Purim - 5785

Purim - 5785

Rabbi Hal Miller

(Reminder: It is traditional that on Purim we read "Purim Torah". These are fashioned in the same

way as regular divrei Torah, but are humorous, nonsensical, and often just plain silly. Any "rulings"

of law herein are expressly disclaimed as being jokes, not serious.... Oh, and bear in mind you're

supposed to be a little schicker when you read it.  --HM)

Those of you who have been following my writings over the past twenty-some years are aware of the

"Halachot of" series I put out for Purim each year. This year, our discussion topic is the halachot of

birdbaths. In order to understand the laws here, we need to begin by defining what is a birdbath and

what is not.

I    - DEFINITION

Although birds may not appear to care, not every pool of water qualifies as a birdbath, at least with

regard to the halachot defined here. A gutter on the roof of a building is not a birdbath. A watering

trough is not usually called a birdbath, nor is a fishpond, swimming pool or a rice paddy. Despite the

birds' insistence on using any body of water, for our purposes these laws are limited in applicability

to pools or devices that are intended by humans for the specific purpose. If one specifically

designates any of his containers as a birdbath, that is sufficient in his case until he expressly

redesignates it as no longer available for birds.

Therefore, as applicable under these halachot, a birdbath is a man-made container that holds water,

is specifically designated for use by birds, and is placed in a location where birds have access to it.

Thus, even if a birdbath is built according to halacha, designated for birds, but is not placed in a

bird-accessible location, it is not called a "birdbath" in halacha and these laws do not apply.

II   - CONSTRUCTION

If a birdbath must be a water container specifically designated for use by birds, then the construction

must follow some legal details, such as how well does it hold water, what shape may it be, what

material is required, how stable must it be, what dimensions are required for the bowl, how high

above a surface the bowl must be, and whether a cover is required or even allowed.

A birdbath must hold water, at least a sufficient amount for a bird to bathe in and for at least the length

of time a bird would ordinarily use such a resource. It is generally recognized from observation that a

bird will spend between one and three minutes splashing around in water. While doing so, some water

will of necessity spill out, so in order to remain yotzei, the birdbath must contain enough water to allow

for spillage and still maintain the minimum quantity for that period of time. There are those who say this

period is enough for one bird, but others say that it must be maintained for enough time for three birds

consecutively. B'dieved, it is enough for one, but when constructing a new birdbath one must plan for

the stricter opinion. There must be enough water to cover most of the bird, which necessarily differs for

every size of bird. Our rabbis declared that this means an "average bird for the place". If your

neighborhood has many eagles and pelicans, you must use a bigger bowl than if it contained mainly

chickadees. The same applies to the depth of the bowl, in that the "average bird for the place" must be

able to fit most of its body into the bowl. A side issue on size is how many birds must be able to bathe at

one time, but the halacha is that if it is large enough only for one at a time, it is still sufficient. If the water

leaks or splashes out in less time than noted, it is a violation, thus there is a positive command to keep it

full when deployed.

Shape of the bowl is of no import so long as the bird is able to get in, so oval, round, square, triangular,

all are acceptable. No cover is required, and there are those who say that a cover is not even allowed

whenever birds are present. The bowl must be stable enough to keep the water inside in a stiff breeze,

and to avoid scaring off birds. At the same time, it may have some degree of movement to help scare off

predatory animals (see section VI). If the bowl is built onto a pedestal or placed on a raised surface such

as a table, it must be a minimum of three tefachim above the ground, however it need not be placed on

such a mounting, in fact it can even be dug partially into the ground so long as the other halachot in this

maimar are met. The primary factors are the ability for a human to perform maintenance and the likelihood

that predator access is better controlled by a higher pedestal (see sections III and VI).

There are those who say that a privacy screen is required for the birdbath as we do not know for certain

whether birds might be embarrassed to bathe in public. This position was rejected by our rabbis, and

no such screen is required. Birds that may be embarrassed are permitted to bring along their own

feather coat and to leave it on while in the bath.

III  - LOCATION

The birdbath must be set in a place that the owner has a legal right to control. It may not impact the

enjoyment by neighbors of their property, so may not be placed too high nor built too grandiose that

it would shade the next yard. It may not be set in a place that would be an "attractive nuisance", in

particular accessible to children or in view of other animals that will want to attack the birds. It may

not be set in a place where bird droppings will cause damage to another person's property, nor may

it be in a place where people are accustomed to walk, thus blocking their right of way.

