Woman battling crippling disease caused by pigeon feces

Woman battling crippling disease caused by pigeon feces

Woman battling crippling disease caused by pigeon feces

In the span of a few weeks, Erica Richards has been transformed from a vibrant 23-year-old woman who loved nature to a person battling for her life.pigeon feces

In early January, the Fredericton woman contracted a potentially fatal condition called cryptococcal meningitis, a fungal disease carried in pigeon feces.

The debilitating illness attacks the spine and brain, causing severe swelling. It left her confined to a hospital bed in a state of delirium for weeks.

But the most devastating side effect is that Ms. Richards is now blind.

“Be aware of this disease. It could kill a child in a heartbeat,” Ms. Richards said in an interview from her hospital bed.

“It could kill a senior in a heartbeat without you even having to worry about the symptoms. It comes on that fast. If you don’t realize the symptoms, it could kill you, too.”

Her emotional warning comes on the heels of city council’s approval earlier this month of a recommendation that it toughen its animal control bylaw to allow for fines for feeding pigeons. Once the amendment is drafted and declared law, it will give the city’s bylaw enforcement officers the power to ticket and fine offenders.

Ms. Richards said she decided to go public about her illness after learning about a recent newspaper story about a problem with pigeon poop in the city.

“Please don’t feed the pigeons,” she said. “Try to shoo them away if you see them. … It (the disease) is horrible. The pain that you get from this disease is crippling.

“The after-effects are with you for life and you just can’t stop thinking about it. I just want other people to know and try to stay away from pigeons and pigeon feces.”

Oddly enough, Ms. Richards said she has no recollection of ever being anywhere near pigeons.

“I am still wondering to this day where I got it,” she said. “I could have stepped in it and brought it into the home. I just don’t know.”

Ms. Richards said the symptoms started with a migraine headache that wouldn’t go away. She was admitted to hospital on Feb. 10 after many days of intense head pain. Shortly after, she went into a coma-like state.

“When I woke up I thought I had a mask over my eyes, but I was wrong. I was blind. I was recently told that I will be blind for the rest of my life. This is a tough thing for a 23-year-old to go through. … My world crumbled around me.”

Ms. Richards said the odds of surviving the disease are 50-50.

“However, I managed to make it through,” she said, battling tears. “I don’t know how but I am still here, and I am glad because I get to warn everyone else of this.”

Cristin Muecke, the Health Department’s regional medical officer, confirmed the disease is often associated with pigeon droppings. She said the illness can’t be spread person to person and is more common with someone who has immune problems.

Ms. Richards, however, said she has never had a problem with her immune system and that’s what’s so puzzling about contracting the affliction.

“I do not want anyone else to suffer this agonizing disease and I ask anyone who is feeding pigeons to stop,” she said. “It’s not just a matter of keeping your neighbourhood clean … it’s a matter of keeping people healthy.”

Source

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Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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Harmful bacteria carried by pigeons

Harmful bacteria carried by pigeons

Sampling of pigeons captured on the streets of Madrid has revealed the bacterial pathogens they carry. Researchers writing in BioMed Central’s open access journal Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica found two bugs that were highly prevalent in the bird population, Chlamydophila psittaci and Campylobacter jejuni, both of which cause illness in humans carried by pigeons.women feeding pigeons

Fernando Esperón from the Animal Health Research Center, Madrid, Spain, worked with a team of researchers to analyse blood and enema samples taken from 118 pigeons caught using gun-propelled nets.

He said, “The present study demonstrates the extremely high prevalence of two zoonotic pathogens in feral pigeons in Madrid. At the same time, infection with these pathogens did not appear to be associated with any harmful clinical signs in the birds themselves. This leads to the hypothesis that pigeons act as asymptomatic reservoirs of Chlamydophila psittaci and Campylobacter jejuni. These birds may therefore pose a public health risk to the human population.”

Chlamydophila psittaci was found in 52.6% of the carried by pigeons captured, while Campylobacter jejuni was present in 69.1%. Although there have been few reports of disease transmission between pigeons and humans, it can occur by aerosols, direct contact or indirect contact through food and water contamination.

According to Esperón, “Thermophilic Campylobacter species are considered the primary pathogens responsible for acute diarrhea in the world. In fact, in many countries such as England and Wales, Canada, Australia and New Zealand Campylobacter jejuni infection causes more cases of acute diarrhea than infection by Salmonella species.”

