BAN ON PARROTS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 19889, 28 March 1930, Page 10

BAN ON PARROTS.

SUGGESTION BY KING'S PHYSICIAN.

PARROT DISEASE IN ENGLAND.

(»RO K OtTK OW* CORRESrOHDEBT.) LONDON, February 13. Although more cases of psittaoosis, or parrot disease, aro being reported, the Ministry of Health has decided not to prohibit, at the moment, the importation of the birds. Denmark, Germany, Australia, and Switzerland have already stopped parrots from entering those oountries. The qupstion waß raised in the House of Lords yesterday by Lord Onslow. An embargo on parrots for "a reasonable period" in order to put a check to the outbreak in England was suggested by Lord Dawson of Penn. Psittacosis, he said, wa<s a diseaso which occurred in patches. Where it did appear thby are liable to get a mortality which was very distressing. Ho quoted the case of a family where a parrot became ill and died. The daughter who had never bad anything to do with the bird, took the oorpse and put it in the dustbin. After a week's illness she died, and the mother and two sons now were gravely ill from the diseaso. He mentioned that to show the serious importance of the disease. This did not, however, carry with it any necessary anticipation of a real widespread epidemic like influenza.

Quarantine or Embargo. There were two wayß of dealing with it— quarantine and embargo, and he suggested an embargo for a reasonable period. He thought they would find that the mere announcement that they were going to impose an embargo would probably put a stop to them for the time being. Lord Marlew (for the Government) said that they had no complete record of the disease, but since June Ist, 1929, the Ministry of Health had received information of forty cases in this country, in some of which the statistics showed only a suspicion of the disease. The Ministry were advised that the danger of the spread of the disease from the human side was practically negligible. Human beings could not pass it on from one to the other.

They were to issue a memorandum shortly giving information and precautions which should be observed in the care and handling of parrots. They felt that further information was necessary before they would be justified in imposing restrictions on importation. Practically no commercial consignments of parrots reached the country during the winter months.

Intensive Research. Alarming facts concerning the disease were made public yesterday at an inquest held in the special Coroner's Court of the London Hospital. Doctors have no real idea yet as to the cause, or cure, of the disease, except that it is spread by green parrots. Human beings who catch it from a parrot can pass it on to other persons. The symptoms of the illness are of the most distressing character. They include: —Sudden faintness, intolerable headache, nose bleeding, vomiting, photophobia, or dread of any light, a form of lung trouble which is akin to pneumonia, but is not actual pneumonia. unconsciousness, and death. Intensive research is being carried out in the laboratories of the London Hospital to try to isolate the origin. A virus has been secured which may be the cause. That viruß may be the same as the virus of fowl plague. The real trouble, which is agitating medical officers throughout the country is this:—

Parrots can carry the disease for eight months at leaßt. Hundreds of parrots have been imported into England during the past year, and are now distributed widely. Any one of those parrots, at any time, may start the disease in a family. The real gravity of the situation was emphasised by Dr. W. B. Purchase, the Coroner, yesterday, when he said to a medical witness: "It seems that we may be faced with very serious possibilities from this disease?"

"Yes," answered Dr. E. B. Keeble, of the London Hospital. "Unless precautions are taken it might assume an epidemic form." "If this disease is infectious between humans," continued the Coroner, "a most dreadful state of things may occur. The point arises for consideration whether these parrots should not

be placed in quarantine, when imported, for at least eight months, or those that are here now destroyed."

Hospital Eesearch. Dr., Purchase: Is the actual infecting organism known? When it was first described in 1896 the disease was thought to be due to the bacillus psittacosis, but that has .not been borne out by ,A. lot of investigation. is going on in this hospital, and we hope very shortly to be able to publish something to throw light on it as to the actual causation. Is it infectious from human to human?— There, is a recorded case of-this —of a nurse using the same handkerchief as her sister. Dr. Keeble- said that in some ..of the cases now reported there was no proof of the persons having touched a parrot.

Dr. Purchase: When does it occur.in parrots?— The evidence is that there was an epidemic in tho Argentine last July. In parrots or in humans?— Both; but primarily in parrots. Since that time we have had cases in England. Dr. Keeble said that the majority of parrots that had developed this disease seemed to have been of the green variety, which came from the Argentine. It was not possible to say when the diseaso attacked the birds.

Dr. W. J. C. Fenton, of Barking, said that Miss Rogers's parrot • was bought with two others which went to Komford, Essex, and Stepney, E. Both birds , had died. He had secured the Stepney one, and took it before death to the London Hospital for investigation. .He thought Mrs Bogers bad caught the disease now.