A Cautionary Tale and a Call for Advice

This past Spring, the boys and I went out and bought something I have wanted for many years: bird feeders. I have many friends who have bird feeders in their yards and once I began looking around I noticed there were quite a lot of them in our neighborhood. I must admit, I liked the idea of bird feeders for two reasons. One: I liked the way they looked hanging in people's yards. They make the homes they occupy seem homey and cute. I know that sounds stupid and superficial but its the truth. I liked the curb appeal. Primarily, however, I believed the bird feeders were an easy way to observe nature close up. Seamus is such a nature boy. He loves being outside exploring his surroudings. I knew he was going to love them. Finn isnt an outdoorsy kid, but I had the feeling he might like them too.

Matt hung two bird feeders on the tree in our front yard and from our front window you can see them perfectly. It didnt take long for the feeders to work their magic. The birds came in droves. There are certain times of the day where the feeders are particularly active: in the morning and in the late afternoon. When the kids were in school last Spring and the house was quiet, I would regularly sit back and watch birds for minutes on end. Its hard to explain how or why I enjoyed spying on them. I just did. I felt close to nature in those moments. I felt calm and relaxed; centered and unworried. I really looked forward to the quiet time alone, in my house, watching the birds.

One day last month, I was up earlier than Matt and the kids and randomly decided to look out on the bird feeders. The morning was still cool from the night. It was probably in between 6:30 and 7 am. To my surprise the bird feeders were full. There were multiple birds feeding on top of the feeders and dozens more below on the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, something caught my attention. Among the birds on the ground was a rabbit and he too was feeding on the fallen seed. I was sooo excited by this! I have seen many rabbits in our yard at night, but I was stunned to see one feeding side by side with the birds. I didnt even know rabbits liked seed! I sat there by the window for many minutes watching the scene play out. It seemed remarkable to me. Before long, a squirrel darted from the side of our house. It ran directly and frantically to the seed under the birdfeeders, paused for a half a second while it gathered the food, then ran back to where he began. The squirrel did this several times while I was watching and all the while the rabbit and the birds continued eating unfazed. I didnt even know there were squirrels in our yard!

I was feeling absolutely delighted at this point. A rabbit, a squirrel and some birds in my front yard. Wow! I decided to get my camera out and take some pictures. I was surprised and marveled by this menagerie occurring before my own eyes. I needed to document it for the boys. They'd never believe me otherwise. I live in a Southern Californian city of roughly 90,000 people. There are lots of cars and concrete in these parts. There is very little open space and yet I had this mini habitat forming in my front yard. It was so cool!

And then it happened. In a split second, I went from zen like euphoria to total disgust. Out from under our front porch another furry animal joined the group: a rat. A big, mangy looking, f****** rat. It took everything in me not to scream. I hate rats - who doesnt? I impulsively leaned over to hit the window, therefore disbanding the whole affair, but that nasty rat was in and out before my fist hit the glass. I felt sick. It still makes me wince to think about it.

For about a week afterward, I didnt replenish the seed in the feeders. I needed some time to digest not only the fact that there were rats living in my house, but that I may have brought them here with the bird feeders. How could something so good bring about something so bad? Is the pleasure of watching the birds worth the risk of rodents living in close proximity? Im not sure what to do. Does anyone have experience with this?

I never thought Id say it, but thank God for our cat, Omalley. Even with a bad hip, Im pretty sure he wont let any small animal in this house. At least, I pray he wont.