Swashbucklers Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 I have been battling with a pair of robins that are trying to build their nest in my kids' playground. I have been knocking it down and cleaning it up, but they cannot take a hint! I had one there last year and did not notice it until there were eggs so I let it go and my kids were unable to use the playground until the eggs hatched. I am wondering if there is any deterrent I could put up there that would keep them away. Any suggestions? TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 google search popped up get a fake owl a few times. I have no experience with this. sorry, good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ursa Majoris Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 This happens to us every year. We have hanging baskets out front and the robins try to nest in them. The only solution we have found is to out-persist the buggers and remove the makings. They build a nest amazingly fast, though, so you have to be alert. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Robins are tough mf'ers. Â Short of a cat, every web site I went to said good luck until the eggs hatch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
satelliteoflovegm Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 I seriously thought Magnum PI reference was coming. Too much TV in the 80's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
satelliteoflovegm Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 90's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
satelliteoflovegm Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 00's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
satelliteoflovegm Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 10's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
satelliteoflovegm Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 also 70's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbpfan1231 Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Same thing happened to me - tried a few times but to no avail until...... Â Wait until nest is virtually complete - wait till dusk and make sure neighbors are not around (and your kids). Â Climb ladder and dookie right in nest - Robins never came back. Â Get wife to dispose of nest. Â You are welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Same thing happened to me - tried a few times but to no avail until...... Â Wait until nest is virtually complete - wait till dusk and make sure neighbors are not around (and your kids). Â Climb ladder and dookie right in nest - Robins never came back. Â Get wife to dispose of nest. Â You are welcome. Â You're not married Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbpfan1231 Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 You're not married  I know - I had to dispose of myself which is why I suggested he has wife do it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooby Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 the fledglings only take a couple of weeks to and fly off from the nest, so just be patient:) Don't touch the nest or the momma wont come back and the babies will starve:( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
montster Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Don't touch the nest or the momma wont come back and the babies will starve:( Â Â Not if swashbucklers pre-chews the food and spits it into the baby birds' mouths himself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Footballjoe Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 Put up a "No Nesting" sign. Seems like a no brainer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swashbucklers Posted April 16, 2012 Author Share Posted April 16, 2012 The birds are in the process of making the nest. There are no eggs in it yet! I guess I will just keep ripping the nest down two or three times a day. Maybe they will eventually get the hint. Thanks for all the ideas. If my kids never played in it I wouldn't care but I don't want them up there with the birds. There are some blue jays that are pestering them. Maybe if I slip the blue jays a little something extra they will make my problem disappear! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 The birds are in the process of making the nest. There are no eggs in it yet! I guess I will just keep ripping the nest down two or three times a day. Maybe they will eventually get the hint. Thanks for all the ideas. If my kids never played in it I wouldn't care but I don't want them up there with the birds. There are some blue jays that are pestering them. Maybe if I slip the blue jays a little something extra they will make my problem disappear! Â Â The blue jays will eat the baby robins. They will also probably terrorize your kids twice as bad. They will save you a couple of weeks if they are successful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nuke'em ttg Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 why are these kids subjected to physical activity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 Robins are fascinating to watch and eat tons of grubs, especially when they are feeding their young. That's good for your lawn. I would think the whole nest-building process, followed by the rearing of the chicks would be a great learning experience for kids. Make it a project, buy a bird feeder and a book about all the varieties of birds in your area. Another way you could go, buy a BB gun and shoot every robin you see until the nest building stops. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennykravitz2004 Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 First, robin's nests are Section 8 housing, so you will do no such thing in trying to remove their home. Where are your forms filed in triplicate to take any action? We'll get back to you on this within 2-18 weeks. Â Second, you have infringed on the freedom of the robin to nest there, and now the EPA is on their way to your bird-hating house, as well as Greenpeace to picket your house and chain themselves to your swing set. Â Finally... continued harassment of said robin's nest will result in fines, imprisonment, and immediate deportation to Wisconsin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 Make it a project, buy a bird feeder and a book about all the varieties of birds in your area. Â Â I like this idea. Â Maybe you can buy a birdhouse and place it near the playground and the robins might prefer the birdhouse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delicious_bass Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 I know - I had to dispose of myself which is why I suggested he has wife do it!!! Â [betterOffDead]"Now that's a damn shame when folks be throwin away a perfectly good white boy like that."[/betterOffDead] Â Back on topic, each spring I continually have to battle the birds looking to build a nest under my deck. My lot backs up to a pond, so they keep going back and forth from there to the underside of the deck with mud, sticks, weeds, etc. As others have said, only thing you can do is keep knocking it down. If they manage to get one built before I can get rid of it, I will check to see if there are eggs before knocking it down. If there are eggs, I leave 'em alone til they are out of there. I wouldnt mind they are there but they leave a hugh mess on the patio below... Â Was out doing yard work saturday and discovered a mallard hen has made a nest amongst the grasses we have planted on the side of the house. I have been avoiding walking near there since, but I can see her from the corner of my deck. It hailed here last night so hopefully the house shielded her a bit. She's got a pretty good spot there and should be pretty safe unless a fox comes around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matt770 Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 I like this idea. Â Maybe you can buy a birdhouse and place it near the playground and the robins might prefer the birdhouse. Â My grandparents had bird feeders everywhere and they would tell me about all the different kinds of birds when I was little. One of the first things I did when we moved here was to put up a feeder outside my office window. It is unbelievable how many different types of birds there are on any given day, and before a storm, it's like a plague of locusts out there, literally thousands of them, robins, doves, cardinals, bluebirds, woodpeckers, and many others I haven't identified. I don't know that I would have the same level of interest if it weren't for my grandparents being into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 Â Finally... continued harassment of said robin's nest will result in fines, imprisonment, and immediate deportation to Wisconsin. Â Where the robin is the state bird Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 My grandparents had bird feeders everywhere and they would tell me about all the different kinds of birds when I was little. One of the first things I did when we moved here was to put up a feeder outside my office window. It is unbelievable how many different types of birds there are on any given day, and before a storm, it's like a plague of locusts out there, literally thousands of them, robins, doves, cardinals, bluebirds, woodpeckers, and many others I haven't identified. I don't know that I would have the same level of interest if it weren't for my grandparents being into it. Â Â I have a bird feeder and bird bath in my front yard. Maybe because I live near White Rock Lake but even in Dallas, I get all of those birds too. Even caught one of them blackbirds with the red and yellow "shoulders" on the ground nibbling on $hit this weekend. Amazingly, it does not attract the grackles but it doesn't matter what kind of seed I put in there, the little finches always show up after I refill the the feeder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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