Question: making suet for first time.

Due to the overwhelming abundance of homemade suet info I've found on various bird forums, I decided to make some suet today. After all, what else has a amateur birder to do on relatively dark, yukky, cold days when getting out with the camera to take photographs of the little feathered buggers isn't really an option... To that end, I have the following questions and comments...
First, the question: There is an abundance of suet recipes scattered about the internet and while there are some minor differences in content, nearly all use lard and/or suet and peanut butter as the base liquid or binder. Not finding any local butchers that have a clue why I would be wanting beef suet instead of "real" meat, I finally decided it was easier to go with the lard option and peanut butter. Melted it down on low heat as the recipes noted and poured in the other bird friendly ingredients as suggested (perhaps a little more or less of each as I had readily available in my pantry), i.e. crushed raw peanuts, black oil sunflower seeds, mixed birdseed, cornmeal, flour, raisins, oatmeal, etc.
Although I only heated to the melting point of the lard and peanut butter and then mixed in the other ingredients off heat, the mixture seems extremely soupy. Is this typical and will cooling the mixture (sitting outdoors in a baking pan as I write this) harden it enough to make this exercise worthwhile? And if not, can I reheat the mixture slowly and add more cornmeal, oatmeal, or whatever to be able to cool again and make the mix more amenable to forming or cutting blocks to fit my wire suet feeder?

As to the comment, other than gathering up the ingredients and roughly measuring them out, making my own is far easier and not nearly as messy as I thought it would be. I'm not so sure that it's actually cheaper than store bought although if the birds actually eat it, the economics are really not a concern at this point since of the store bought suet I've used, it might get picked at here and there but not really eaten.
If someone can answer the question I posted above, I'd be grateful.
Thanks for reading...
Steve

I would like to hear those answers too. I have always used bought suet and the only birds I have gotten to come to it is Pine Warblers in the winter. I have tried every kind available and have not seen any good results. I always end up throwing the suet away after awhile. I have lots of woodpecker in the area but none have ever come to my suet.

After a couple of hours sitting out in 43F degree weather, the mix is starting to harden somewhat but I already get the feeling that actually cutting up the homemade suet and inserting the "blocks" into the wire feeder is going to be the messy part... perhaps a pair of rubber kitchen gloves will help with that. I'm a messy cook to begin with though so not an experiment killer for me.
As to f_chisolm's comments about the purchased suet blocks, I DO see a big advantage in the homemade version in that one can add anything that normally attracts the birds you usually have visiting while leaving out the "junk foods/seeds" that many birds will only eat when there is little else available. In the purchased peanut blocks for example (recommended for woodpeckers, flickers and such), it always appeared to me that there might actually be five or six peanuts smashed into a million tiny fragments in each block whereas I took a good quantity of raw shelled peanuts (about two mounded cups) and broke them up lightly in a pan, using another smaller pan as my "crusher". Purchased blocks may actually contain some BOSS seeds too but in the ones I've used, there can't be more than a dozen or so BOSS seeds in each block and even then, birds would have to root out most of those seeds by digging deeply into the block to retrieve them.
Should be a good experiment and I'm anxious to see how the birds take to them.
Steve

I used to use lard, but now what I do is save the fat from ground beef. This needs to contain NO onions, garlic, etc. I drain before adding those things. Chill which separates the water from the grease, then dump the water/gelatin down the drain. I have never counted how many pounds of beef worth of fat. I keep adding to one of those plastic Blue Bunny half gallon ice cream containers until it is full.

After getting silly reactions from the grocery stores' meat departments, we will try to get suet from a meat locker. The closest one is really out of our way, so I will stick to the beef drippings for now.

How thick did you make your batch? I usually divide mine by putting about only an inch or two into lunch meat containers. Then depending on what I use the suet for, I can plop one in a cage, or slice with a knife to cram into our "suet tree".

