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(EstateNewsWire.com, November 13, 2012 ) Deerfield, IL -- City inspectors and animal control officials in Aurora, Illinois condemned the far east-side townhouse where David Skeberdis lived, as a hazardous materials crew debated how to clear out the 445 birds he kept in the three-story structure.
An unmarried computer technician for United Airlines, the 57-year-old Skeberdis says he started collecting the birds seven years ago when he rescued a wild parakeet. He told a local TV station the situation “was alright when I had a few.”
His hobby and hoarding habits both apparently got out of hand. Firefighters trying gain access to the home had to push their way through huge mounds of trash, Skeberdis’ belongings, bird seed, and piles of bird droppings.
They found about 200 birds in his basement, scores more on the ground floor and a roughly equal number on the floor above. Among the species found were finches, canaries, parakeets, conures, and cockatiels and others. While a few of the birds were in cages, most were freely roosting and flying freely about the residence. About a quarter of the birds city inspectors found were dead.
The city learned of the problem when a painter hired to work on the house’s exterior reported to police that when he looked through a window and saw several dead birds inside the house. Skeberdis explained not removing the dead birds by saying he may not have seen them after his electricity was recently shut off.
While admitting his avian acquisitions went over the top, he added he learned that “parakeets breed like mice." He initially voiced appreciation for the city’s help in cleaning up his property, which he admits “is a mess.” However, he later fought city officials’ attempt to bring in a clean-up contractor, saying he could not afford what he estimated would be a $13,000-plus clean-up bill just for clearing hallways and pathways through rooms. The live birds removed from the residence were taken to a local rescue group, which brought cages to the townhouse.
So he could feed the surviving birds in the house – they eat 100 to 150 pounds of bird seed weekly -- the city provided Skeberdis a hazmat suit and oxygen mask. Conditions in the residence makes working there hazardous, the city said. Although he has had asthma for four years, he declined, saying he did not need the equipment. “Maybe it’s because I’ve gotten used to it,” he commented.
Results of air-quality tests showed mold levels 15 above normal; mold tests on nearby townhouses showed normal levels. After declaring the townhouse a nuisance, Aurora officials cited Skeberdis for two violations of a building maintenance code violations and four violations of an animal ordinance dealing. They said they would not decide on penalties or fines, or consider criminal charges, until their investigation is done.
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