Hypochondriatic Neighbor?

[LJ4RockPebbler]

I just moved into a building and met my neighbor who's an elderly lady. She knows that I have a bird and commented how she's sickly and worries now that my bird and or his droppings will eventually make her sick being that her apartment is next to mine. I stay on top of my bird and make sure his droppings are always cleaned up be it in has cage or on the perches he has throughout the apartment. My question is, can a bird make someone sick from one apartment to the one next to it? Thanks

[Wolf]

I will not say that it can't happen, because I believe that with the right circumstances that anything is possible. I will say that the chances of you bird making her sick are next to impossible. There are a few diseases in birds, just as in other animals, that can be transmitted to humans, but they usually require coming into direct contact with the bird and/ or its droppings, I think.

While quarantining a bird actually requires either a separate building or its own air supply, most homeowners can't afford these things, so the next best way is to have the bird in a separate room from other birds, and as long as normal hygiene is practiced, this works very well in most cases. This last is between birds, which have diseases that are more readily transmitted from bird to bird, and it takes more for a disease to be transmitted from bird to human.

[liz]

Your bird could make her sick mentally even if she has no symptoms. My son is allergic to the dander and gets sick if near them too much. She could be a real problem. Don't let her in your apartment. Don't talk about your bird to her in hopes she will forget about it. Since we all need someone to tell what new things the bird is doing just tell the forum.

Also, welcome to the forum. You will like it here.

[EllenD]

I believe you were correct by calling her a "hypochondriac" in that she is worrying about something that has little chance of happening, but what I've found is that a lot of people have no pet bird experience and they fear what they don't know about. The odds of your bird carrying a disease that could infect a human are very low, especially if you're not sick yourself. If the woman is allergic to birds she would have to have contact with it's dander or feathers, and that shouldn't happen unless she's in your apartment.

I would try to explain that there are only a select few diseases that birds can spread to humans, and that your bird is perfectly healthy and is not exposed to other birds outside to contract a disease. I would emphasize that you're not ill and that pet birds are different than wild birds. Tell her she would have to have direct contact with your bird's droppings, dander, or feathers to contract anything even if it was sick.

If it really becomes a problem, you may want to take your bird to an avian vet for a wellness exam and blood work. Then you can bring the clean bill of health report back to your neighbor, and this should relax her.

[Pajarita]

Yes, I agree with Ellen (by the way, welcome to the forum!), the lady is either a hypochondriac or is under a misconception. This is common in older people. My mother was always and forever predicting doom because I was always touching and kissing animals - especially the parrots! To this day I am surprised they did not learn to say "You are going to catch psittacosis!" because Lord knows they heard it on a daily basis!

Tell her that the only disease a human would catch would be psittacosis (don't use the newer term, chlamydiosis because, most likely, she doesn't know it by this name) and that your bird has been tested for it and it doesn't have it. Neither is strictly true but, sometimes, one needs to stretch the truth a bit to make the information more accessible.

[Bird woman]

Sounds like a classic busybody to me. There's a couple things you can do. Just ignore her like the girls said or bake her a pie and be helpful to her without letting her into your apartment and then she will be more than likely view you as a friend and less likely to cause you trouble. Either way don't let her into your personal life I've seen people like this before and they can turn into a real pain. BW

[seagoatdeb]

She is worried and elderly so just being pleasant and reassuring her will probably be all you need to do. If the landlord let you in to the buiding and he feels fine about it, nothing she can say can cause you any trouble.

[LJ4RockPebbler]

Thank you all for your input. I take my bird for a checkup every 6 months with his avian vet just to make sure he is ok. I have an appointment next Tuesday and will be asking the vet the same questions hoping that maybe he can put something in writing for me just in case I have to present it to my neighbor as to reassure her. Anyway, thanks again...(P.S.) I'm not new to the forum, just haven't been on for a few months....Thanks ANYWAY!

[Navre]

Tell her that having a parrot you love has meant you have had to stop cooking meth in your apartment.

[Wolf]

Perhaps the thing to do would be to show her the results of your birds check up so that she knows the bird is healthy and explain to her that she has nothing to fear from your bird and invite her to go with you to your birds next check up and let her hear from the vet that she has nothing to worry about.

Many an older person has grown up hearing all about the diseases that they could catch from wild animals and especially birds. Most of these stories originated from their parents as a means of keeping curious children from handling strange wild animals. It was actually meant to keep them safe from getting bitten by animals that they were not familiar with or by snakes and small animals that might be infected with rabies. And these stories were drilled into them and passed on.