The Dangers of Teflon

[TexDot33]

I know we all know this - YOU DON'T USE TEFLON in a house with parrots. I know we all know this; but, I just want to remind EVERYONE THAT NON-STICK SURFACES ARE DEATHLY POISONOUS TO OUR PARROTS!

Why am I telling you this? Well, in another forum that I read a gentleman that I respect for his knowledge and love for birds had a horrible thing happen to him last week: He came home to half his flock dead! He had 2 conures, a Goffins, a Grey, a Red-Lored Amazon and a RFM. The RFM, Amazon and the Grey were lucky to get out of the house alive (and are expected to make a full recovery within a month or so), the conures and the goffins weren't.

It was a terrible accident, his daughter was cooking, a friend brought over a baking sheet to use (it wasn't something that was in his house):

"dad it was silver ... it looked like it was ok ... we didn't know!"

Two of the birds who didn't survive were the daughter's "babies" and the third was everyone's "baby" The family is devastated, the daughter has been taught a very hard life lesson.

I say this so that it doesn't happen to anyone of you TEFLON IS EVERYWHERE be aware of everything you use in your kitchen, everything that is used in your kitchen, and everything that is used in your home.

Everyone schritch your birdies a little longer tonight; because, sometimes horrible things happen to great birdie families.

R.I.P. - Papaya, Inca and Casper.

 

[KJS]

http://www.lecreuset.ca/Products3/Enameled-Cast-Iron/.......is something like this okay?

 

[antoinette]

What a sad sad ending for the birds !!!!!!!
Thank goodness I did a load of research before becoming a guarding to a bird.
I got rid of all our Teflon products before any bird was to enter our apartment.
Pray that no other guardians ever have a similar tragic experience

 

[antoinette]

Everyone schritch your birdies a little longer tonight; because, sometimes horrible things happen to great birdie families.

Everyday I give Mishka a great big kiss and lovies, thanking the Lord for giving me another day, being a guardian to a wonderful creature.

WE CAN NEVER BE TOO CAREFUL !!!!!

 

[wuvzbirdies]

I had a similar thing happen about 6 or 7 years ago.
I had 2 budgies, Jingo and Ginger.
They were the sweetest things ever.
When I got them I packed away all of my non stick and teflon cook/bake ware to give to my Sister when she came by (she lived far so it stayed at my house for awhile).
So my Sister-in-Law moves in and finds it packed away and takes out the non stick coated griddle and uses it when we were away for a weekend.
Needless to say i came home to a very sick bird (Jingo) the male and my favorite, I was unaware that she had cooked with this item and couldn't understand what was wrong with him.
He couldn't perch, he looked so weak, and kept dropping to the bottom of his cage.
He died within an hour of us getting home so there was no chance to get him to the vet. It was the worst day of my life, watching something you love die is not something you'll forget.
Ginger was fine, I don't know how but she made it, I ended up giving her away.

When I got Russell last year I again got rid of all of the harmful items in the house, really got rid of them this time.
I invested in an awesome set of cast iron cookware, best things ever.

Sad sad story about Papaya, Inca & Casper

 

[antoinette]

I had a similar thing happen about 6 or 7 years ago.
I had 2 budgies, Jingo and Ginger.
They were the sweetest things ever.
When I got them I packed away all of my non stick and teflon cook/bake ware to give to my Sister when she came by (she lived far so it stayed at my house for awhile).
So my Sister-in-Law moves in and finds it packed away and takes out the non stick coated griddle and uses it when we were away for a weekend.
Needless to say i came home to a very sick bird (Jingo) the male and my favorite, I was unaware that she had cooked with this item and couldn't understand what was wrong with him.
He couldn't perch, he looked so weak, and kept dropping to the bottom of his cage.
He died within an hour of us getting home so there was no chance to get him to the vet. It was the worst day of my life, watching something you love die is not something you'll forget.
Ginger was fine, I don't know how but she made it, I ended up giving her away.

When I got Russell last year I again got rid of all of the harmful items in the house, really got rid of them this time.
I invested in an awesome set of cast iron cookware, best things ever.

Sad sad story about Papaya, Inca & Casper

Sorry to hear about your loss, terrible thing to happened.
At least you will always have great memories, never to be forgotten.

 

[TexDot33]

Revisiting this story, and to answer a question that was brought up:

I use only: Stainless Steel, Cast Iron, glass (Pyrex) and earthenware cookware in my house (I've even given up the convenience of my George Foreman Grill) most of the stuff that I use in my kitchen is purchased at Restaurant Supply stores as you will VERY RARELY get anything with Teflon (non-stick) coating in it - Most professional Chefs detest non-stick coating as it can flake off into the their foods (and some even say that it alters the taste of the food itself).

Again, ALWAYS ALWAYS check the items in your house that you use, you'd be surprised just where you'll find Teflon coating (some IRONS are coated with it) ... Not worth having this happen to you!!

And here's something that I've always wondered: If NOTHING sticks to Teflon, how does Teflon stick to the pan?

 

[antoinette]

And here's something that I've always wondered: If NOTHING sticks to Teflon, how does Teflon stick to the pan?[/QUOTE]

LoL something to try figure out


Reckon we should all do a full house check !!!!!!!!!

 

[MaiTai]

How would I find out if my Iron has teflon on it?

 

[Mel]

What a sad thread, thanks for the reminder. I looked up how does Telfon stick to the pan, The below is taken from a website. I guess the fact that it is made from gases explains why it is toxic when cooked.

"Scientifically speaking, Teflon will not chemically bond to anything, but can be forced mechanically into small nooks and crannies. This slippery substance adheres to their surfaces once manufacturers sandblast them to roughen them, apply a primer, and embed the Teflon into the primer.
DuPont scientist, Dr. Roy Plunkett, accidentally created the recipe for Teflon in 1938, while attempting to produce a better coolant gas than the one currently on the market. In doing so, he toyed with different combinations of gases and, either accidentally or intentionally, left one batch of gasses in a container overnight"