by Pigeon Patrol | Apr 16, 2016 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services
Owning a cat is known to have positive health effects, such as reducing stress and improving mood. But it can have downsides, too.
Allergy UK estimates that half of all asthmatic children are allergic to cats, for example.
Now scientists are looking at whether Britain’s ten million cats are putting their owners at risk of another condition: anxiety.
The focus of their investigation is Toxoplasma gondii, a tiny, single-cell parasite commonly found in cat droppings, which causes the disease toxoplasmosis.
Pregnant women have long been advised to avoid emptying cat litter trays, as ingesting the parasite accidentally from unwashed hands in early pregnancy can cause miscarriage or stillbirth. In adults, more rarely it can also lead to blindness by causing scarring at the back of the eye. Other sources of infection include undercooked meat and unwashed fruit and vegetables.
Now scientists think exposure to Toxoplasma gondii could be to blame for many cases of anxiety.
It’s a theory backed by some of Britain’s leading experts on parasitic diseases.
In a study at the University of Michigan, blood samples from 450 adults were checked for antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii.
The presence of these antibodies is a sign the person has been infected. Researchers then identified the study participants who had been diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder, or GAD.
Anxiety is a normal but temporary response to stress or danger. But with GAD, the anxiety is excessive – a constant worrying when there is no danger present. Up to 7 per cent of the population – nearly five million people in Britain – are thought to be affected with symptoms, ranging from a racing heartbeat and shortness of breath to agitation and constant dread. The University of Michigan research, published in the journal Brain, Behaviour and Immunity, found that people with antibodies to the parasite were twice as likely to have been diagnosed with GAD.
And those with the highest levels of antibodies, suggesting greater exposure to the parasite, were three times more likely to be affected by GAD. It’s thought that while antibodies might destroy some parasites, others evade detection and head for the brain.
The researchers said: ‘Our study is the first to examine the association between T. Gondii infection and diagnosed anxiety disorder.’
This is not the first time the parasite has been linked to brain-related problems. Previous research has linked infection with this parasite to an increased risk of schizophrenia and learning disabilities in children.
‘There are even some fascinating studies showing Toxoplasma can cause decreased reaction times and a greater chance of being involved in road accidents,’ says Professor Joanne Webster, from the Centre for Emerging, Endemic and Exotic Diseases at the Royal Veterinary College in London, whose research in the Nineties led to an extraordinary discovery about the effect Toxoplasma had on rats’ behaviour.
The parasite exits the body via droppings – and, if these are then eaten by a rat, the parasite heads straight for the brain, where it somehow switches off the innate fear the rodent has of cats, and makes it crave the smell of feline urine.
All the rat’s survival instincts disappear and it effectively serves itself up as dinner for a cat. ‘It’s basically manipulating the rat’s mind,’ says Professor Webster.
It’s this same ‘manipulation’ which scientists think might trigger anxiety in humans.
To be on the safe side, wear gloves when cleaning a litter tray
Studies suggest Toxoplasma produces its own supply of dopamine, a brain chemical that sends signals between cells.
The parasite’s dopamine might disrupt the normal chemical balance in the human brain.
Although too little dopamine has been linked with anxiety, so has too much, and research suggests that the parasite can trigger over-activity in the amygdala, the area of the brain that is involved in expressing anxiety.
But should cat owners be worried? There are only 350 confirmed human cases of toxoplasmosis in England and Wales a year.
But according to NHS Choices, up to a third of us will be infected at some point, yet not even notice any symptoms (typically it causes flu-like symptoms that last for a couple of weeks).
Maggie Roberts, director of veterinary services at Cats Protection, says: ‘I have lots of friends who are vets and have handled hundreds of cats and were tested during pregnancy for Toxoplasma – and I don’t know one who has tested positive.’
She says cats are infectious for only about ten days in their whole life. Afterwards, they are resistant. ‘To be on the safe side, wear gloves when cleaning a litter tray and wash your hands thoroughly afterwards.’
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Apr 12, 2016 | Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes, Pigeons in the News
Gary Samuelson knows Kansas University Parking has a lot of larger issues these days, but he’s tired of walking through pigeon poop in the Mississippi Street garage.
