Bird Feeding in an Apartment

Review your lease and local ordinances to ensure that having a bird feeder outside your window is legal. Visit the county and city website to find a telephone number to call to verify having a bird feeder is within your rights.

Research birds at the Audubon Society. The National Audubon Society website provides information about what birds you can expect to see in your region, the ecosystems they thrive in and their favorite foods.

Pick the perfect place for your bird feeding sanctuary. Choose the terrace or balcony if you have one. If you are on the first floor and you don’t have a terrace, choose the front door.

Pick out a bird feeder appropriate for the type of birds you want to attract. Locate a bird feeder that matches the décor of your balcony furniture or your seating area in front of your front door.

Purchase a weight-sensitive perch feeder or invest in some wire caging to put around your feeder to deter pigeons and larger birds from hanging out in your feeder and scaring away smaller birds. Purchase birdseed, sunflower seeds, mixed seeds, nuts and corn, or suet and peanut butter.

Stock up on small fruits and berries. You can bend a wire hanger and load it with fruits like a fruit kabob. Hang it from the fire escape or a planter's hook in feeding area and this will attract birds that eat fruits instead of seeds, such as woodpeckers and mockingbirds.

Choose a location away from gusting winds and rains that will discourage birds from landing and keep from scattering birdseed all over the place.

Attach the suction cups from the window feeder to your window. Open and close the window to test the strength of the suction cups.

Hang the bird feeder as high as possible and out of reach of squirrels and raccoons if you are in a first floor apartment.

Hang a bird bath next to the feeder. If you don’t want to spend the money on a bird bath, you can put water in a bowl and set it on the balcony. Change the water every morning before you leave for work.

Decorate your balcony with brightly colored potted plants. Birds are drawn to plants. Add some plants that grow small berries to give them a sweet snack after the seedy meal.

Employ an electronic bird signal device that emits a deterrent signal just for pigeons. If it can’t be calibrated to specific species of birds, then the device will scare away other wild birds as well. Be aware of any noise problems this can cause for your neighbors.

Hang fake owls or hawks to scare away pigeons. Shop at home improvement and hardware stores. The Massachusetts Audubon Society advises using dense foliage or vegetation underneath or around the bird feeder to discourage pigeons as well.

Use beef fat (suet) only in the winter months to avoid the smell that it can create during hot summer months. Hang it in a plastic wrap or a wire net.

Clean the feeder area once a week to prevent salmonella and other diseases from growing in moldy wet seed and bird droppings. Use environmentally safe cleaning products and a brush with a handle to reach hard-to-reach places on the balcony.

Remove food and water if predators, such as hawks and stray cats, linger around for a few days. Once they have passed on, then you can put the feeders back out to attract the smaller birds again.