Source

At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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Feeding pigeon is like feeding flying RAT 

Feeding pigeon is like feeding flying RAT 

Feed a Pigeon, Breed a Flying RAT 

flying rat

Q: I’ve often heard that it is illegal to feed pigeons in New York, yet I see people doing it all the time. Is there really such a law? And if so, why isn’t it enforced?

A: Despite a common public perception, there is no law that makes pigeon feeding illegal everywhere in the city. That said, the Parks Department posts notices prohibiting feeding in many areas under its control. If you ignore the sign, you may get an Environmental Control Board summons from the parks enforcement patrols or from the Police Department. The usual penalty is the minimum of $50, which you can mail in. You can fight it in court, but you can be fined $100 if you are found guilty. 

Even where pigeon feeding is not prohibited, both the Parks and Health Departments discourage the practice, citing litter and rodent problems. A Health Department poster warns: “Feed a Pigeon, Breed a Flying Rat.” 

This attitude irks Anna Dove, founder and director of the New York Bird Club. “There is never any left-over feed from people feeding pigeons and other wildlife in the city, so littering is a poor excuse against pigeon feeding,” said Ms. Dove. (Yes, that’s her name; she had it legally changed from Augusta Kugelmas when she founded the club about three years ago.) 

“After I feed,” she added, “most of the time I remain in the area to make sure the feed is not swept away by building maintenance people. Every morsel is eaten.” 

Source: NY Times

At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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Hutchinson battles growing pigeon problems

Hutchinson battles growing pigeon problems

Is Hutchinson facing growing pigeon problems? The experts agree: There are definitely more pigeons in Hutchinson these days. 

growing pigeon

And with the increased population comes growing pigeon problems related both to public health and property maintenance. 

Pigeons plague the Reno County Courthouse, several churches and most of the downtown area. 

Many people are resigned that pigeons are a natural addition to any tall building, but some Hutchinson business owners are taking a stand. 

Last week, Advance Pest Control performed a “baiting” of pigeons in the downtown area.

Advance was hired by a coalition of business owners – who have remained anonymous to The Hutchinson News – who sought to reduce the pigeon population downtown because of health concerns and property damage. 

In the baiting, toxic corn was strategically placed about the downtown area. 

The birds who eat the bait eventually die but first display intoxicated behavior. 

“Basically, this behavior is a stress signal to the other birds, which leave the area because they sense that something is not right,” said Jeff Wells, vice president of Advance. “So it results in a great reduction in population in a specific area because of the birds who take a toxic dose as well as the repellency issue.” 

The baiting has resulted in a reduced population of pigeons downtown, but Wells said he has noticed that there are more birds roosting on nearby buildings that weren’t baited. 

Health, property concerns 

Pigeon droppings aren’t just a nuisance or an extra chore for property owners. Because they are acidic, they actually cause property damage, eating through metal and deteriorating signs and other metal objects at a rapid rate. 

The biggest growing pigeon problems, though, comes in cleaning the droppings. 

Pigeon fecal matter is a breeding ground for a spore called histoplasmosis, which can cause an infection that leads to respiratory disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The infection, if it affects other organs, can be fatal if untreated. 

Workers cleaning up the droppings cause histoplasmosis spores to become airborne and are infected when they breathe them in. 

Pigeons are also known to carry or transmit pigeon ornithosis, encephalitis, Newcastle disease, cryptococcosis, toxoplasmosis, salmonella food poisoning and several other diseases, according to the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. 

For that reason, the Kansas Department of Agriculture files the use of certain pigeon-control products under the category of public health and safety. 

It’s a problem not lost on local businesses. 

Next week, workers trained in safely removing pigeon waste will clean piles of pigeon droppings from the Fox Theatre marquee, which is being eroded by the waste, said board president Greg Payton. 

Payton added that some theater employee illnesses have been blamed on the droppings. 

Birds not protected 

Pigeons are not protected by Kansas law, meaning property owners are free to dispose of them as they wish, Wells said. 

But until the recent baiting, little has been done over the past seven years to control the pigeon population, which has led to the increase Hutchinson is seeing now, Wells said. 

