I have a bird suet feeder cage that hangs on my sundeck. I hung the suet cage shortly after moving in five years ago from a board that sticks out past the roof. There are hooks conveniently hung around the perimeter, courtesy of a past resident.
My suet cage’s chain broke about a year ago, but I fixed that problem with some handy, dandy baling twine – the country woman’s answer to duct tape!
It was a black cage, a sturdy little unit, that I filled with store bought suet, and these birds pretty much eat me out of house and home in suet. I have robins, finches, blue jays, and woodpeckers who are frequent diners at the bird suet cage.
One day I came outside and noticed the suet cage lying on the grass. Darn thing. How could that baling twine break? I picked it up, noticed there was nothing wrong with the baling twine, and looped it back onto its hook.
It left me wondering how did that happen. One of the hungry birds must have really got that thing moving for the loop to slip off the hook. Or maybe it was just a really big bird and it pulled the cage off. This had never happened before, but there’s always a first time.
A couple of days later I came outside and noticed the bird suet cage was missing. I leaned over the sundeck, expecting to see it lying on the ground, but it was nowhere in sight. I wandered around the yard looking for it, but it still hasn’t turned up.
We have raccoons in the area, and my best guess is a raccoon got up on the roof, where its a small drop to the overhang board, and stole the suet feeder. It might have been the raccoon that knocked it to the ground a week ago, and didn’t go down to retrieve it that time. I still don’t think a raccoon would take a suet cage too far. Although its not heavy at all for a human, it would be somewhat awkward for a raccoon to try to move one too far away.
I soon notice I have hungry birds swooping around my sundeck looking for the suet cage. I went grocery shopping at Walmart and picked up a new suet cage.
It’s a green one and appears to be a little flimsier than the sturdy black one, but it’s getting the job done.
To prepare against further disappearances, I have anchored the suet cage to a post, using – what else – baling twine!
The case of the mysterious disappearance of the bird suet cage. One of life’s unexplained mysteries!
And a little tip when it comes to buying suet, I like to buy a multi pack because it’s cheaper than buying the individual blocks, and this way I know I always have some on hand. Sometimes it seems like my feathered friends are eating me out of house and home in suet and I’m putting in a new cake every couple of days!
Another little tip – suet is sold for a buck each at the dollar store!
Do you have any ideas what might have happened to to the suet cage? Put on your Sherlock Holmes cap and help me solve this mystery.
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Published by Cheryl @ The Lifestyle Digs on April 12, 2020 and updated on November 27, 2022.
Click the image below for a raccoon encounter!
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I bought the same suet cage from Wal-mart and it didn’t even last one night! We tried buying a second one and tying it more securely to our hook, but it was gone the first night as well. I would put money on the raccoon, though the deer and the squirrels are also likely culprits. Kind of a bummer, as I would so like to see my birds enjoy the suet.
I never did find that suet cage! You’d think the raccoon or squirrel would have got tired of dragging it around, especially if they’d eaten the suet, and I’d have eventually tripped over it. Yes, I enjoy watching the jays and woodpeckers, but I also get a lot of smaller birds too. Right now they’re eating me out of house and home in suet every couple of days I need to put a new one in!
Have lost two suet cages in past week with practically full cake. They’ve been on the tree for years! Feel stupid that I didn’t secure the second one a different way. They’ve been knocked down many times so I figured I would find them on the ground. But nope. Believe raccoons because I’m in the city. My little grandson said they took it to their friends. 😋
I feel your pain! My suet feeders with a mostly full cake haven’t gone missing since I tied them down! Squirrels or raccoons is probably the best guess to what’s happening to them. One cage I never found again.
Excellent idea to tie it down. Seems like the sort of freak occurrence a cheap webcam would be great for, though I find if I watch the feeders long enough I just get an irrational sense of anger towards the squirrels who refuse to eat daintily like polite guests.
Still, it never crossed my mind that any of the critters I’ve seen would have the temerity to pull the whole thing down and drag it all the way across the backyard.
But something did, and here I am!
Ian, you cracked me up with the undainty eating squirrels! I’m sure the critters had quite the feast when they dragged your feeder away too! Yes, tying down the suet cage seems to have worked.
My suet feeder disappeared last night- I also suspect raccoons
Oh no! That sucks. I no longer live there or have a suet cage anymore, but I did see 4 raccoons yesterday climbing two trees!
haha nice story, one i just went through myself… i am so perplexed! my suet cage is hanging from wrought iron rod with a loop towards the top, i just dont see how anything could have climbed it. so what other answer is there, a giant bird just swooped in and took the whole cage? it was also secured to its own chain via the J hook, so it is truly a mystery hahah. one of these days…
Thanks for sharing Corey. I think a lot of us suspect raccoons but maybe an eagle or hawk swooped in for the steal. It’s funny and annoying at the same time because now we have to replace a suet cage and figure out how to secure it so it won’t go missing again.
I have lost 3 suet cages with full suet cakes. No sign of them. They hang from trees. I have never seen any raccoons around. I’m frustrated!!
Well just because you don’t see raccoons… they could still be out there. What about a bear?