I do not bother with putting in nuts, berries, or seeds, since we have those things elsewhere in the feeding area. And if I remember, the birds just picked that stuff out. Just the fat, PB, oatmeal, whole wheat flower, corn meal and duck feed. We have a duck so this is already on hand. The original recipe (Zick dough, the improved version) called for chick starter and to make sure it is NON-medicated. The medication is anti-biotics. I put a higher concentration of fats to other things so it isn't so crumbly. But crumbly is ok, too. Nearly every bird we have in the winter will eat it regardless of how it turns out.

Any reason for this? Don't think it would harm birds.

More important, it must not contain any salt.

Resin

I have been making my own for a few years now. Have you tried getting suet from the butchers that work on wild game? We get suet up here in the Northwest because the hunters mix it with the venison since that is so lean.

BUT, the trick is to melt the suet completely on the stove or microwave. Then strain it to get the fibers out. Put it somewhere it can set up and harden. THEN melt it down again. Let it harden aqain. MELT one more time then while you have it on low on the stove, add your peanut butter. I normally use one regular jar, not sure how many ounces just off hand, but it really doesn't matter if it is bigger. melt that down. OK, then add your thickeners, fillers. I use Corn Meal, Rolled Oats, and just about anything I have on hand. I put in nuts, counting chopped walnuts, or whatever, and fruit. chopped apple, raisins (I nuke them in a T. water to plump them), berries, One time I chopped dried Apricots. Anything I have. Oh, also, add The Black Oil Sunflower Seeds that I put in their feeder. If it isn't thick enough, you can add more corn meal or oats. When you feel it is thick enough, and It should not pour, spoon it in the molds. Then I put them in the freezer. When they are set up, I take them out of the molds and wrap each in plastic wrap.

The reason for melting and setting it up 3 times (very important), is because for some reason, and I am not a chemist, but this action makes it hold up better in weather. We, up here, worry about rain, and of course heat. Obviously, if it gets too warm, it will melt. By then tho, the birds should not need the suet for winter fat on their bodies.

I do not know if you want the meat in it. Even the suet we get has some ground meat in it. I am lucky, the butcher I get mine from grinds it for the hunters. It does melt better and has less long fibers in it. But, I strain it out and don't use it. If the weather is not too cold, it might be more apt to spoil too.

OK, if it hasn't been too long since you made yours, I would go ahead and melt it down again. And if you need to, add more filler. Corn meal is great.

A reason to make your own? Don't put millet, (the filler they put in wild bird food and it ends up all over the ground 'cause the birds don't like it.) in it. The birds like home made better. You will find they really do. The woodpeckers like mine so well. Besides the Chickadees, Nuthatches, finches, Juncos, and of course the Blue Jays. I do get quite a mix of birds. I would love to see pictures of your birds. You have such colorful birds. Different than the ones we have here. I hope I covered it all.

One other thing, I usually use about 2 or 3 lbs of suet. Jen

We crossposted Chillybean. Your duck food sounds like a winner. Also, I should have said that possibly the birds where you live prefer different things than what I add. Some of the Tanagers like the fruits like oranges, grapes, etc.

First, to the questions posted:
This first batch was poured into a 8.5x8.5" aluminum baking pan (throw away type) since my suet feeder will take a block about 4 3/4" square by 1.5" thick. Thickness on the batch today ended up about 1 3/4" to 2" thick which I don't think will be an issue since I can cut slices of the big suet block to fit and then melt any leftovers into a smaller block for the next batch.
I didn't add meat as I didn't see any reason to do so but adding chopped up fruit sounds like a workable plan for future batches. As to saving fat from meats and hamburger, just the two of us eat so little meat nowadays that I don't even worry about saving what little bacon fat we generate. Note that we're not vegetarians per se but rather buy lean cuts when we can so little waste is generated in the fat/grease department.
We're in a big city suburb and surrounded by grocery stores so no game processors anywhere close for an alternate suet supply. I'll do a little more talking with the local butchers and see if they'll save me some trimmings...

Now... before I get a bigger mess than I started with, what's your estimation of the top temperatures homemade suet will tolerate outside before it gets too melted to be a viable food source? Being in N TX, we may get several days of cold temps (25F to 40F) followed by several more days of 50+F temps so do I need to leave it out or take it in during warmer spells? The mix did seem to set up ok so far but the real test will be tomorrow when I cut it up and stick it in the feeder outside.
As to buying duck or chick starter, this would be an option for me only if I can buy it in small amounts, perhaps 4 or 5lbs. max. I'll check with the local feed store to see if they offer small amounts.

I appreciate the extra tips and instructions given so far and should other ideas or questions arise, feel free to add on to this post for the benefit of all that may be interested.
Steve

I have not read every word of this thread but am responding with what I saw and know. I used to feed with homemade suet blocks and other fat-based options and will explain further down why I don't. Hopefully it helps.

Lard is rendered pork fat that is only semi-solid. Suet is beef fat and considered a hard fat/solid. Right off the bat lard and suet are not interchangeable products. Any poultry fats are not solid. That's not to say they won't glue together a bunch of seeds and other mess. If you are making feeding blocks you need to use hard fat to get it right but the peckers, etc. will eat whatever you put out. The question becomes can you keep it solid in your zone.

I stopped making blocks because they attracted rats and flying squirrels by night and as well as birds by day. I added peanut butter too. Perhaps if the feeders were out in the yard it would have been okay but they were attached to the bedroom deck rails. I tired of awakening in the middle of the night to rats on the feeders. They ended up in the attic.

This message was edited Jan 9, 2014 7:21 PM

Well, like I said, the more times you melt it down and set it up, the stronger it is and can stand more temperature variations. I don't know why. If you read some of those in Birds & Blooms, probably just dot com, I think they say the same thing. I think you said you googled some too. I don't recall their saying why that was, but some of them did say the same thing. I might be more worried about spoilage in the warm weather if I were you. I suppose you could try one and smell it during the day to see if you think it is going bad. If you were to do that once a day when the weather gets warmer, that might tell you. Just try the first one.

Other than that, I really don't know what to tell you. That would also let you know if it is going to melt at whatever temp too.

Hi Laurel, we crossposted. I didn't know that about the beef being harder than pork. I guess the reason I still make my own is because the products we buy here have so much millet and other filler in them that the birds won't eat that I feel they are a waste of money. Also, they don't hold together like mine do. I don't think they do the melting and resetting like I do. I know it sounds crazy, but others I have read say the same thing.

Wow, I don't blame you about the rats. One year I had a problem with raccoons. But, haven't seen any this year. I am thinking the wolves, cougars or coyotes might have gotten them. I do think they are pretty good fighters tho. Don't know. They may have gotten any rats around too.

Yes, I asked about the onion and garlic at another birding forum a couple of years ago. We use a lot of it in cooking. And the response is that small amounts are ok, on occasion, but it has been known to cause anemia in birds wild and pet. So I do not risk it. I rarely add salt to anything, so that's not a problem. :)

TXSkeeter, I can see your problem about saving beef fat. We have four growing boys, so a lot of that ground beef is on hand. I hope you can find some meat trimmings and feed relatively easy.


This message was edited Jan 9, 2014 6:53 PM

While I can understand the beef fat vs pork fat explanation (Thanks Laurel!), as humans we've been so accustomed to medical sources telling us to cut more and more fat out of our diets but while researching suet recipes, almost all call for what I consider to be an abnormally large percentage of fats (technically speaking) as the main or binding agent in suet mixes. For all I know, maybe the fats do provide some winter time energy component that birds need but if you go back to what truly wild birds typically eat, the total fat content is probably minimal or at least gained in some vegetative or other natural animal form, i.e.: grubs and insects. True, I've seen comments about crows and ravens picking at dead carcasses here and there but even then, I would doubt that overall they consume all that much carcass fat. In my mind, that's a conundrum of sorts if I/we are trying to approximate some natural food sources. Or maybe I'm just over thinking the issue...

