I think its an "Ice Chaser" by Farm Innovators. I've had it for about 5 years, so maybe it just got old. It still heats up, but sinks. Would that hurt the bottom of the in-ground stocktank? I think it was probably still keeping it sort of warm in there, just not warm enough at the top to keep a thin layer of ice from forming. Sandy, that's wild that yours won't freeze! Maybe the falls is just enough. I turned my falls off, as they are so little, they were freezing up. Anyhow.....the new stuff I put out there is working great and keeping it all open. Last year I alternated using the deicer with the water pump and I had 3 dead frogs in the spring. So I'm trying to keep the deicer going all the time now. I think its the fluctuation in temp last year that did them in.

We have two distinct groups of robins that come to this area. According to a local bird expert, the hordes we see in January come in large groups and eat the berries from shrubs and trees, and in fact, our trees were stripped of any berries on them a couple of weeks ago. In early spring another bunch of the birds arrives from the south, pair off and raise families. These robins feed on insects. So, I guess the robins we have in January and February are just berry eaters coming through and are not harbingers of spring. It's the insect eaters that stick around longer that foretell spring. It's probably different in California and the South, though. One of the most hilarious things I've witnessed during this extra cold winter is frustrated robins banging the frozen berries from trees on the sidewalk in a futile attempt to smash them (sort of like how they smash insects against the ground to make sure they are dead). The berries just rolled away like hard little balls with the annoyed robins chasing after. I don't know if they ever got a decent meal, but we certainly had a mess on our sidewalk. Diane

Thanks Jackie, for that tip on blue jays liking peanuts. What is a rose folly? I found some interesting info. about bat and birds dropping. Rabies are thought associated to bats only, but cattle (esp. cows) represent 5% to 11% of rabies cases since 2004. Here's the info: Worldwide, bats are predators of vast numbers of insect pests, saving farmers and foresters billions of dollars annually and helping to control insect-spread human diseases, like West Nile virus. Although bats play key roles in keeping insect populations in balance, they are North America's most rapidly declining land mammals. Bats give one or two off springs per year. Wild animals accounted for 93 percent of reported cases of rabies in 2001. The wild animals in which infection was reported included: Raccoons -- 37.2 percent of all animal cases during 2001 Skunks -- 30.7 percent Bats -- 17.2 percent Foxes -- 5.9 percent Other wild animals, including rodents and lagomorphs (e.g., rabbits and hares) -- 0.7 percent. Fresh bat droppings (unlike fresh bird dropping) can contain the histoplasmosis fungus. Bat droppings do not need to come into contact with soil to be a source of the disease. Histoplasmosis is caused by a fungus found primarily in the areas drained by the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. The disease is transmitted to humans by airborne fungus spores from soil contaminated by pigeon and starling droppings (as well as from the droppings of other birds and bats). The soil under a roost usually has to have been enriched by droppings for two years or more for the disease organism to reach significant levels. Infection occurs when spores, carried by the air are inhaled especially after a roost has been disturbed. Most infections are mild and produce either no symptoms or a minor influenza- like illness. On occasion, the disease can cause high fever, blood abnormalities, pneumonia and even death. In some areas, including portions of Illinois, up to 80 percent of the population show evidence of previous infection. Outbreaks of histoplasmosis have occurred in Central Illinois. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has reported a potentially blinding eye condition presumed ocular histoplasmosis syndrome (OHS) that probably results from the fungus. NIH estimates that 4 percent of those exposed to the disease are at risk of developing OHS.

Okay...my .02. I am a MAJOR cat lover and mine are indoor -I actually have a 13 year old Siamese sitting on my desk as I type this. ;) Mothballs: it's a myth and it does NOT work. Plus, it is poisonous; other animals will eat them and get sick/die. Plus, with the rain/humidity, they disintergrate quickly. I too have neighbor cat issues. It is NOT an easy problem to solve. Almost everything that you try to do will simply make the cat FEAR you --- and not keep it from eating the birds. It will simply wait until it hears you leave and start at it again. Cats are smart, after all, and designed by nature to be a predator. Behaviorly, cats are creatures of habit and LOATHE being surprised. They love the routine and do not like change. It confuses/scares them. You can take advantage of this by buying an inexpensive (or expensive) sprinkler system...put it near the bird bath and set the timer where it goes off/on sporadically. If the cat cannot rely on a consistent time - it will eventually give up and move on. Maybe start out with a manual system...watch the cat approach turn the water on...watch it run..do it all over again? The thing is, kitty will check back at some point, so be consistent with the surprise factor. Loud noises work the same way, but can be inconvenient. I mean, who wants to run outside to scare a cat away every 20 min? It is sometimes better to befriend the cat, because then you can deliver it to the neighbor rather than trap it. But, if that is not your thing, a humane trap does work. I recently trapped a ferral pregnant cat (really a kitten) and helped her and the kittens. Just don't leave kitty baking in the sun in it, due to the obvious cruelty factor. I find that 98% of people who own cats just "don't get it". When you ask them to keep their cat indoors so it doesn't end up on your property. "oh...it's cruel to the cat to keep it confined!" or, they roll their eyes and think it's their "inherent right" to allow their pet to roam. I do not mean to offend anyone here with my comments. But cats -- by law -- are not allowed to roam loose. The established leash laws cover CATS as well as dogs. Any domestic animal that ends up on your property, you are within your rights to engage Animal Control or other shelter. I had a neighbor who let her cat loose all the time. A very sweet kitty...but he loved to stalk my birds and then scratch my brand new patio furniture. I was less than thrilled, as you can imagine. I had a few, very nice chats with her about it. At first, she'd come over and get kitty, but eventually began to ignore my calls and stopped responding all together. So, I called a No-Kill shelter who was happy to pick up kitty and find him a new home. If my neighbor refuses to manage their pet, I do not have to 'get used to it'. I would NEVER punish the animal for having irresponsible owners. I also wouldn't take the animal to a county shelter that euthanizes unwanted pets. The BB gun thing - well, that's just wrong.