Largest pile of bird droppings cleared by Abate

Abate Pest Management was recently called to clear a large amount of Pigeon guano (droppings) from a building in Norwich. Engineers refused to maintain and service air conditioning units on the roof and you can see why.

Cleaning up the odd bird dropping from time to time is pretty safe to do so, but the handling of bird droppings of any quantity should be done with care due to the risk from disease.

Any large quantity of droppings and nesting materials should be handled by experienced professionals and disposed of safely. As well as not looking nice, the acidic nature of bird droppings can even cause damage to buildings which in turn, leads to higher repair bills. Plus, as in this case, issues can arise from poorly maintained service areas, where engineers refuse to work on equipment that is surrounded by guano.

Pigeon guano can be very dangerous. Ornithosis, Listeria, E-coli and other nasty pathogens can be passed through droppings and by the birds themselves. When dry, the droppings can become airborne leading to respiratory complaints such as psittacosis, and the cryptococcus fungus.

What you should know?

According to the Health and Safety Executive, breathing dust or water droplets containing contaminated bird droppings can lead to several diseases including:

Psittacosis – this is a rare infectious disease caused by a bacterium called Chlamydia psittaci. It is mainly associated with parrots and other similar species but does affect other birds, including pigeons. Symptoms are commonly a flu-like illness and pneumonia usually appearing 5-19 days after exposure.

Salmonella – this may also be present in some bird droppings. It is a bacterial infection that can cause significant diarrhoea.

Abate Pest Management can work on reactive bird guano cleaning but can also introduce a pre-planned maintenance pan for your building. Get in touch to discuss.