Our usual assortment of neighborhood feral cats appears to be taking care of any rats and/or mice under the birdfeeders without my knowledge if in fact they're there and I've not seen any signs of vermin around for a good long while... well, except for those damn cats. I've seen but one fat squirrel of late and he doesn't even visit very often, perhaps having ending up as squashed squirrel in the middle of the street as so often happens around here.
Steve

I can't answer as to the nutritional needs or what constitutes overages for feathered friends. According to the same query presented to my vet re: feeding fats to my skinny dogs, he says they do not suffer from the same cholesterol related issues humans do and it's okay. Mind you, it's not a year around, every meal thing. Maybe someone else with expertise in animal science will chime in. Crows and ravens with opportunities to dine on has-been livestock have a different diet than their city cousins who are limited to the occasional road kill squirrel or possum.

NO, It was my understanding that the fat gave the little birds some fat on them to help them stay warm in the cold of winter. Laurel is right. It is not a year round issue. I think they need that coat for winter. Again she is right, when she said not an every meal thing. I have the feeder right there with the black oil sunflower seeds in it. And they eat that along with the suet feeder. But, like I said there are nuts and fruit in the suet feeders I make. I have watched Blue Jays tug and tug on a piece of dried apricot because I the pieces are bigger than huckleberries that I also add.

I found a no-melt suet recipe on line. It had 5 cups oats/cornmeal/flour to 2 cups lard/peanut butter. It seems logical to use fat that is solid at room temperature to begin with.

It is most logical to use a fat that is solid at outdoor temperature. I made a big mess making blocks with shortening here in Georgia. They looked great in the fridge. :)

Another question?
On this first batch, I used plain store brand non-chunky peanut better on the theory that since I was going to add extra peanut pieces (crushed by me just to give the goop that personal touch ;) ) Too, the store brand was a bit over a dollar cheaper than the national and familiar to everyone brands. But that's not the question...
Do you use chunky peanut butter instead of the smooth type or do you even see a difference in the attractant quality to birds between the two?
Steve

ps: it's been out there for several days now and I don't think it has even one peck mark on it.

It take a little time for birds to recognize their good fortune. Hopefully they get the clue before the rats. I did use peanut butter but don't recall whether crunchy or smooth. I think just the cheapest peanut butter and jarred nuts. They (the birds and rats) are not that fussy. I'd suggest putting the blocks in at night if it's not a ridiculous amount of work. It might defray rodentia.

I just normally get the chunky because here they are both the same price. And I get the cheapest brand. Laurel, the birds here are on it before Bob gets back in the house. Those little Chickadees are such social birds that they, and the nuthatches are eating out of the feeders almost before you get the food in there.

I didn't get your last couple of sentences Laurel. What did you mean by putting them in at night not being a ridiculous amount of work? And also, what is rodentia? You lost me. Thanks, Jeanette

I get the most traffic at my feeders and the suet when it is cold. Warm days the suet gets soft and nobody shows up to eat it.

Jnette, I was suggesting that if it is not too difficult, bring the blocks in at night since birds feed during the day and rodentia (rodents including rats and flying squirrels) feed at night.

Gotcha Laurel. Thanks,

The type of peanut butter has never mattered to the birds, but it does to us. We buy organic for the most part because we prefer to support them than the non. :) We just do not use that PB which is ground on-site at the store because there is a higher risk of a type of fungus.

Thankfully, we have no rodents right now, that I am aware of. We have neighbourhood raptors that are doing a good job. :)

I have been making a suet type mix for the birds for years. I got it from the Audubon Society.
Its simple and everyone (the birds that is) loves it.

1 cups crunchy peanut butter
2 cups shortening - the generic brands at the grocery is almost all vegetable but have some animal fat too. I get the cheapest
7-8 cups of plain cornmeal. This is harder to find since most cornmeal is self rising.

Mix it together. Thats it. The problem I have is keep the squirrels off it and keeping a bossy Mockingbird from running the other birds off.
I mix a big batch at once use an ice cream scoop to dole it out into the feeder.

I must confess I didn't read this whole thread so I hope this isn't a duplicate.
Helen