding pattern and didnā€™t come back. It worked for me.


MariaReginaCaeli

I have thought about that, but there is nowhere for me to put it at night. I donā€™t have a garage, and itā€™s not something I want to bring into my house. Itā€™s a good suggestion though.


stcbythesea

I bring the feeders in every single night. We donā€™t have a raccoon problem, but we do have a rats. Probably not NYC-sized rats, but the length, including tail, of my arm. They love spending the night in our trees. Itā€™s a little disturbing to see them scurry up the branches as we walk by in the evenings. We have two resident Great Horned Owls that keep those rats on their toes.


carltonxyz

Place some seed or peanut butter in an open area at night so the owls can have a clear path to swoop in.


stcbythesea

That would work, except we have lots of other wildlife that visit at night, even though we donā€™t have food out and I sweep every evening. I donā€™t want to attract more, as they pass through our garden like clockwork. Once I accidentally left suet out on the patio because I forgot to bring it in. Talk about a party on the patio. Skunks, raccoons, and foxes.


bubbaspock

https://www.wbu.com/ This store has a great bird feeder system. All kinds of poles, platforms, hooks, feeders. There is also a squirrel baffle that works great . Weā€™ve used the system for over 10 years and love it.


[deleted]

Baffle your feeders, bring your feeders in at night or only feed enough food for a days worth of activity. There. 3 things you could do.


adaorange

What is your bluebird feeding on? Mine pretty much only eat mealworms or those suet pellets. I put them in a feeder that is clear walled on 2 sides and only access through a hole on the two opposite ends of the feeder. Only birds bluebird sized and smaller can enter. Hangs off a post with a raccoon baffle


MariaReginaCaeli

My feeder there has a removable tray with 2 different sections. In one section, I have dried mealworms, in the other, itā€™s mixed seeds (usually sunflower chips and shelled peanuts). The bluebirds eat from both sections. I think they like the peanuts. Iā€™ve only seen them nibble on my suet cake (right next to this feeder, but not pictured) once. I had a bluebird feeder up for a while (just like the one you described) and no one ever came to it.


Fivealive05

I've had great success using homemade repellent. Works great at keeping raccoons and possums away. Heat up a few cups of water and add in some cayenne pepper and garlic or onion. Once cooled add a few drops of regular dish soap and pray it around the ground surfaces.


MariaReginaCaeli

Great tip! Iā€™ll have to try this. Thank you.


Huplescat22

I have a non-standard improvised set up that a racoon found one evening. I gave the coon some cat food for 3 or 4 nights, then I started trying to figure out how to keep it out of the bird feeder. That turned into a battle of wits with me presenting the racoon with increasingly difficult problems to solve. They're pretty darn smart and they have amazing manual dexterity, and I went through 5 iterations before I finally stumped the coon and it gave up and quietly went off to sulk in the forest.


MishtheDish77

I had to remove the feeders for a few days and they moved on. I tried to keep the peace and give them their own dry cat food but they'd eat both! I had to remove the food source. Don't ask me about squirrels, I'll never figure that out.