Attract More Birds To Your Feeder With Oats (& Why It Works)

It's true what they say: Variety is the spice of life. While you may already see plenty of birds around your home, adding new types of seeds and foods to your feeders can help attract a greater variety of them. Uncooked oats, for example, can help you attract more types of birds and foster the creation of a more bird-friendly garden or yard. 

Any type of bird that is "granivorous", or eats grain and seeds, will also like oats as well. Sparrows, blackbirds, finches, doves, and pigeons are just a few of the birds that love oats, and if you add some to your feeder, they'll be happy to indulge. That's good, because oats serve as a healthy carbohydrate source for birds. Since these carbs are slow-release, they'll provide birds with warmth and energy for a significant period of time after they're done eating, so when colder times of the year cycle around, this is the perfect wintertime snack for them. 

In addition to providing carbs, oats also contain a good amount of fat and protein along with vitamins and minerals. This includes zinc, magnesium, and B vitamins. While you'll still want to provide these feathered creatures with other sources of food as well, adding oats to the mix can help improve their nutrition and can be one piece of a well-balanced diet.

There are a few different ways to give oats to birds. The simplest way is to provide oats — that is, with no fancy method and no cooking. Simply add them to a ground feeding tray, place some on a bird table, or scatter them around the yard. If you add them directly to the ground, be sure to keep them consolidated and pick up any that remain later on, because you don't want to attract any other critters that also enjoy them. While bird tables and ground feeders work best when feeding oats to birds, you can also add oats to normal bird feeders if you prefer, in case you really want to just stick with your one special bird feeder that doubles as chic outdoor decor. 

As an alternative to feeding oats to birds with no seasoning or prep, another option is to add them to "fat balls." To make these, you'll need to bring lard, suet, or fat to room temperature and combine it with other ingredients that birds like. In addition to oats, you may want to include bird seed, unsalted peanuts, or other popular bird foods. Mold the combined ingredients into balls with your hands, and then let them cool in your fridge for a night. Once they've cooled, place the balls on bird feeders or elsewhere in your yard. You can also hang them up in a tree by adding a string to each ball while making them.

While many birds will enjoy eating oats, it's essential that you give them the right kind. The main thing to remember is that you should only feed birds uncooked oats. Rolled, steel-cut, pinhead, jumbo, and other types of porridge oats all work fine, but don't use any that have been cooked. Also, never give birds oats that are in packages containing sugar. 

It's also important that you don't go overboard when feeding oats to these small animals, even if you're using uncooked oats. They don't need a big helping to experience the nutritional benefits, and providing them with large portions can cause them to overeat, which defeats the purpose.

While we're at it, please note that you should not feed oats to birds wet. They can only have dry oats. Both oats that are wet and those that have been cooked can make them choke, so it's very unsafe for the birds. To make it worse, wet oats will harden inside or outside a bird's beak as the oats begin to dry, which can hurt them. So if you are planning to just sprinkle the dry oats around, don't leave any on (or near) your home outdoor water features.