the birds choke on them.

Luckily we were able to net him and cut and unwind until it was off, but his leg was permanently damaged.

for exactly this reason. Poor little guy.

To take a scissor and cut each and every slot open or tear them with your bear hands? Or place it in a trash receptacle? I wish people could feel the plight of these animals. It is the equivalent of having your legs bound, when you are trying to run a race or flee from a burning building. Yes I am being a tad dramatic, but as a card carrying member of the Sierra Club and World Wildlife Fund, that is where I stand on this issue.

A net? My plan would be to get a butterfly net, put on some thick clothing and gloves and go to work.

Everybody around here has dip nets for their salmon fishing, but unfortunately no one present here this afternoon had one handy. We tried to lure him to shore with "bread-tossing" motions, since a lot of people do feed them, but it didn't work. Actually, I have issues with the feeding, too. These are supposed to be migratory birds, but every year we have a large population of them that hang around through the winter, and it's just pathetic to see them all huddled together in the snow freezing their butts off. It sometimes gets to -20 here -- definitely not duck weather. They're not penguins, for heaven's sake.

I haven't bought one in years but have cut-up many over the years.

Short of being outlawed, they should have a $5 dollar deposit placed on the damn things.

If we do as you say, maybe they will pay an engineer or two to come up with something affordable that's less destructive to the environment.

ever since I saw it advised on a wildlife show - been doing it for years

When I throw them away I cut them up into small pieces with no holes showing, not even the smallest ones.

They should BAN them altogether. There's GOT to be a better way!