“The population has definitely increased,” Wells said. “There’s no question about that.” 

In 2001, a baiting occurred, although it wasn’t performed by Advance, Wells said. A reduction in the pigeon population followed, but then the pigeon population was generally left alone except for some property owners putting up spikes or other roosting deterrents. 

“These birds breed so quickly that the population explodes when nothing is done to limit them,” Wells aid. 

Even some pigeon enthusiasts seem to understand the need for the population control. 

“I don’t know the real solution,” said Mel Voth, a Garden City man who raises homing pigeons. “There are ways to divert them to other places, but I think a lot of folks feel like the baiting is the easiest way to reduce the population.” 

Wells said there will always be a struggle between people who want pigeons eliminated and those who believe it’s wrong to kill them off, but he believes there can be a healthy compromise. 

“Ultimately, we are trying to protect public health and safety, not eliminate a species of birds,” he said. “I place the safety of my kids above the population of pigeons. When the population reaches a certain point, it becomes an issue and something needs to be done.” 

Source of the Story

About Pigeon Patrol

Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird issues in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions.

At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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Pigeon Patrol Advisory

Pigeon Patrol Advisory

At Pigeon Patrol we like to share what we know about pigeons so you know what you are dealing with with this pigeon advisory

pigeon egg

Breeding period: All year round

Nest: Rough nest made with twigs usually on or in buildings and never in trees

Number of eggs: 2 white eggs

Incubation period: 18/19 days

Fledging period: 25/32 days (up to 45 days in winter)

Food: Seed eater that will exploit multiple food sources including waste food in urban areas and deliberate feeding by the public. 

Click Here to see pigeon related diseases in their droppings

Pigeons are commonly found roosting and breeding in roof voids and attic spaces with property owners often needing to exclude them and block up the entry/exit holes. It is important to be aware that because the pigeon breeds all-year round there is never a safe time to exclude birds when there will not be pigeon squabs (chicks) or flightless juvenile birds in situ. Blocking access holes may result in adult and flightless birds becoming trapped. Apart from the obvious humanitarian implications there are serious health and safety implications for the property owner concerned. If birds die as a result of having been sealed inside a void of any description the decomposing carcasses will become maggot-infested within a matter of days, particularly in summer months.
 

What you can do to prevent pigeon nuisances: 

  1. Remove all FOOD AND WATER SOURCES from the property 
  1. Remove all BIRD WASTE, feathers and abandoned nesting materials 
  1. Discourage ROOSTING with wire or nylon mesh or other materials 
  1. Maintain property in a clean, nuisance-free condition at all times 
  1. Do NOT feed pigeons 

Pigeon Patrol has pioneered highly effective methods of controlling pigeon population in your area please check out our products to see how you can deal with unwanted pigeons in your home today. Stay tuned to learn more with pigeon advisory as we update it through time.

At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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Pidgeon Patrol has pioneered highly effective methods of controlling pigeon population in your area please check out our products to see how you can deal with unwanted pidgeons in your home today. 

The new pigeon wars

The new pigeon wars

The New Pigeon Wars. Rats with wings, or majestic streetwise bird? It’s a debate that’s raged almost as long as New York City has been called that. And this week, the war of pigeon between the two sides boiled over again.

pigeon feeding war

A man feeds the pifeons in Times Square in 1949 (and was probably beaten a short time later.)

Pigeon wars started when the exclusive University Club had its feathers ruffled. It wanted to drape its storied building in netting, to protect it from pigeon poo, which eats away at stone and metal. But the Landmarks Commission said it would have to wait for approval, as it would be a “visible change” to the land marked Italian Renaissance building’s facade. As if the crap wasn’t a “visible change” enough. 

Meanwhile, over on East 93rd Street, there was a scuffle involving longtime pigeon activist Anna Dove and her neighbor, who snatched away her bag of seed after he saw her feeding the pigeons on the sidewalk. The police were summoned. 

“It’s disgusting,” said her nemesis, retired teacher Arthur Schwartz. “She’s feeding the rats.” 

And with the live pigeon-shooting state championships in Pennsylvania coming up, it’s almost guaranteed that there will be an increase in demand of pigeon-poaching — New York City is a favorite spot for trapping them and transporting them to be used as live targets. The animal-rights activists will be out with their cameras and signs to stop them. 