“There’s a pigeon problem,” Samuelson, who works at Watson Library, said Tuesday during KU Parking’s fall open forum. “If I was a visitor to KU and parked in the garage, and that was your first sight to get to the Union … blech.”
KU is working on a solution — although it’s not as simple as just power washing the garage.
KU Parking is in the process of special-ordering a system that would allow it to power-wash the garage, capture the runoff, filter it, and reuse the water, associate parking director Danny Kaiser said.
The City of Lawrence prohibits putting cleaning runoff into the storm sewer, where the garage drains, Kaiser said.
Besides the pigeon poop, other substances that dirty the garage — such as oil, sand, silt and winter road salt — “are very polluting,” Kaiser said. “We want to capture that.”
The new system is to be operating by the end of the semester, KU hopes.
Kaiser said it would include a power-washer with a clean water tank, equipment to redirect water runoff from the storm sewer into a holding tank, and equipment to filter sediments out of the water for reuse.
He said the system would be portable so KU could use it in other garages as well.
The Mississippi Street garage is not the only one with a pigeon problem, Kaiser said, but poop tends to pile up near doorways there, which makes it more of an obstacle.
KU’s street-sweeping machine is too tall to fit into the garage, Kaiser said.
In an attempt to make the garage less attractive to pigeons in the first place, KU Parking Director Donna Hultine said they have installed devices to prevent them from perching on ledges. They have not been completely dissuaded, however.
“Now I notice pigeons sitting on the cars,” she said.
Until the new cleaning system comes in, Samuelson wondered if someone could tackle the worst spots with a mop and bucket.
“We can make an effort to get something done in there,” Hultine said.
About 20 people attended the annual fall parking open forum, held in the Kansas Union, and voiced various questions and frustrations. Hultine described it as an opportunity for KU Parking to hear those concerns as well as ideas for solutions.
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Apr 4, 2016 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
NETWORK Rail is running out of ideas to frighten off scores of pigeons roosting under a bridge on a main road into Taunton.
After all efforts to date have failed to shift the pests, the company is now suggesting the district council considers culling the birds.
But Taunton Deane Council says it would rather liaise with the rail company “to come to a satisfactory solution” after years of complaints from pedestrians.
Pedestrians and commuters have complained for years about the mess caused by the pigeons, blighting the first impressions of many train travellers arriving in the county town.
Network Rail originally attempted to put the pigeons to flight with a buzzing gadget called a Wailer in April 2007, but it didn’t last long as it scared passers by more than the birds. Netting installed as part of a £300,000 spruce-up in 2012 of the bridge where Station Road joins Kingston Road has also not worked.
While the birds took off at first – many setting up home barely 50 metres down the road under a disused rail bridge – they started to return within six months.
The netting, which had become scruffy as well as ineffective, was removed earlier this year.
A company spokesman said: “The netting was removed as it was not as effective at deterring the pigeons as we hoped it would be. In its place we have installed ‘get off’ gel trays that are designed to prevent birds perching or roosting.
“These gel trays have proved a successful solution on other structures along the Western route. However, they do not solve the underlying problem of a significant pigeon population.
“Therefore you may wish to give the council a call as they have the means to control the population under the auspices of Section 74 of the Public Health Act 1961.”
A Taunton Deane Council spokeswoman said: “The council is aware of the pigeon population at this bridge and continues to take action to ensure a clean passage into and out of town along this route.”
“We will continue to encourage the owners of the bridge, Network Rail, to take such steps as they are able to resolve the issue.
“The council does have a power under section 74 of the Public Health Act 1961, but this is a little known and seldom used power which involves humane euthanising of the birds.
“We would prefer to liaise with the bridge owner to come to a satisfactory solution.
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Apr 2, 2016 | 4-S Gel Bird repellent, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
PESKY pigeons who set up home in a museum’s bottle oven have been forced to find another place to roost.
Scores of the birds had been settling down in one of the four ovens preserved at Gladstone Pottery Museum, in Longton, causing disruption for workers and volunteers.
Now – after Stoke-on-Trent City Council approved an application to put up camouflaged nets – the pigeons have been blocked from staying at their favourite nesting spot.
Staff at the museum say they are relieved as the potbank ‘coo’ has seen fewer birds target the area.
