How do I get neighbors to stop feeding wild animals?

[aczlan]

Assuming you are from NH, here is a link to the NH Fish and Game Department deer feeding page Feeding Deer Harms their Health -- N.H. Fish and Game, I dont know if it will help but you never know.
One interesting factoid in there is that

Deer receive little nutritional value from a new food source for about two weeks of feeding, since stomach microorganisms must adjust to the diet change. Ironically, while well-intentioned people try to help the deer by feeding, they may be harming them due to the time and energy needed to convert the microorganisms.
Source: NH Fish and Game Department

I looked, but there does not seem to be any law against feeding deer in NH, other than that of common sense.

Aaron Z

 

[QRTRHRS]

BTW just think of all the ticks they bring with them.

Pick up a cane somewhere and start hobbling around like you are stiff all over with arthritus when you go outside. Start dropping hints about some kind of tick bite or whatever.

Fence in the garden with an overpowered system. Install an overabundance of motion detector lights. And if all else fails, paint your house some kind of hideous color.

 

[2manyrocks]

I suggest you be careful about this while you figure out if there is anything you can realistically do and what you might work out with your neighbors if there is something you can do.

I keep our cats in the house for their own safety, and I keep our dogs in a fenced area. The neighbor's dogs tore my Mother's cat to pieces in her yard years ago. She still has the same neighbors. Whatever decisions you make today you may have to live with for years to come.

We have deer. They feed themselves. They mind their business. We mind ours. So far we haven't needed any lawyers to tell the deer what to do.

 

[mikefromnh]

As far as the cat goes it is a half tame barn cat that I picked up from the local animal shelter, (she started out life as a feral stray) doesn't even have a name. I have given her a better life than she would have had, if the neighbor decides to shoot her, than it will be on there conscience. And I will have five more tomorrow afternoon.

The cat serves a purpose -- to control rodents -- I know some people don't like that but it is more of the natural way than poison and traps. I've heard her in several good fights at night and thought she was a goner -- but she's made it 4+ years Most of the neighbors like have her around. The kids have been trying to tame her, she has went from never being seen to occasionally letting herself be picked up. Yes she is up to date on her shots.

 

[mikefromnh]

Assuming you are from NH, here is a link to the NH Fish and Game Department deer feeding page Feeding Deer Harms their Health -- N.H. Fish and Game, I dont know if it will help but you never know.
One interesting factoid in there is that
I looked, but there does not seem to be any law against feeding deer in NH, other than that of common sense.

Aaron Z

No laws here.. This is the kind of stuff I have been politely telling them. I think I will have this brochure sent to them. To make matters worse they leave for Florida after Christmas and stop feeding the deer suddenly -- which leads to starvation for the deer. Deer need time to slowly adjust to changes in available forage.

 

[MossRoad]

The cat serves a purpose -- to control rodents --

But that doesn't justify you letting it run on other people's property that don't want it there, does it?

 

[Tig]

To make matters worse they leave for Florida after Christmas and stop feeding the deer suddenly -- which leads to starvation for the deer. Deer need time to slowly adjust to changes in available forage.

When my part time neighbours first bought they loved to feed certain critters. Birds and even seagulls. At the same time they were annoyed by the uninvited critters. At first it was little use talking to them. They would feed one critter and chase the others. After a while they got tired of seagulls crapping on everything and squawking at them every time they stepped out the door so they stopped throwing bread around. One day the neighbour asked me why the geese did not invade my yard at every opportunity. I showed him how much the geese love his bird feeders. The grass around them was nibbled down like a golf green. He expressed disbelief at the notion. Not long after that I noticed they were also battling mice and rats. They eventually stopped feeding the critters. Some people can't be told, they have to learn.
Speak of the devil, I have a gaggle of about 60 geese fertilizing yard as I type this.

 

[MossRoad]

When my part time neighbours first bought they loved to feed certain critters. Birds and even seagulls. At the same time they were annoyed by the uninvited critters. At first it was little use talking to them. They would feed one critter and chase the others. After a while they got tired of seagulls crapping on everything and squawking at them every time they stepped out the door so they stopped throwing bread around. One day the neighbour asked me why the geese did not invade my yard at every opportunity. I showed him how much the geese love his bird feeders. The grass around them was nibbled down like a golf green. He expressed disbelief at the notion. Not long after that I noticed they were also battling mice and rats. They eventually stopped feeding the critters. Some people can't be told, they have to learn.
Speak of the devil, I have a gaggle of about 60 geese fertilizing yard as I type this.

Its kind of funny how we sometimes pick and choose which types of animals we want around and determine how others are pests, isn't it?

We used to feed the birds quite a bit, but that attracted cats and raccoons. We only feed the birds a few times a month in the winter now. That makes them look around for other food sources. We do try to keep the bird bath full in the summer. I see no harm in watering the critters and they don't hang around very long. Right now I'm battling an intelligent ground hog that has figured out how to tunnel under my electric fence around my garden. So far he's gotten my broccoli and beets. I've got a live trap out for him. If I catch him I'll release him in the mayor's yard. Just kidding. My neighbor will shoot it if our kids don't see it first. If they see it, we'll release it on our farm.

 

[RonMar]

But that doesn't justify you letting it run on other people's property that don't want it there, does it?

Hey Moss, Do you own any cats? It has been my experience, that cats pretty much do what ever they want. Now an inside cat is pretty easy to control, but if you get one that has it in it's mind to be an outside cat, it WILL eventually get outside, and when it does, it is pretty much going to go wherever it pleases.

Apart from my tounge in cheek comment about a venison dinner, I would suggest that the OP talk to the F&G department. There may not be a feeding law, but a F&G biologist may be able to point you in the direction of some better literature to provide your neighbors with. If you could promise one an audience, you might even be able to talk one into making an appearance at a neighborhood gathering to provide some in person education about the
pitfalls to putting food out.

 

[CavinMan]

Outdoor domestic cats are a significant contributor to the huge decline in songbirds in the US. Yes, your barn cat kills rodents, but it very likely also kills a large number of birds as well.

You have a good point in complaining about your neighbors feeding the wildlife. You lose some of your moral high ground when you yourself are the cause of an animal they consider a pest roaming their yard.