An article in the May/June edition of Canadian Vet Newsmagazine (a magazine, not to be confused with Canadian Veterinary Journal, a scientific journal), described an interesting case of an indoor pet bird acquiring an infection from a wild raccoon, despite no direct contact.
The bird was an African Grey Parrot that was admitted to the Ontario Veterinary College because it had developed neurological abnormalities over the preceding few weeks: a head tilt, unsteadiness and problems climbing. Infection of the brain caused by the raccoon roundworm Baylisascaris procyonis was suspected and treatment was started, however unfortunately (but not surprisingly) the bird continued to deteriorate and was eventually euthanized. Baylisascaris infection was confirmed at necropsy.
Baylisascaris procyonis, the raccoon roundworm, is extremely common in raccoons, with the majority of raccoons in some areas shedding the eggs of this parasite in their feces. The eggs are extremely hardy and can survive for long periods of time in the environment. The tendency of raccoons to defecate in the same areas (raccoon latrines) means that very high concentrations of eggs can be found in some spots. While this is a raccoon-origin parasite, it can occasionally cause infection in other species (including people and dogs, albeit very rarely). After ingestion of the parasite eggs, the eggs hatch and parasite larvae migrate through the body, causing damage to various tissues as they go. If they migrate through the brain, severe neurological disease can occur.
An interesting aspect of this case is the fact that it was an indoor parrot. If this was a dog that had been exposed to a raccoon latrine, while it would have been a rare occurrence of disease, the origin of infection would have made sense. Here, the parasite eggs had to somehow make it into the house and then into the parrot. The suspected source was branches that were collected from the backyard and placed in the bird’s cage. The branches were presumably contaminated with Baylisascaris eggs, and the bird ingested some while chewing on the branches.
This is a very rare situation, but the article includes some basic recommendations:
- Never adopt a raccoon (for many reasons beyond the Baylisascaris risk to pet birds).
- Don’t keep parrots in outdoor enclosures where raccoons have access.
- Don’t put parrots in outdoor enclosures that may have previously housed raccoons.
- Avoid putting objects from raccoon-inhabited areas into parrot cages or treat them to kill eggs. Heating objects to 62C for 1 minute should kill any eggs that are present.
- Ensure that cage bedding and bird feed are not potentially contaminated with raccoon feces.