It is the custom, although it is not required, to set it somewhere that the owner can view from a

reasonable distance. For the sake of the birds, it is advisable, although not required, that bird-friendly

plant life be close by. This includes, optionally, even attached to the birdbath. It is common to have a

flowerpot at the base (see section IV). It is not required that shade be provided as the birds don't

care, although humans wanting to sit and watch them may prefer shade for themselves.

Birds are scared by sudden loud noises, so a location must be selected that has a low probability of

such impact. This includes barking dogs and meowing cats, although the latter is not usually defined as 

loud, it is certainly loud to a bird. Birds are also scared by movement, so a location must be well away

from mechanical things that move, such as garden pinwheels. They should also be kept clear of natural

moving things such as swaying palm leaves.

IV   - DECORATION

Birds do not pay attention to decorations other than anything that draws them as a possible food

source. Thus decorating with plastic flowers may be nice for the human watchers, but it only annoys

the birds and is not recommended. Real flowers mean a source of nectar and bugs, both of which

mean food to birds, and these are permitted.

When considering decoration the questions one must ask are: 1) who is the birdbath for, and 2) do

birds actually need the birdbath. The two questions are interrelated. If birds need the birdbath then

building one solely for the sake of humans is prohibited. This would mean decorations must be

restricted to things that are beneficial to the birds, or at least that are not intrusive to them. It also

means that the answer to the first question would necessarily be "for the birds". However, if birds do

not actually need it, then either they will not come to it in any event, or if they do, it would mean that

the answer to the first question is "not for the birds", in which case decorations are not restricted even

if they scare away the birds. The fact that this is counterproductive to the entire project is irrelevant.

Decorations that move, whether by electric motor or wind or other power, would fit that last

category, where they entertain humans but are of no benefit for the birds, and may chase them

away entirely. Where a pool of water exists, there is a natural tendency in humans to do something

with it. In our context, that "something" could be a bubbling fountain, a whirlpool, a waterfall or similar

device. Since these do not cause issues for the birds, they are permitted. Floating pond plants may

be added provided the space rules are met for uncovered water (see section II). There is a custom

to use colored lighting at night, which again does not cause issues, so is permitted, although not

likely to attract birds after dark.

V    - SEASONS

Depending on where in the world one places the birdbath, impacts of seasons, and therefore the

halachot, may differ. During winter in cooler environments, one is obligated to remove the ice and

refill with water on at least a weekly basis. During summer, when birds need more drinking water

one is obligated to refill the bowl at least twice a week.

Cleaning the bowl is required at least monthly when bird use is low, such as in winter. The bowl

must be cleaned at least weekly when birds are frequenting the location. This cleaning can be

tied to the refill times.

There is a custom to place ice cubes into the water during hot summers. This custom is permitted,

but birds, being cold-blooded, do not benefit from it, and if there are too many pieces of ice, there

may not be sufficient water or sufficient room in the bowl for the birds, so caution is advised.

VI   - OTHER ANIMALS

As it is well-known that rodents and birds of prey do not read, and that while cats may appear to

read, they typically refuse to follow directions anyway, placing a sign warning away other animals is

not sufficient to meet the responsibility of keeping the birdbath safe. The halacha is that the person

who places the birdbath is responsible for the safety of its users, although limited to bird users.

Squirrels and other rodents typically want nothing to do with birds. Their interest in the birdbath is to

satisfy their own thirst, but in doing so they have negative impact on the birds, through depleting the

water, taking up the space that birds would have been using, and "dirtying" the water. Keeping these

animals out is a requirement in order to fully achieve the mitzvah of providing a birdbath to the birds.

Birds of prey, while being birds themselves who may wish to bathe, are typically too large to make

proper use of a backyard birdbath, and they tend to eat the other birds wishing to use it. Keeping

predatory birds out is an essential requirement, despite the difficulty one has in chasing off a barn

owl with a six-foot wingspan and large talons. As noted, cats commonly invade birdbaths, looking for

a poultry meal. Chasing them off can be a full-time job since they wait until you leave and then return.

The most efficient way to do this is to employ a dog. This is permitted as dogs rarely actually catch

cats, and when they do, don't know what to do with them so usually just release them.

One other animal requires review, the human. Humans are not permitted to bathe in a birdbath,

regardless of the size or location of the facility.

VII  - A MITZVAH

Is there actually a mitzvah to deploy a birdbath? We are not required  to construct or deploy a

birdbath. These halachot apply in the case that we choose to do so, just as the halachot of tzitzit

apply whenever we wear a four-cornered garment, but we are not required to make or wear one.

Thus, the "mitzvah" here is not a command to build a birdbath, rather a series of laws that apply

should we choose to build one.

Purim Sameach!