In my experience the baffle needs to be "wobbly " otherwise they just jump on & climb up from it. A big jubilee clip will act as a stop for it to sit on but not hold it rigid.
I think you'd need the upturned bowl thingy on the post as well, @Fallon. The seed catcher you found, @Skylarks , looks great - wonder if it could be home made? Not sure how easy it would be to get hold of stiff, fine mesh though...
@herbaceous - my bird feeder pole is sectional, and the feeder fits into the top with a plastic screw-in spike, so fitting the bowl was easy. The Gardman version I used needs to be slid onto the pole before tightening the collar to fit.
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
I have repositioned my feeders @Fallon so they are a distance from any shrubs or trees, to avoid any rat acrobats I think you will have to have a pole of some sort.
I have a twiddly wrought iron pole, two hooks and a fork at the bottom to push into the ground so any baffle has to be fixed in situ, no way to get it 'over' the pole. I found this
which I wouldn't trust to keep them out but might work as the seed catcher and can be bent round the pole. Still working on the design though as it has to contend with bigger birds and weather!
My feeder (in better days!) it is now at least 8' from the shrubs
"The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it." Sir Terry Pratchett
I hear you @Allotment Boy and be reassured any DIY perpetrated by self will be wobbly
A sectioned pole makes sense @Liriodendron would that mine was so. That's why I struggled with concept of fixing the baffle 'til I found the split one.
"The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it." Sir Terry Pratchett
@Liriodendron, looks like @herbaceous has found some mesh that will work. I have some veggie mesh and garden wire so may have a play next weekend and see what happens.
@Skylarks, that link to the mesh seed catcher looks just the job but with two feeders, rather expensive. The steel mesh available online could work, it will be interesting to see what others make of it. I've never seen our rats actually up the tree or on the bird feeder but that doesn't mean they don't do it!
My neighbour has 2 chickens and a rabbit living in squalor.mud etc.weve had a rat coming thru and it was brazen!! Now I have a new pup I go out with her and am terrified it will come back.i did have a rat baited trap but have got rid of it.worried about the rat eating the bait then dropping it.my brother in law has hens but in a field.away from houses.he has to keep them inside because of bird flu.do you have to do that if you only have a couple in the back garden?!!
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@herbaceous - my bird feeder pole is sectional, and the feeder fits into the top with a plastic screw-in spike, so fitting the bowl was easy. The Gardman version I used needs to be slid onto the pole before tightening the collar to fit.
I was hanging my bird feeder from a tree we have in the corner of the garden so it gives the rats a great climbing frame. I would have to go and buy a pole to attach the new style bird feeder too wouldn't I? But we would still need something to catch the seed.
https://m.ebay.ie/itm/Universal-Bird-Feeder-Station-Baffle-Dome-Stop-Squirrel-Stealing-Bird-Feed-Guard/113687813285?hash=item1a78525ca5:g:pqEAAOSwmxVcjMLM
I have a twiddly wrought iron pole, two hooks and a fork at the bottom to push into the ground so any baffle has to be fixed in situ, no way to get it 'over' the pole. I found this
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rodent-Mesh-Stainless-Steel-Install/dp/B01G36IF2Y/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=Fine+Wire+Mesh&qid=1607166132&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFXSEw0RjhWT1dQMlomZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA3MjkwNjAyWlRaU0dCVk9YVUowJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA3NTk5NjcyQ1U4MjVYSU5WWjlDJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
which I wouldn't trust to keep them out but might work as the seed catcher and can be bent round the pole. Still working on the design though as it has to contend with bigger birds and weather!
My feeder (in better days!) it is now at least 8' from the shrubs
A sectioned pole makes sense @Liriodendron would that mine was so. That's why I struggled with concept of fixing the baffle 'til I found the split one.
I've never seen our rats actually up the tree or on the bird feeder but that doesn't mean they don't do it!