No matter which side you’re on, one things for certain — by the end, things are going to get a little birdbrained. 

“It’s not the pigeons that are the problem, it’s the number of them,” says Andrew D. Blechman, author of “Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World’s Most Revered and Reviled Bird.” “They’re gentle creatures. The problem is that they get in our face, just like we get in each other’s faces.” 

No one one’s quite sure of how many pigeons are in New York City. One adage is “one pigeon per person,” which would put their numbers at about 7 million. They each produce about 25 pounds of waste per year. 

Pigeons love cities because of the many ledges, windowsills, eaves and rooftops available for them to roost in, which mimics their natural habitat of high cliffs. Pigeon pairings are monogamous, often mating for life, and both parents raise the babies — called squab — for a time, sitting on the eggs in shifts. 

The pigeon includes about 298 species of bird, but the Rock Dove is the most common to the New York area, according to the Parks Department. The grey, bobbing-headed birds usually have purple-green iridescence around the neck area. They’re the scruffiest members of the dove family — although “dove” usually connotes the pure white symbols of peace, not the pizza scavengers of city streets. (Just say they’ve been pigeonholed.) 

“If they were white,” Blechman says, “people would love them.” 

Blame the French for our pigeon problems. The little pluckers first arrived in the early 1600s with French settlers who used them for meat. They were easy to raise — they could be kept in a barn, where they’d perch on the rafters, and young pigeons served as a good source of protein. 

But they soon escaped their confines and went feral. 

City life agreed with them and allowed them to flourish — and in some cases, over-flourish. Their natural predators, like falcons and hawks, aren’t found here in great numbers. 

Courtney Humphries, author of “Superdove: How the Pigeon Took Manhattan . . . And the World,” concedes that pigeon are pilloried partly because of their “persistence. They nest on the buildings we consider our territory, and they don’t like to be moved.” 

The average city pigeon has a lifespan of three to five years. With all the food scattered throughout the garbage cans and sidewalks — plus well-meaning human feeders — they spend less time looking for grub, which leaves more time for mating. 

“The biggest problem is the people who overfeed them,” says Blechman. “Every city has about a dozen of them, and they’re the ones who cause the [overpopulation] problem.” 

He suggests that if you want to feed the birds, hand out just a teaspoon full of birdseed for a flock. “It’s just enough to give them a little extra energy while they’re out trying to find their own food.” 

“If nobody fed pigeons, I think things would look a lot different,” agrees Humphries, who says that human feeders end up creating dense flocks. “A lot of the problem with pigeons comes from people.” 

If you can’t freeze the hearts of little old ladies, though, you could try eating them (the pigeons, that is). Squab — baby pigeons that haven’t flown yet — is on the menu at many restaurants around the city, particularly French. They’re “basically the milk-fed veal of the sky,” says Blechman — tender, mostly dark meat, and one of the only poultry that can be eaten rare. (Pigeons produce their own milk-like substance, which they feed to their young by regurgitation.) 

Pigeon pot pie was a huge colonial favorite. Today, try the Squab and Foie Croustillant at the Modern, Danny Meyer’s restaurant at the Museum of Modern Art. 

* 

Unless the appetite for squab skyrockets, New York’s options are few. Avicide — poisoning birds — was made illegal in 2000, when the state Legislature passed a bill outlawing the use of “flock dispersal agents” like Avitrol in cities with more than 1 million people. 

Before that, property managers regularly hired pest control services to dole out Avatrol to flocks of pigeons. 

“In theory, you would mix it with feed, and when one pigeon ate some of the treated food, they would begin to suffer from neurological toxicity,” explained Stephanie Boyles, wildlife expert at the Humane Society of the United States. “When their flockmates saw them suffering, it would prompt them to leave the area.” 

In practice, however, overdosing often led to large numbers of birds convulsing and writhing in pain on the street before their deaths. Welcome to New York! 

The last major flare-up of pigeon wars was in 2007, when City Councilman Simcha Felder released a report plaintively titled, “Curbing the Pigeon Conundrum.” 

Claiming that their droppings carried a host of diseases like histoplasmosis, he proposed a $1,000 fine to anyone feeding them, as well as curbing their numbers through birth control (a measure that cities like Los Angeles have adopted, although some argue that it’s unsustainable), and appointing a city “Pigeon Czar” to oversee other pigeon-control issues. 

