A pest control worker has been shocked to find the roof space of a suburban Sydney home teeming with pigeons – after the homeowners discovered the huge volume of bird faeces dripping through the ceiling.
Christopher Moschella, the owner of Roach Sniper Pest Control, was called to the property in Belmore, in Sydney’s southwest.
When he looked into the roof space, he encountered pigeons of all sizes living among piles of droppings and swarming bird lice.
‘The bird lice were all over me within seconds,’ he said.
‘This is probably the heaviest infestation of pigeons in a roof space that I’ve come across in a long time.
‘It’s all loose fill insulation and they’ve turned it into nesting. It’s absolutely shocking in here. This is years and years of ignoring it.’
Mr Moschella said it would be a big job to rid the roof of the birds, make repairs and clean up all the waste that had accumulated over the years.
Droppings seeped from the roof and into the home belowÂ
One of the many pigeons that made a suburban Sydney roof home from many years
He said the cleaning would cost $4,000 and bird lice treatment and fitting of a new insulation could bump the final cost up to $7,000.
Pigeons pose significant health risks when nesting, carrying diseases like salmonella and histoplasmosis along with parasites.
‘This is really, really bad. The whole place is just littered with bird poo. The healthiness of living in this house and the sheer quantity of droppings is really bad,’ Mr Moschella said.
‘It needs as a full cleanout and new insulation and for the entry point to be patched up.
‘Pigeons have all sorts of diseases in their droppings and this is a serious job. Don’t let pigeons live in your roof. If you see them getting in call pest control straight away.’
Online commenter were equally disgusted by the find.
‘Pigeons should be declared a national pest. We have them roosting under everyone’s solar panels, perching on gutter edges, crapping on buildings, awnings, pathways and clothes on the line,’ one person said.
Some however, wanted to know the fate of the birds.
‘What did you end up doing with the baby pigeons,’ one person asked Mr Moschella.
‘I usually remove them to the yards once I patch everything and scare out the adults,’ he replied.
Mr Moschella said the thriving pigeon colony had been ‘having a party’ for up to six years, before their droppings, which seeped through ventilation and stained internal walls, became too much for the homeowners.
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Disgusting find inside roof costs homeowner $7,000 – as warning issued to Australians