Possible Exposure to Teflon?

[stellaphanty]

So today my family went to my grandmother's house to spend Christmas at, and I brought my cockatiel, Charlie with me. He was fine hanging out in the main room by the kitchen for hours but a little after my family began cooking, he began to act out of ordinary.

He was yawning excessively, with no end. One yawn after another after another. He also was shaking his head. I realized that even after telling my family the dangers of teflon, they were in fact cooking with a teflon pan. I took him into another room that was cooler and fresh and he seemed to calm down and stop yawning a few minutes later. But it scared me a lot!

Was he acting this way because of the exposure to teflon?

Also, just an fyi we were informed by staff at the store that teflon could be used safely as long as it was not overheated because it only released fumes when the pan was overheated. Any thoughts?

Thanks.

 

[Birdbabe]

Just watch him, maybe the yawning thing was him trying to adjust his crop. I hope he's ok.

 

[Laurie]

He sounds okay.

Cooking with any teflon is potentially dangerous because it is easy to overheat even during normal cooking. Before you know it it could be too late.

 

[saroj12]

Don’t take him to places where you don’t have control of the environment.

 

[Jas]

There isn't a cure for a bird who has been exposed to Teflon and it's all about the dosage that they get, how big the bird is and how quickly you respond. The fumes of teflon will spread around the house.

Signs of Teflon poisoning are seizures such as head shaking and wing twitching, breathing heavily, gasping, tail bobbing and death.

Once the fumes go into the birds lungs and air sacs they break down the birds capillaries in them (there are tons as it is used for gas exchange) this means they start to fill up the lungs and then they drowned in their own fluid.

It probably was an accident but that's all that it takes most times, and watching one of your pets suffering and you can't do anything to help them nor a vet is heartbreaking. Like @saroj12 said don't take him to places that you can't control as most people will just forget about air fresheners and Teflon pans, even their cats and dogs.

I hope he is okay!

 

[saroj12]

consider yourself lucky. Throw out all the teflon pans quietly, buy your family a set of ss cookware and cuisinart green pan skillets that look and act like teflon but are not teflon. Use your christmas money or savings if you have to. You havent read the heartbreaking stories on AA of people losing their entire flock due to teflon even at normal temperatures. The salesman is wrong.

 

[iamwhoiam]

Hope Charlie is doing OK.

 

[Donna turner]

Let me start this by saying I have discarded all teflon pans and wouldn't use one now. But, years ago I had a cockatiel and lived in an apt. I cooked every thing in teflon pans,baked and fried (high heat). My bird never showed any signs of distress. We later moved to a large new house with fresh paint, some of it oil. I also polyurethane coated the kitchen and foyer after we moved in. No problems with the bird. Also, when in the apt. we had pesticide treatment every month and the bird walked around on the carpet every day. No problem with the bird. He lived for many years with my ignorance with no problems. Now I'm paranoid about everything that's talked about on here and have changed my ways accordingly because ,better safe than sorry, but I can't help but wonder if the dangers are somewhat exaggerated. I burned scented candles all the time with my other bird but am afraid of them now. I'm not recommending anyone including me not heed the warnings but I do wonder about some.

 

[blewin]

There's been a ton of research on teflon, fumes, and birds...here's one that is relatively simple:
Teflon Toxicity (PTFE Toxicosis) in Birds: Signs and Prevention

Basically, teflon in the oven, under normal baking temperatures is okay (unless you are broiling). Teflon on the stove is risky, because you've gotta keep it on medium or low (which are the temperatures you are supposed to use teflon at, anyway, but who does that?). I'd be more concerned about irons, hair dryers, etc.

The real problem is that even with a necroscopy, there's no way of a conclusive diagnosis unless the bird was positively exposed to fumes and then more or less immediately died.

Getting rid of the teflon pans is a good idea, but realize that they are probably not your biggest problem in terms of PTFE sources.

 

[stellaphanty]

Just watch him, maybe the yawning thing was him trying to adjust his crop. I hope he's ok.

He sounds okay.

Cooking with any teflon is potentially dangerous because it is easy to overheat even during normal cooking. Before you know it it could be too late.

Don’t take him to places where you don’t have control of the environment.

There isn't a cure for a bird who has been exposed to Teflon and it's all about the dosage that they get, how big the bird is and how quickly you respond. The fumes of teflon will spread around the house.

Signs of Teflon poisoning are seizures such as head shaking and wing twitching, breathing heavily, gasping, tail bobbing and death.

Once the fumes go into the birds lungs and air sacs they break down the birds capillaries in them (there are tons as it is used for gas exchange) this means they start to fill up the lungs and then they drowned in their own fluid.

It probably was an accident but that's all that it takes most times, and watching one of your pets suffering and you can't do anything to help them nor a vet is heartbreaking. Like @saroj12 said don't take him to places that you can't control as most people will just forget about air fresheners and Teflon pans, even their cats and dogs.

I hope he is okay!

consider yourself lucky. Throw out all the teflon pans quietly, buy your family a set of ss cookware and cuisinart green pan skillets that look and act like teflon but are not teflon. Use your christmas money or savings if you have to. You havent read the heartbreaking stories on AA of people losing their entire flock due to teflon even at normal temperatures. The salesman is wrong.

Hope Charlie is doing OK.

