DEAR JOAN: I’ve had success with a pretend useless crow previously, not so with this single chook. I don’t know if it’s a he or her, however there doesn’t look like any others flying round with it.
I first noticed it making an attempt to chew off the ceramic chook on the facet of my chook watering plate. I put out the useless crow, however there was no distinction. It sat proper subsequent to the pretend crow on the dish, nonetheless making an attempt to chew off the ceramic chook.
I attempted eliminating the dish, and after every week I put out the useless crow once more. It appeared to work, however just for every week.
It doesn’t seem to have had mother and father to show it what’s actual and what’s not, what’s to be feared and what’s not. I simply don’t need it dunking bread in my chook water, or scaring off the smaller birds.
Do you’ve got any solutions?
— Debbie R., Richmond
DEAR DEBBIE: As a result of not everybody is aware of concerning the useless crow ruse, let me clarify. It entails hanging a pretend crow the other way up in a outstanding spot in your yard. The crows see it and depart the fast space.
The important thing, nevertheless, is how and when the pretend is positioned. It solely works when positioned at night time, below the quilt of darkness. It’s necessary that to the crows, it simply seems, with no connection to the human.
Your annoying crow may need seen you placing out the pretend one. In any case, I wouldn’t hand over on the decoy ploy. Strive getting a brand new pretend crow, and placing it out in a single day. As a substitute of simply laying it in place, grasp it the place the crow is certain to see it.
It’s not possible to banish only one chook, and in the event you strive concentrating on it — chasing it, spraying it with a hose, making loud noises to frighten it away — you would possibly trigger extra hurt to your self. Crows are extraordinarily clever they usually have the flexibility to recollect faces. Every time they see the one that harassed them, they’ve been recognized to assault them
The pretend crow isn’t at all times an enduring success. You may need to simply accept the crow’s messy nature till it decides to maneuver elsewhere. You may encourage a departure by taking within the water vessel, and taking down any feeding stations till it’s protected to place them out once more. Though crows can maintain grudges, this one appears to simply be doing what comes naturally.
DEAR JOAN: Within the morning the scrub jays name me with their shrill name and I put out some peanuts. They then screech at me from the magnolia tree to go inside to allow them to get the peanuts.
These days, there was one with a hoarse screech calling me. I put out the peanuts after which he screeches at me with the identical hoarse name to go away, however he doesn’t come and get the peanuts.
What’s with the hoarse screech and never choosing up the peanuts?
— Jack Svirsky, Hayward
DEAR JACK: Possibly he doesn’t like peanuts and is yelling at you to vary the menu.
