Can I develop Allergies to my bird?

[Livy]

For the past week and a half I've had trouble breathing to the point of being unable to sleep at night. I've owned my Budgie for almost 6 months now, and have never had problems up until this point. I have tested negative for Covid-19, and taken antihistamine without effect. Either I've developed allergies to my bird or something else is wrong, I've googled possible bird allergy reactions and some symptoms line up with what i'm experiencing. I have never had allergies in my life, everything was fine up until a week and a half ago and im not sure what to do. I love Dee very very much and refuse to get rid of him and am stuck.

 

[Inger]

It’s possible. It’s also possible you’ve developed a springtime allergy to something else.

I was also allergic to nothing ever, but now I have developed environmental allergies and a combination of Zyrtec and a nasal spray keep me in pretty good shape.


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[Scott]

I believe humans can develop allergies at any time. It is possible you are allergic to Dee's dander or other aspects of his presence such as droppings. There are ways to help mitigate your reactions including high efficiency air cleaners, frequently bathing Dee, changing the cage paper and cleaning more frequently.

Only way to know for sure is seeking medical advice. Allergy testing can be complex and costly, ruling out other causes may be more efficient at discretion of your doctor.

 

[SailBoat]

Over the last three weeks some section of Canada have been exposited to extremely high level of Springtime pollen at levels not seen in several decades. That pollen load can take your historical abilities to offset the effects and overload your system and bingo, you are feeling the effect.

Also, most home heating systems still have only the filter that was added last Fall and most dust is just flowing around them. Replace your filter and upgrade to a better quality that the average cheap filter.

Also, if your heating system uses duct to move air to different parts of your home or apartment and you do not remember the last time they had been cleaned. Its time to clean them.

The recommendations provided above are excellent and well worth trying them.

We built a new home 7 years ago and upgraded to a 4" filter and have the ducts cleaned every 3 years. My seasonal allergies have all but disappeared. And our 500 gram Amazon is truly larger and discharges far more feather dust then your sweet bird. Check your home dust level, you will be surprised to learn that most homes are loaded with stuff.

 

[noodles123]

Yes, you absolutely can. In fact, the more you expose yourself to an irritant, the more likely you are to develop a more severe allergy. I got hives from eating some weird pickle brand as a kid, and kept eating them anyway. My microbiologist/medical dad was like, "NO STOP THAT---YOU COULD TRIGGER A FULL-ON ALLERGY"...My thought process at the time was that I only had like 3 hives on my wrist and the pickles were good, so..keep eating....Apparently, that is a terrible choice lol! I did see his logic and stopped after he scared me about the risk of ignoring even minor hives for about a week.

They also say that no one is truly NOT allergic to poison ivy, but that some people just have an off-the-charts exposure threshold, to where they will never react (even with repeat lifetime exposures) that having been said, ENOUGH exposures of poison ivy would eventually cause a reaction in anyone. So, for one person, that may mean contacting the oil a few times, whereas for another, they would need to sleep in a bed of it nightly for 10 years to develop a reaction. The point is, repeat exposure to an irritant often leads to a reaction and reactions often develop or change based on age (but also can be impacted by underlying immune issues). This is why some people (despite exposures ) never get it in their lifetime and claim to not be allergic. The problem is, you never know when that next exposure could tip your threshold and result in an extreme reaction. I am one of those people who could say "I'm not allergic" to poison ivy-- so is my dad, but with enough forced exposure, I would eventually have a reaction (that is why you should still avoid it, even if you haven't had a reaction to it on a past exposure).

Parrots produce dander, and some parrots produce a lot more than others. Powder down birds like tiels, toos and grays are the worst, but even budgies (non-powder down) still produce a dander that can trigger allergies.


Do you have a really solid/expensive, non-ionizing/non-sanitizing true hepa air filter running in your bird room?