How to stop blackbirds from entering my courtyard?

[oneteaspoon]

Where I live there is a family of blackbirds that are living near my place. I live in a unit with 4 on the block and the birds sit in the tall christmas like tree next door crowing, on my roof, on the other sides roof from 4:30am till sunset they are making noise. As annoying as it is it didn’t concern me until today one was walking around the ground in my courtyard. I’m bringing home two 8 week old puppies next week and this blackbird would be the size if not bigger than my puppies. I don’t want to harm them but I’d like them to go away.

[EricL]

Hello @oneteaspoon

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's fantastic to have you join us, and thank you for sharing your question about stopping blackbirds in your courtyard.

Would it be possible for you to post a photo of the area where you plan to let the pups roam around? This will give our members a chance to assess the location. We can then make recommendations on how to protect them from swooping blackbirds.

In the meantime, I suggest trying out the traditional methods of bird deterrence such as Whites 250 x 110 x 70mm Stainless Steel Pest Control Bird Spike. This will prevent them from roosting too close to your property. There is also the Bird Deterrent Hanging Owls - 3 Pack and the Cyclone 4m x 4m x 5mm Backyard Farmer Anti Bird Net. The bird netting can be hung out like a shade sail held in place with Syneco 6mm x 100m Twisted Rope. This will at least prevent the blackbirds from swooping down onto your pups. 

Let me call on our experienced members @prettyliving and @craftyhopper for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[oneteaspoon]

 

 

Thank you for the reply. The courtyard is approximately 34 m². The dirt part is about to have pet specific artificial turf laid and I plan on putting some greenery in the retaining wall. 

In the second picture you can see the 2 trees the blackbirds hang out in. The narrow strip of dirt that goes down the side of the house won’t be accessible to the puppies. 

[EricL]

Hello @oneteaspoon

Thank you very much for posting a picture of your proposed puppy area. I will stay with my original recommendation of using bird netting to fully protect your puppies. You can mount the bird netting using Syneco 6mm x 100m Twisted Rope I mentioned. I also suggest using Everhang 14mm Black Cup Hooks as additional mounting to your fence and under your gutter.

I've placed an image below to give you an idea of how the bird netting can cover the area. Just to put your mind at ease the gap between the bird netting is large enough to let air pass right through so it will not act like a sail when compared to shade cloth.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric 

[oneteaspoon]

Thank you very much for your detailed response. 

I think that is a practical solution to address my concerns. Maybe not the most attractive but it will be just me and the puppies out there. I’ll just have to make sure I am proactive in checking the area before they go out incase one is wondering on the ground. 

[MitchellMc]

What type of puppies are they, @oneteaspoon? Puppies tend to put on considerable weight and size within the first several weeks if they're a medium/large bread. This might just be a case of needing to monitor them whilst they're outside. 

What about popping a RapidMesh 144 x 112 x 60cm Portable Animal Enclosure in the corner of the yard? Whilst you are busy, you can safely place them in the enclosure, and when you are outside with them enjoying a cuppa in your newly renovated backyard, you can let them roam free. You can join two of these enclosures together with cable ties for a larger enclosed space. Alternatively, bigger units like the RapidMesh 2290 x 2290 x 1800mm Chain Link Animal Enclosure exist. You'd still need to net off the roof of that particular animal enclosure.

Mitchell

[oneteaspoon]

They are cavalier King Charles spaniels and currently weigh 2.3kg.

I do plan on installing one of the small pet doors that insert into the sliding door track that Bunnings sell so I was hoping they could eventually come and go as they are toilet trained.