20 to 30%of all households in Australia, Europe and the United States put out food to attract birds to their yards.................. Americans spend over $3 billion each year on food for wild birds..............Even though there have been numerous studies suggesting that we might be harming the birds via bacteria building up in bird feeders,,,,,,,,,,Even though we may be changing the over-wintering habits of certain bird species,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Even though we might be changing the foraging habits of other wildlife species via these artificial handouts, subsequently causing us stress and discomfort via their presence(e.g bird food attracts squirrels which attracts coyotes, bears, foxes, etc) ------Nonetheless, we human animals continue to go about our bird feeding behaviour----WHY?.............."The British nature writer Mark Cocker holds that the ‘‘simple, Franciscan act of giving to birds makes us feel good about life, and redeems us in some fundamental way"...........’’This sense of personal redemption is intimately tied up with the history of bird-­feeding"........... "The practice grew out of the humanitarian movement in the 19th century, which saw compassion toward those in need as a mark of the enlightened individual"..........Perhaps we simply feed birds and other wild creatures because it abates our feelings of loneliness......... "And that is why many of us feed animals — not merely because it’s satisfying to feel we have helped them, but because it surrounds us with creatures that know us, are able to forge bonds with us, have come to regard us as part of their world"

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Why Do We Feed Wild Animals?