As such, I will talk about the major diseases that are considered a zoonotic risk. I will also leave out the hundreds of diseases that are found in wild birds in other countries. These pose almost no threat, unless the reader routinely imports wild caught birds. Within this group, there are two serious threats. There are over 50 mycobacterial species which can cause disease in humans and animals.
M. tuberculosis is the agent that causes tuberculosis in humans.
M. avium and M. genavense are the two species that most commonly cause disease in pet birds. Although mycobacterial disease is common in up to 80- of AIDS patients1, during the past 15 years, there has never been a confirmed case of transmission occurring from a pet bird. Even the suggestion that exotic pets act as potential environmental sources of these organisms, has never been proven. The second threat within the family of fungi is from Cryptococcus neoformans. It has been suggested that the source of this organism is from pet birds.