Help!

[Carrie]

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and have come here for some much needed advice. I have a 7 year African Grey called Herby, I've recently taken him on from my Mum and he has quickly become a much loved part of the family. My Mum developed asthma and the doctor thought it was related to Herby, this has been confirmed as when she visits me, being in the same room as him brings on an asthma attack (she very rarely has one otherwise), this has happened every time she comes around.

 

My concern is that my partner is also now demonstrating the same signs. He has had consistent chest problems for the last 6 weeks that are aggravated by being in the same room as the bird. I also recently has plurisy without an obvious cause like a cold or flu, although this could be un related.

 

Herby is in our front room as I'm aware he needs plenty of attention and things to look at. He is changed regularly and sprayed once a week.

 

The last thing I want is to have to give Herby away, but I'm also concerned about the effect he seems to be having on my families health. Has anyone here experienced similar problems? Do you have any advice!?

 

Thanks for taking the time to read this:)

[danmcq]

Sorry to hear of your Mother and your partners issues possibly with the bird dander. The only real solution is to give him a shower/misting at least 3 times a week and use Aloe Juice in a misting bottle to keep him nice and supple.

 

The other helpful suggestion would be to get and air purifier/humidifier for the living room which will keep the humidity up and also filter out any dander.

 

It's nice having you here. Looking forward to hearing more. :-)

[judygram]

Oh my Carrie if your partner is having the same symptoms then it looks like you have the same problem as your mum.

 

How many times a week is he given a bath? He should get thoroughly wet at least two times a week and more if the dust is a problem. Have you looked into getting an air cleaner, that might help with the dust that aggravates asthma.

 

I commend you on taking on this grey and it sounds like you really enjoy him but if it is making your partner sick then I don't know what else to tell you except that Herby may have to be rehomed but lets see what some of the other members have to say. Some here have been thru similar situations so they will chime in with what they know.

 

Introduce yourself in the welcome room and tell us a little more about you and Herby, post a pic of him if you have one as we would like to see him.

[Carrie]

Thank you so much for such a quick response and thanks for oyur advice. I'll pop into the introduce yourself section soon.

 

As regards baths, Herby has never really been used to water so I'm finding it difficult to get him to co operate with it! I've tried putting fairly heavy baths in his cage but he still manages to tip them over. I've been using sprays but it is very difficult to get him wet (i.e soaked) with those. He's pretty set in his ways and if doesn't like the look of something he won't go near it. Do you have any tips on introducing an older bird to water (baths)? I'm wary not to push him too much as I don't want to scare him:)

 

Re homing would have to be a last resort, we love this bird to pieces:(

[judygram]

He really needs those baths as they usually gets lots of showers when in the wild and it would help with the dust problem.

 

My grey does not like baths either but she gets a shower twice a week, I take her into the shower stall and use a handheld shower head on her to soak her completely, she tolerates it but does not like it.

 

Another suggestion is putting enough water in the bathtub until it would come up to the chest area on the grey and get them wet in that. A lot of us use that aloe vera juice afterwards as it softens the feathers and it is soothing to their skin.

[Carrie]

Thank you very much for that suggestion, I'll definately try that. I know for sure he's going to go mental when I do this but as you say it's for his own good I suppose!

 

I've not heard of this aloe vera juice before, does anyone know where I can get some? (just to make sure I get the right thing:blink: ) I'm so glad I found this forum, this could really make a massive difference for my family.

[lovemyGreys]

Hi Carrie,

 

You say your mum developed asthma ? Had she suffered from asthma in the past ? The reason i ask is because their is an illness that is associated with exposure to animal/bird dust called extrinsic allergic alveoltis.I have included a link for you to have a read,but thought it may be worth mentioning it if your partner appears to get worse.. You could also mention to your doctor to perhaps rule it out.Many asthma sufferers do keep greys & keep the attacks under control.I would invest in an air purifier which will certainly help keep the dust & dander to a minimum & plenty of soakings for the good of Herby & your partner..

 

http://www.lunguk.org/you-and-your-lungs/conditions-and-diseases/extrinsic-allergic-alveolitis.htm

[kittykittykitty]

Several members of my family have asthma. Spray/mist Herbie with pure aloe vera on the days he isn't bathed and dust the room daily with a damp paper towel if the furniture will tolerate. Daily vacuuming may be necessary, also. Air filters help many people. Another possibility is allergy to the parrot's food and not to the bird himself. Sorry it's SO much work. Look into ways of boosting all the humans' immunity as well. Good luck!! :cheer:

[Carrie]

Thanks everyone. My Mum didn't have asthma prior to getting Herby so I think it could be directly related, thanks for the link I'll have a look at that now.

 

My partner looked after an injured buzzard for about a week a while ago. He had to keep it in the house temporarily and had a similar reaction to that as well (I don't know if buzzards also produce a lot of dust!).

 

I don't mind putting in the work if it means we can keep herby. I'll be trying the bath idea tomorrow and will look for some aloe vera juice. From what everyone has said, getting him wet to a certain degree everyday could be the answer to this. Again thanks for your advice:)

[Carrie]

I've just read that link, it's sounds exactly like the situation with my Mum. Some of the symptoms listed are also what my partner is experiencing,cough, headache, sore throat and lack of energy. I hadn't related the other symtoms before, he'd just noticed he felt worse when in the same room as Herby.

 

Does anyone know if this could also lead to plurisy? I've had a bad case of it recently and the doctors were baffled bacause it's usually caused by a cold or flu which I haven't had (also never had any lung problems before).

 

We're obviously just very unlucky to be experiencing these probems, i hope that doesn't worry anyone else too much. I think this kind of reaction is probably pretty rare:)<br><br>Post edited by: Carrie, at: 2008/07/21 01:03

[kittykittykitty]

Do you have access to a good allergist/pulmonologist? What to say?:huh: B)

[Acappella]

Are either of you prone to allergies? What about specifically to nuts? This only pops into my head because Dorian recently had a visit from my brother's wife's step nephew (is that complicated enough?) and he's so allergic to peanuts he had to just stand in the door a few feet from the cage and just talk to Dorian.

 

Herby may not like being plopped in a tub with water up to his chest, but he'd like losing his family less, right? Problem is, we can't explain that to our birds! We just have to receive the "how could you do this to me" looks, knowing it's in their best interest.

 

If you're in the market for an air filter, look for one with filters you can wipe clean, not ones you have to replace. They cost a bit more up-front, but with the amount of dust a grey produces the money you'll save not buying filters every couple of months will soon make up for it.

 

Just do a search here for 'aloe juice' Lots of info from previous posts. I'm pulling for you keeping your flock together.

[Mel]

I had an allergist test me as asthma was getting worse. I am allergic to dogs, cats, horse, rabbit, guinea pig type pets, cockroach, certain molds, ggrasses and trees. NOT FEATHERS/BIRDS. My allergies worsened moving here to Texas. I needed to identify pets or environment. When you have these tests done it isn't a guarantee that you are allergic to your specific bird or not EVEN though you may test POSITIVE for ffeather allergies but it can give you an idea. Another example would be bedding. Some persons are not allergic to cats but to the LITTER.

[lovemyGreys]

Carrie im pleased the link was of some help,it may be worth mentioning the allergic alveoltis if your partner has to see the Doc It is from what i know quite rare but i do know of two people in the UK who suffer from it & it was directly related to them owning parrots.