Let me start this by saying I have discarded all teflon pans and wouldn't use one now. But, years ago I had a cockatiel and lived in an apt. I cooked every thing in teflon pans,baked and fried (high heat). My bird never showed any signs of distress. We later moved to a large new house with fresh paint, some of it oil. I also polyurethane coated the kitchen and foyer after we moved in. No problems with the bird. Also, when in the apt. we had pesticide treatment every month and the bird walked around on the carpet every day. No problem with the bird. He lived for many years with my ignorance with no problems. Now I'm paranoid about everything that's talked about on here and have changed my ways accordingly because ,better safe than sorry, but I can't help but wonder if the dangers are somewhat exaggerated. I burned scented candles all the time with my other bird but am afraid of them now. I'm not recommending anyone including me not heed the warnings but I do wonder about some.

There's been a ton of research on teflon, fumes, and birds...here's one that is relatively simple:
Teflon Toxicity (PTFE Toxicosis) in Birds: Signs and Prevention

Basically, teflon in the oven, under normal baking temperatures is okay (unless you are broiling). Teflon on the stove is risky, because you've gotta keep it on medium or low (which are the temperatures you are supposed to use teflon at, anyway, but who does that?). I'd be more concerned about irons, hair dryers, etc.

The real problem is that even with a necroscopy, there's no way of a conclusive diagnosis unless the bird was positively exposed to fumes and then more or less immediately died.

Getting rid of the teflon pans is a good idea, but realize that they are probably not your biggest problem in terms of PTFE sources.

Thanks so much everyone.. I will be sure to fully inform the rest of my family that teflon cannot be used when we visit. We are now back home and he is doing totally fine, but I will be much more careful next time.

 

[Tiel Feathers]

Let me start this by saying I have discarded all teflon pans and wouldn't use one now. But, years ago I had a cockatiel and lived in an apt. I cooked every thing in teflon pans,baked and fried (high heat). My bird never showed any signs of distress. We later moved to a large new house with fresh paint, some of it oil. I also polyurethane coated the kitchen and foyer after we moved in. No problems with the bird. Also, when in the apt. we had pesticide treatment every month and the bird walked around on the carpet every day. No problem with the bird. He lived for many years with my ignorance with no problems. Now I'm paranoid about everything that's talked about on here and have changed my ways accordingly because ,better safe than sorry, but I can't help but wonder if the dangers are somewhat exaggerated. I burned scented candles all the time with my other bird but am afraid of them now. I'm not recommending anyone including me not heed the warnings but I do wonder about some.

I was wondering, how old was your cockatiel when he passed?Maybe sometimes it’s the cumulative effect of certain toxins that shorten their lives, but not always something that happens right away unless it’s a high enough exposure.

 

[Donna turner]

Tiel feathers, he was 19. I think it was probably his diet that did him in early. I tried to get him to eat things besides seeds but never succeeded. There were no pellets back then to try. He wouldn't eat his seed unless sunflower was included. He was a really sweet but stubborn tiel. I loved him very much but obviously didn't know a lot of things I should have. Didn't have computers back then. This wed site has helped me so much to take proper care of cheeky

 

[Tiel Feathers]

Tiel feathers, he was 19. I think it was probably his diet that did him in early. I tried to get him to eat things besides seeds but never succeeded. There were no pellets back then to try. He wouldn't eat his seed unless sunflower was included. He was a really sweet but stubborn tiel. I loved him very much but obviously didn't know a lot of things I should have. Didn't have computers back then. This wed site has helped me so much to take proper care of cheeky

Nineteen is pretty good, I hope my tiels live to at least 19!

 

[nu2birds]

I love to cook and had a whole collection of non stick pots and pans. I got my two male Lovebirds birds in July so this was all pretty new to me. I ended up giving some of my better non stick pans away to friends and then donated the rest to a second hand store. I bought all new ceramic non stick cookware. I love the cookware, in my opinion it's even better than teflon. I had a close friend who had a cockatoo and one night he forgot and walked away from a teflon pan which he was heating up and getting ready to stir fry in................long story short his bird passed away within 24 hours (the bird was in the living room) in spite of immediate vet care. it was heart breaking for him and a huge lesson for me.

 

[Monica]

Just because a pan is non-stick does not mean that it contains PTFE - one brand name being Teflon (like Kleenex is a brand name of tissues).

The only way to know for sure is to contact the manufacturer of the pan and ask them.

 

[blewin]

I love to cook and had a whole collection of non stick pots and pans. I got my two male Lovebirds birds in July so this was all pretty new to me. I ended up giving some of my better non stick pans away to friends and then donated the rest to a second hand store. I bought all new ceramic non stick cookware. I love the cookware, in my opinion it's even better than teflon. I had a close friend who had a cockatoo and one night he forgot and walked away from a teflon pan which he was heating up and getting ready to stir fry in................long story short his bird passed away within 24 hours (the bird was in the living room) in spite of immediate vet care. it was heart breaking for him and a huge lesson for me.

Yeah, see combination of empty pan and probably high heat. That's not how non-stick is supposed to be used. Again, it's all about the usage, but when in doubt, there's nothing wrong with throwing it out.

 

[Tara81]

There are ceramic pans that are safe with no PTFE , i got two from dominion store, it said on the label no PTFE or PTFa or something

 

[blewin]

Just as a side note, we should be keeping all of our 'fids out of the kitchen if any cooking is going on, and if you have a real ventilation system over the stove, you should be using it. Burning anything can create fumes that aren't great for birds (or people).

 

[Cockatielhour]

On a completely other note I notice my tiels shake their heads when something is too loud or their trying to learn something. The shaking of the head could merely been the volume in the household especially if there were more people then he/she is used to and the yawning could be adjusting of the crop. Its good that you caught that your family was using teflon early. Nice job keeping an eye out! Be sure to continue to be aware of all environments your birds is placed in.