Can birds catch a sickness from you?

I'm sure this has been asked before, but can animals catch a sickness from you?

I'm really sick right now. I caught some kind of stomach flu, and spent St Patrick's day in the hospital...I had a temperature of 101 degrees and they said I was dehydrated. I'm taking antibiotics and I think I might be getting a tiny bit better, but still not feeling too great.

Anyway, I'm feeling guilty because I haven't been able to spend time with my parakeet Chipper. I made sure he had food and water, and of course I've been very careful to wash my hands well whenever I fill his food and water bowls. But I just haven't felt up to petting him and holding him. Well, today he really seemed to want to come out of his cage. I opened it, and he climbed right onto my hand. I've been petting him for a little while. But could he catch this from me? I've heard it's rare for animals to catch human illnesses, but I don't want my little birdie to get sick from me.

He just seemed so happy when I picked him up.

Most viruses and bacterial infections are either not likely to be caught, or will be fought off by a healthy bird. If you keep your hands washed and clean, and don't allow them to get near your face, you can reduce the low risk to even lower levels.

Edit: I'd like to add the disclaimer that I am not a vet - I work in I.T, lol.

Ditto to what Grenage stated. I had a bad case of bronchitis last year and I had to bring Tango to the vet for his avian exam. The vet did inform me to make sure my hands were clean and make sure that my fid doesn't come in contact with my face.

Only specific things can be transferred, these are called Zoonotic Diseases. Here is a page that shows you some of them link

Very few illnesses can be transferred from humans to birds and visa versa. For the most part, colds and flus are not transmittable to your bird. Its extremely rare, but is possible. I would personally play it safe until your fever breaks (when you are no longer contagious), to really interact with your bird again. The flu only lasts a few days, so I'm sure you'll be feeling better soon and you and your bird can get right back to playing together.

Oddly enough, when I was about 3, I started getting chronic strep infections. Within a couple weeks of coming off antibiotics, I would get sick again with the same strain every single time. This went on for about 2 years, and I was sick with strep 13 times in a row (my parents beliefs made them refuse to have my tonsils removed). The doctor finally put me on a 6 month long course of antibiotics, and within a week of getting off them, I was sick again. Finally, it clicked somewhere to get my parents birds tested, and sure enough their female amazon was a carrier (never got sick herself) of the type of strep I kept getting. She was given antibiotics, and I never got strep again. My pediatrician and the vet were shocked, they had NEVER heard of such a thing, but apparently it is possible.

Wow! That's really interesting Kiwibird, thanks for sharing

I don't remember too much of it, but my parents still talk about it. Lucy (the carrier bird) decided she was my "mom" as soon as I was born, and I spent TONS of time with her from an early age. She actually used to sit on my chest and refuse to go home when I got sick as a little kid, and was virtually attached to me 24/7, so it made complete sense how I kept getting reinfected. It was a pretty much unheard of situation, and the vet figured she probably caught it from me the first time I got it, and just harbored the bacteria since she apparently couldn't/didn't get sick from it. I wish it was caught sooner, the sheer volume of antibiotics I took during that time wrecked my digestive tract for life. All she needed was a single course of antibiotics to get rid of it :-(

I was wondering about the same thing! So glad to hear that they don't catch our cold!

I asked my breeder about this a long time ago, she said not to worry and is certified in avian health and disease

The proper answer is yes and no. You can give infections to your bird. I was just at a highly respected avian vet yesterday. I asked about this. Birds can in fact catch different things from us. You should take care to wash properly before handling items intended for your bird or the bird itself. You should always (sick or healthy) keep the bird away from your mouth. This is an absolute! There are lots of bacteria in our mouths that can harm your bird. Do not share utensils or allow your bird to eat off a piece of food that you have bitten off of. make sure to keep your hands clean especially if you have a bird like my macaw that likes to "mouth" my hands, fingers. I know that this is controversial however I am going with the opinion of my vet.

I swear i responded to this thread ????

Most bacterial strains are only involved to attack one species, as it takes time to be able to attack 2 . Like swine flu. Hope you get better !