Cage

Can a dirty bird cage cause lung damage to humans?

A few weeks ago I visited my sister. She lives 1000 miles away. When I went into her house, the smell was horrible. Aside from the fact that the whole house was just filthy, she had a bird whose cage hadn't been cleaned in who knows how long. I had no where else to go (lack of money) and had to stay there that night. Left as soon as I woke and didn't/won't return. Since then, my asthma has been out of control. Can the smell (dirty bird cage) cause permanent damage to my lungs?

Public Comments

1. no sure not it cant cause any damage
2. It's a good possibly that it did some kind of breathing troubles.But it would not cause any permanent damage.FEEL BETTER!!!!
3. there is a lung disease called psittacosis that can be transmitted from birds to humans via bird poop, just from breathing in the dust from the birdcage. usually it takes a few days for symptoms to develop after you're exposed. symptoms include a lot of coughing, headache, fevers, diarrhea, and generally feeling miserable. it can also make your asthma worse. if you feel like your asthma is out of control, you should see a doctor who can help give you stronger medicines to get it under control. if they look at you and think psitaccosis is a possibility, they can do a blood test to diagnose it.
4. did you clean the bird cage? it is possible to get some unusual (and rare) infections from bird feces (psittacosis, histoplasma, cryptococcus), but only if you came into contact and inhaled the poop. Otherwise, it was probably just all the dust and general filth in your sister's house that flared up your asthma. sorry your sister's such a slob! hope this helps :)