Spring cleaning homes for your feathered friends

It’s time to do a little housecleaning as birds travel back to their familiar Indiana homes. Here are some tips to prepare your bird houses for these springtime guests.

• Make sure there is a hole for venting hot air, another for draining rainwater and a panel that opens and closes for easy cleaning.
• Clean birdhouses at least once a year.
• Put houses near shrubs and bushes for bird safety zones.

• Leave nesting material outside the house and let birds find it themselves.
• Place houses 4-6 feet above the ground making it easier for babies to take their first flight.
• Avoid birdhouses with perches, which allow predators to get a foothold.
• Hang a metal house in a shady area so it doesn’t absorb sunlight.
• Face bird houses south to southeast for more sun.
  

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