Oct. 7, 2006 - Act Sensibly – Do Not Feed Swans in Autumn
Lithuanian Society for the Protection of Animals (LGGD) would like to draw the public's attention to the grim consequences of feeding swans in autumn. People are advised not to feed these birds before Christmas.
Swans feed on water plants and algae. Whenever they experience food shortage, they migrate to warmer regions. However a considerable number of swans stay in Lithuania just because people keep feeding them, most often with bread products that provide an incomplete diet and cause exhaustion for swans. Hungry and weak, they then fail to fly and get stuck in the ice that later forms in the water.
Last winter LGGD's vets of wild animals' rescue and rehabilitation department tried to help 65 swans. Unfortunately, not all of them survived.
Since the autumn climate varies from year to year, one can only roughly say that the feeding of remaining swans should be resumed around Christmas time. Swans should be fed with fodder meant for adult geese and ducks, thrown into the water.
Please pass this information to others. You may also hang the following posters (in Lithuanian) at the sites of swan feeding.
