If you ever come across a dead or injured bird, you can help the Audubon Society by using a new online crowdsourcing data collection tool called D-Bird, at d-bird.org. When you report the bird fatality or injury on the site, your report gets pooled with others and is analyzed to help create something called a “project safe flight” plan. This research is compiled to figure out what structures, lights or other disruptions are causing bird deaths, so changes can be implemented to help our feathered friends.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

Your car needs antifreeze in order for it to work properly during cold winter months. But most antifreeze is also toxic, and unfortunately it has a sweet taste and smell, so animals like to ingest it when they find it spilled in a driveway or on the street. When buying or choosing antifreeze, look for (or ask for) antifreeze made with propylene glycol instead of ethylene glycol. The former is nontoxic. And you can also buy brands that include an added ingredient -- a bittering agent -- the taste of which is unappealing to animals.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

When cats are roaming outside, they like to find warm, hidden places to climb into. During the winter months, many cats will climb into a car’s engine compartment to be near the heat of a recently run engine. To avoid accidentally killing a cat when you start your car, make a habit of banging on the hood before you get in and turn on the ignition. The loud noise is usually enough to convince a cat to abandon its perch and run away to safety. And if you are a cat owner, don’t allow yours to roam outside during the winter months at all.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION