Horror bird invasion forces terrified Scots gran out of her bedroom

A terrified grandmother has been forced to surrender her bedroom to birds that have been invading her roof space for the last 13 years.

Katrina Brown, 52, says she's been constantly pleading with 'unhelpful' housing bosses to end her 'nightmare'.

Katrina has been living with the avian infestation in the eaves of her Port Glasgow home despite having a fear of all ornithic creatures - and says that the 'dander' from the birds has exacerbated her asthma.

And she fears that her two-months-old grandchildren - who live in the house - could be at risk of picking up a disease from the winged invaders.

Katrina says she has repeatedly asked River Clyde Homes to take action to eradicate the problem but hasn't seen any progress.

She said: "I'm terrified of birds so this is just an absolute nightmare.

"I don't feel as if River Clyde Homes have been very helpful to me as a tenant in any way, I'm disgusted with them.

"I've seen other places have scaffolding put up and have their birds dealt with, why not mine? At the end of the day it's affecting my health and it's making my asthma worse.

"If they don't get it dealt with, I'll not be paying my rent anymore. Since the day I moved in, there's been activity from crows on the roof, I have contacted River Clyde Homes numerous times.

"Last summer they came out and said it was a bigger problem than they thought. I just want it sorted, I don't want the wee ones to end up with health issues or health problems.

"They said by law they couldn't move them if they're nesting, which is understandable, but it's causing me a lot of suffering.
"I just need them gone now."

Katrina says the constant noise of the birds moving about in her roof has stopped her from getting a proper night's sleep for years, and that this has had a serious knock-on effect on her mood.

She said: "I suffer from anxiety and depression, which only makes things worse, and I do have asthma which I was diagnosed with after I moved in here.

"I think having the birds up there makes that worse, I don't sleep in my bedroom upstairs because of the birds. I have to lie with my arms up above my head and with three pillows behind me so I can breathe properly.

"At one point I was wearing face masks when I was going up the stairs because I was scared of the wee particles they give off and the diseases they can bring.

"You can hear them all the time tweeting, pecking. It's a headache. People might think it's just some birds in the roof, but this has been constant for more than a decade.

"It's not nice getting woken up late at night or early in the morning by it. It drives me nuts. The birds are really upsetting me now and I have my granddaughter in here who is only 15 weeks old.

"I just don't understand why it's not been dealt with."

A spokesperson for RCH - Inverclyde's largest housing provider - said: "We have inspected the property and found no evidence of nesting birds.

"A repair has been raised for damaged slating on the property, which requires high-level scaffolding to be erected.

"We understand Ms Brown's frustration with the situation, but as it is illegal to disturb any bird nest that is in use or under construction, the timescale of this repair may be affected should any evidence of nesting be discovered."

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