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Human flu/illness and birds

Ashnic

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Hi all. Probably asked before .
But what is everyone's thoughts / experience with being sick and how it affects your birds?

I've read many different things saying yes you can/can't make your bird sick by having a cold or the flu.

My mum had a cold and her budgie got sick and died. Coincidence? I don't know, but worrying.
 

Shezbug

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I was told by my AV that some viruses are species specific but others are able to be transmitted between species.

I’m not positive but I think the flu may be one that can be passed between different species.

I believe the flu is also easily transmitted to ferrets.

I am happy to be corrected if I am wrong, just sharing what I have been told :)
 

Monica

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Generally speaking, birds can't catch our illness. As per this website, some avian zoonotic diseases include "avian tuberculosis, erysipelas, ornithosis, cryptococcosis, salmonellosis, cryptosporidiosis and campylobacterosis"... The most common one that is transmitted between parrots and humans is chlamydiosis (aka pscittacosis, parrot fever and ornithosis). Even then, it's not very common. Although rare, parrots can also get pneumonia if a human is sick with it. There's a few others too that are less common. (i.e. MRSA)

Parrot Fever (Psittacosis): Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatments

Your mothers budgie dying when your mother was sick was either coincidence or maybe your mother did get her budgie sick... human saliva can be deadly to birds, even when we are 100% healthy. If there's any chance that your mother was sick and somehow "shared" her saliva with her budgie, that could have been enough to kill him. If the saliva doesn't kill them, it can at least make the birds sick. They can still act perfectly healthy and normal, but still have an infection.


I'd say that as long as you keep your hands and face clean, it's still fine to interact with your bird.
 
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