mourning doves at feeder

I thought mourning doves were ground feeders but mine love my feeders! And they eat way more than their share!! I thought about covering the feeders with 2" chicken wire but I'm afraid that will deter the cardinals and other birds that I want. Has anyone had this problem and come up with a successful solution?

I have tried cracked corn or pigeon or chicken mix from the feed store, and giving the Doves their own feeding area away from the more desirable birds. I have also tried NOT including the mixes that they like to keep them away - I currently only use black sunflower seeds, nyger, and sometimes peanuts. It does not deter the doves completely.

I have doves also and yes, they eat way too much. They have such a small head for such a large body. Talk about a bird brain! I feed BOSS (Black OIl Sunflower Seed) and they like it.
I notice the gold finches are enjoying the sunflowers that came up from seed and offering their seeds to the birds. The gold finches match the bright sunny yellow blooms of the sunflower.

My Mourning Doves seem to be successfully competing against the Eurasian Collared doves - they have raised a bunch of babies in my yard this year.
And yes, Goldfinches are attracted to bright yellow, even without the added incentive of seed - I have seen them perched snuggled up to all sorts of yellow things.

They're just another bird and hungry like all the others. Our doves ONLY go to the platform feeders if they don't have anything else to eat. We actually purchased one of those cement benches that have a seat and two 'legs'... using the seat part on the ground to put food out there for the doves. Only on rare occasions do they ever go to the platform feeders to eat, and that's usually a dove that's been run off by the more aggressive doves (they have a hierarchy too).

I put out a mix of white millet and NutraSaff, a bit of cracked corn (not whole... too hard for them to eat).. and they're happy.

Instead of getting frustrated with them, open your heart to them and think about this: They're hungry too, and they're slow fliers so will be one of the first to get grabbed by a hawk when one is around. They're easy prey to predators, including humans, thus they end up with a very short life. They actually mourn for their young if they die, and if you've ever seen that... it's heartbreaking. Their faces.. are just innocent, and I've seen them calmly resting on the grass near the cement bench feeder.. sometimes with their eyes closed and napping. They're beautiful, and quite vulnerable birds.

Sadly, doves have eaten lead pellets not knowing they're not food and will kill them. Again, they're just hungry. Open your heart and give them a place to eat. And watch them... really look at them, their behavior... they're very sweet birds, even when they're peckish to one another.

Give them something to eat on the ground and they'll pretty much leave your other feeders alone. We have that cement bench seat out front under the maple tree, and we have a ground feeder out back.

Personally, I love the doves and have a soft spot for them. Rather than running them away from a food source, give them food where they would normally find it.. on the ground. And honestly, think about all the people who run them off... by the time they find a food source they're likely a little desperate. Oh, and the reason I don't scatter stuff for them to eat on the grass is that in case it rains... the seed won't spoil because it will be eaten before it will. Seed in grass.. there's no guarantee they'll find it, and if it rots.. they will eat it out of desperation, and that can make them fatally ill.

This message was edited Mar 1, 2018 5:06 PM