The NYC Department of of Health and Mental Hygiene maintains that contact with their droppings only poses a small health risk, and that “routine cleaning of droppings (e.g. from windowsills) does not pose a serious health risk to most people,” although disposable gloves are a good idea. 

The Humane Society came out against the anti-feeding fine because they weren’t sure it would actually make a difference in reducing flocks, said Boyles. “We still suggest working with communities to create places where pigeons are welcome, and discouraging them where they’re not.” 

While Felder’s bill didn’t fly, it was only one of many efforts to keep pigeons clipped. 

In 2006, pigeon loitering was so dense near the Army Recruitment Center in Times Square, speakers were set up to broadcast sounds of falcons and pigeons being attacked, in hopes of scaring them away. In 2003, they had so overwhelmed Bryant Park that the operators invited a falconer and his hawk to the park for a week to scare away (not eat) the pigeons. 

In 2007, the MTA installed Bird-B-Gone on some of its elevated stations along the 7 line, as well as others. The electronic system zapped birds that got too close. 

In the ’80s, plastic owls were a big seller. Today, a slightly more high-tech version, called the RoboHawk, moves its head, wings, and makes what its creators hope are pigeon-threatening sounds. 

Every so often, a politician considers reviving an overall anti-feeding bill, since, for now, it’s only illegal in city parks where signs are posted (the fine is usually $50). 

Some cling to the hope that the city will come to its senses and declare war. Because they’re a non-native species, pigeons are not protected by either the Federal Migratory Birds Act or New York state laws. Can anyone say hunting season? 

It’s got to be done mafia-style, though. Culling is only a temporary solution — as with most wild birds, quick breeding will put their numbers back to pre-cull figures within weeks, according to Pigeon Control Advisory Service. 

* 

But spare a thought, pigeon haters, for your majestic foe. Pigeons have more qualities than you think. 

Although city birds aren’t particularly active, pigeons are built to be athletes — a trained bird can fly up to 60 miles per hour, and they can stay in the air for 500 miles. They’re meant for flying long distances, and have “homing” instincts, which means they will naturally find their way back. 

This talent is why they were literally drafted into the United States Army Pigeon Service. 

A million served in both world wars, where they delivered messages across enemy lines and saved thousands of soldiers’ lives. One pigeon, Cher Ami, won a French medal for his bravery for flying through gunfire, finally delivering the message dangling from what was left of his foot. He’s now stuffed and in the Smithsonian. 

The army’s Pigeon Breeding and Training Center was based at Fort Monmouth, NJ, and opened in 1917. Many of its “Pigeoneers” were “basically just boys out of Brooklyn, and they’d just bring their best birds,” Humphries says. (The training center was closed in 1957 when the Army stopped using them as messengers.) 

Keeping pigeons on rooftops — and racing them — used to be much more popular. Who can forget Marlon Brando’s character in the 1954 film “On the Waterfront” shouting up to his friend Joey, “I got one of your birds!” right before Joey “accidentally” falls off the roof? 

The city is full of equally vocal bird-lovers. 

“They animate our lives,” argues Blechman, who says that despite writing a book on pigeons, he is not a “bird person,” and admits to having eaten them before. He’s come around, though. “You look out the window and you can have a pigeon land on your windowsill, and the same one will come back every day, and at the same time. 

“What would the lonely, the unemployed, and the elderly do every day if it weren’t for pigeons?” 

The Internet is atwitter with kooky pigeon fans. There’s a pigeon appreciation society on Facebook. On photo-sharing site Flickr, there’s a group called The Global Pigeon Art Appreciation Society. 

“You are not alone,” the site reads. “Many artists have been inspired by pigeons.” 

There is also a city listserv called “New York Pigeon People,” where members discuss how to rescue birds and share pigeon news. 

You can eat them, race them, breed them, feed them, but you can’t escape them, whether you consider them the most misunderstood creatures of the flying community or the world’s worst bird. As Blechman put it, “We’re just going to have to learn to co-exist.” 

The Source from NY Post

About Pigeon Patrol

Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird issues in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions.

At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.

Contact us at 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD, (604) 585-9279 or visit our website at www.pigeonpatrol.ca

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