Museum manager Angela Lee said: “It seemed to be a feature of this year, in that the pigeons were looking for somewhere to roost and they took a liking to one of our bottle ovens.
“I think once a few thought that this was a good idea, lots of others then liked it and followed them, and it started to become a bit of a problem.
“Obviously, we were concerned that it could become a health and safety issue, from the birds themselves and from the mess they create. We had to do something about it.
“There has been a noticeable difference since the nets went up.
“We still have the odd pigeon flying around the yard, but they’re not coming in en masse like they were before.”
Paul Niblett, from Longton Road, Trentham, is one of the original volunteers who helped to save the former Gladstone Pottery Work in the early 1970s.
He is relieved the pigeons have now been pushed to the margins.
He said: “It has been happening for quite a while now, and they were quite well-established.
“Three of the four bottle ovens that have been restored in the last few years have a big glass disc on the top, which stops birds getting in there. But the fourth one, which hasn’t been restored yet, is still open.
“Pigeons being pigeons, I think they flew over it and thought ‘that’s a lovely place to nest’, and then more of them came.
“Putting a top on it is seriously expensive, as it involves a lot of work and scaffolding, but the nets are a good alternative to that.
“I think it’s distinctly improved since they’ve gone up, and it’s good to see fewer pigeons.”
Paul Buttery, a pigeon fancier from Kidsgrove, said the preventative measures taken by the museum should be enough to keep the pigeons from coming back to roost.
The 53-year-old added: “If they start going somewhere to nest then they will keep going back there – they’re very territorial.
“They won’t leave by choice, the only they will leave is if they you put a net or fence or something like that in the way to stop them getting in there.
“If they persist in being a problem then the only thing that could be done would be to have a cull.
“That’s the ultimate solution, but it shouldn’t need to come to that.”
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Mar 30, 2016 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeon Spikes
It’s bad enough when a pigeon treats your Toyota like a toilet. It’s worse when you have to run a gauntlet of dead birds and poop while dashing for your morning train. Who’s going to clean up this mess at Metropark station?
Commuter Joe Yospe emailed us about a problem he encounters on his commute from Iselin in the walkway between the third floor parking deck and the station.
“The walkway is full of pigeon excrement, feathers, other unknown filthy objects and for a two-week period, two dead pigeons (were) just sitting in the walkway,” he said. “No one cleans up that area, as well as the area on the platform itself which is full of bird excrement.”
Q: Whose job is it to clean up the pigeon poop and remove the dead birds and what’s being done?
A: NJ Transit hires contractors to run some of it’s parking facilities and that is the case in Metropark, said Jennifer M. Nelson, an NJ Transit spokeswoman.
“The parking deck is run for NJ Transit by Nexus. We have responsibility for the platform and it was just power washed this past Friday,” she said. “We did a walk through with a pest (bird) control representative, with Nexus, and with our staff to discuss how to best address the ongoing bird-related issues at the station and parking deck.”
NJ Transit expects to have a proposal from the pest control representatives in the next few weeks to address the issue around the station and parking deck, she said.
“(We) will implement an agreed upon course of action as soon as possible,” Nelson said.
Let us know how the battle of the birds shakes out, Joe.
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by Pigeon Patrol | Mar 27, 2016 | Animal Deterrent Products, Bird Deterrent Products, Bird Netting, Pigeon Patrol's Services, Pigeons in the News
27PIGEONS are no stranger to the Worcester streets, but most of the time they are the usual dull grey variety.
But one brightly-coloured visitor added an unusual splash of colour.
Worcester News reader Becca Rammell sent in these pictures of a pink coloured pigeon she spotted in Worcester High Street near WHSmiths at about 4pm on Saturday, September 19.
This may be one of a flock of unusually brightly-coloured birds spotted throughout the country earlier this year.
A number of reports of pink pigeons were made during the summer in areas including Stockport in Greater Manchester, Milton Keyes, West Yorkshire, Surrey and Northumberland, leading to a number of theories including a new breed or the after effects of eating pink food.
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But it later emerged pigeon keeper Sher Singh from Bristol had been painting his bird’s feathers in pink fabric dye to protect them from falcons, claiming it would make them difficult to spot for the birds of prey. But he later agreed to stop the practice after learning it could be harmful to the pigeons.
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 problems 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.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
