It Refuses To Die A Quiet Death

Much has been posted about this topic & possibly you’ve read, or at least heard about what’s posted at this link, but recent forum posts point to the possibly more needs to be said on the subject, so thought this information was worth reading by the populace. I also realize that many around here don’t hold pet stores/shops in high esteem, but the writer of this article does have bird interests at heart.....

Teflon what you didn’t know and another household danger to birds

Enjoy your reading…..

Great Post Weco.

Thanks for posting. Proper bird ownership is skin to stepping through a never-ending minefield of potential hazards. IT IS WORTH IT, but education is a continuous process.

It's a great article, but seems a bit paranoid. Like those about organic and non-organic foods. Teflon is dangerous only if heated, but we in fabric that we wear or that's sitting outdoors on porch umbrella - how does that affect? I also read from many places that self cleaning ovens are dangerous. We have one, but never run the self cleaning feature (we hardly use the oven at all). I avoid anything that I'm not sure about heated over 200 F just in case.

veimar said:

It's a great article, but seems a bit paranoid. Like those about organic and non-organic foods. Teflon is dangerous only if heated, but we in fabric that we wear or that's sitting outdoors on porch umbrella - how does that affect? I also read from many places that self cleaning ovens are dangerous. We have one, but never run the self cleaning feature (we hardly use the oven at all). I avoid anything that I'm not sure about heated over 200 F just in case.

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Well, I'd think that those things that don't really apply to birds was included for us to think about the other convenience things that we surround ourselves with that may also be dangerous. The odors from fresh dry cleaning can kill a bird and we wear those. Since common sense is part of these other "non-bird things," I'd say knowing about those other "non-bird things" would be good if we decided to (on the spur of the moment of course) to use an old umbrella top as a temporary sunshade for a cage sitting on a back porch.....

Yes, many self cleaning ovens have Teflon coated interior surfaces and when turned to their self-clean provision, they heat to over 450 degrees...clearly above the safe temperature suggested for Teflon.....even if your oven does not have any Teflon coatings, their self cleaning temperature is high enough to burn off debris in the oven and make your eye water and smart.....

Oh, the jury is still out on the claim that "Teflon is dangerous only if heated." You physically consume Teflon when you (or anyone) pops popcorn in a microwave or use any of those roasting bags.....there are many other ways we ingest cold, unheated Teflon, so your thinking "Teflon is dangerous only if heated, but we in fabric that we wear or that's sitting outdoors on porch umbrella - how does that affect" seems a bit narrow minded.....

Sorry, not trying to be argumentative, but that way of thinking is what keeps us playing catch-up with the corrections for all these conveniences we think we need, but find out later they may be killing us & I can't agree with the paranoia statement.....

Thanks Weco for the information, hardly paranoid in my honest opinion.

Will avoid teflon myself & family, birds or no birds.

Glad you mentioned the MICROWAVE POPCORN BAGs as that is an easily overlooked one.

Veimar if you have never over-heated a pan I congratulate you, that's awesome!!!:41::41: I have on more than one occasion -- all it takes is the right combination of distraction(s).:11: That's why I don't recommend bird owners use teflon or PFOA, PTFE containing cookware and why I posted about the green pans because you need to check with the manufacturer to make sure there is no PTFE or PFOA in the pan, some of them use it to glue the ceramic coating to the pan - so the the coating is free of PTFE and PFOA but the pan is NOT.

When I got a new stove/oven they recommended running it without cooking anything and I got the bird out of the house for that one even though I do have a good outside venting hood - it smelled horrible! Again the broiler they recommend that too - - it is a self-cleaning oven but I have never used that either as people say it can shorten the life of your oven and that it smells really bad and I am smell sensitive. Ah for the good old days when the oven didn't smell like a bad day at the chemical factory when 1st heated up

wow, i honestly had no idea teflon was used in so many items. Very informative!

I just try my best to be as safe as possible, however...This is life, and life has no guarantees.. other than death and taxes. Both of which, no matter what we do/don't do, won't escape.

So it's not worth it to me to worry about every dang little thing, when you could.. walk outside, and get hit by a car.

Spent 3 weeks in agonizing pain over the death of a bird I adopted last year, and it's just not worth that kind of stress. The stress alone can severely compromise your own health. Keep that in mind! So just be thankful for each day, try your best to provide a safe environment, and try to forget about the bazillions ways the universe will destroy us.

I second that Mary Beth!

Though I of course do understand the point of this thread, the part that makes me cringe is that it is 'SO' thorough in erring on the side of caution that it can cause the less experienced bird people some confusion and even panic (the list is literally so extensive) I can see that if someone takes it all in even with a healthy dose of paranoia, it can cause over thinking and obsession everywhere you turn.

I am of course not saying don't heed any warnings, so please nobody misconstrue what I'm about to say... BUT then we hear of birds who live after - (another current thread) bleaching conures I assume with chemicals, and cigarette smoke long term!! Those are pretty bad. Robin is 20, and during his long lifetime I did previously cook with Teflon around him, used scented candles regularly, we still use microwave popcorn... He is still healthy as evidenced by his regular senior vet checks

I just don't want people, and especially newer bird people who might be hearing all this for the firds time to freak out at the extensive list and feel they literally can't do anything anymore .

My new 'green' pans showed up from Amazon yesterday, can't wait to cook in them! Thanks for the post.

I guess I don't "get" the need for the non-stick stuff. I've always cooked in stainless steel, baked with glass, ceramic or aluminum and rarely (if ever) have issues with anything sticking. I don't typically use oil either. I have never not been able to clean stainless pots+pans back to shiny new nor not been able to clean up after baking. The worst case scenario is soak it overnight, use a little scraper to get out the big chunks and a little barkeepers friend to bring it back to "like-new". Making sure you aren't cooking on too high of a heat/flame and being attentive while cooking typically prevents most mishaps. I also wipe out my stainless interior oven several times a week, so it never needs to be "deep cleaned". I would imagine a non-stick interior to be even easier to wipe down frequently to eliminate the need for self cleaning at high temps.

weco said:

Much has been posted about this topic & possibly you’ve read, or at least heard about what’s posted at this link, but recent forum posts point to the possibly more needs to be said on the subject, so thought this information was worth reading by the populace. I also realize that many around here don’t hold pet stores/shops in high esteem, but the writer of this article does have bird interests at heart.....

Teflon what you didn’t know and another household danger to birds

Enjoy your reading…..

Click to expand...

The title of this thread made my heart stop for a second.

"It won't die a quiet death."

Think on that one for a moment and then tell me that doesn't make you think unpleasant thoughts.

Lol