Candles and incense around caged birds?

Question

My mom believes that it is dangerous for a caged bird like a Cockatiel or Parakeet to be in a room where there are lit scented candles or incense because of the respiratory effects it might have on the bird and I say that having a bird in a well-ventilated room (one with an open floor plan or that has windows), that's ok and perfectly safe.

Who's right?

Answer 1

i work at a bird aviary( clj aviary , look us up) but anything at all that can be airborn can be harmful to a bird, some candles like yankee are safe to use however, just not right next to the birds

Answer 2

your mom, scented candles can kill birds

Answer 3

Your mom is right, you shouldn't have your bird around scented candles, incense or even your kitchen if you cook in Teflon coated pans (when you heat Teflon it emits toxic gasses).

Having your bird around incense and scented candles might not kill it immediately if you have an open floor plan, but it will cause your bird's health to decline and, just as second hand smoke won't kill every person who is around a smoker, being around these things isn't going to help the bird's health either. It isn't "perfectly safe" and it is always best to avoid the problem.

Birds were used in mines years ago to alert the miners to dangerous air conditions--if the air got bad enough the bird died and the people were given enough warning to get out before they had problems. That was because birds have EXTREMELY sensitive respiratory systems.

Answer 4

scented candles are the among worst things your birds can inhale, aswell as incence, air freshiners, fabric cleaners, anything not organic or full of chemicals. read up before you buy birds to kill please.

Answer 5

Your mother is right.  The perfumes from incense, scented candles, hairsprays, household cleaners, etc.  can irritate a bird's skin as wel as cause respiritory infections and sometimes even death.

I hope this helps.