https://metro.co.uk/2025/07/26/drunk-woman-takes-seagull-home-finding-bird-flu-23758376/
Published July 26, 2025 8:37pm Updated July 26, 2025 8:42pmComments
Up Next
Machete-wielding youths flee after stabbing boy 27 times in Woolwich bus attack
Man accused of stabbing cruise ship worker caught by rescue crew after jumping overboard
Woman arrested as group heading to Jewish summer camp kicked off flight
Rescue workers search wreckage as bus crash kills 18 in Peru
Moment American Airlines passenger slide down evacuation chutes after plane catches fire
Moment totel worker almost trampled by ‘stampede’ of guests in race for sun beds
Plane passenger tries to open cabin doors mid-air
Moment man yelling “I’ve got a bomb” pinned to ground by other passengers on flight
Air Force One touches down in Scotland as Donald Trump begins visit
Fireworks shot ‘like a machine gun’ in Northern Ireland football fan chaos
Donald Trump talks to reporters about trade, Epstein and windmills after arriving in Glasgow
Wildfire rages near Athens, destroys homes and forces evacuations
Trump says he’s ‘allowed to’ pardon sex trafficker Ghislane Maxwell
E-bike rider chased down by bystanders after knocking over elderly woman
Wreckage of ‘vanished’ Russian passenger plane discovered between trees
Russian passenger plane spotted before it crashed
Woolwich teen machete murderers appear to smile as they are sentenced
Police Commissioner tells Council ‘we’ve found dead bodies in that wood’
Woman speaks out after being told to cover up Gymshark outfit at Wetherspoons
Reporter covering disappearance of 13-year-old finds body in river
Wildfire rages through central Turkey killing at least 10
Femme fatale who ‘seduced dozens of monks to steal millions in temple funds’ is arrested
Turkish bar posts own video trying to justify alleged beating of British woman
2024: Thousands in Gaza rush towards aid boxes dropped by parachute
Passengers jump from Indonesian ship fire as flames engulf vessel
Jeremy Corbyn announces he’s starting a new party, but doesn’t have a name yet
White House reveals Trump will make his return to UK in just seven days time
Ukrainian drone strikes cause Russia to shut down Moscow airports
Moment blood-soaked Colombian killer dances naked after murdering London couple
Missing grandfather, 61, discovered inside giant python
Sign reading ‘Twinned with Epstein Island’ appears at Trump golf course
Mum faces backlash after sharing a clip of herself claiming sunbeds on holiday
President Trump posts unhinged AI video of Obama getting arrested and thrown in jail
Enraged men attack police outside Epping hotel believed to be housing asylum seekers
A drunk woman picked up and took home a seagull – only to find out later that it had bird flu.
Erin Punton had been on a night out with friends and was returning home when she spotted the bird outside a pub.
Inebriated, the 22-year-old from Ashington, Northumberland, scooped up the seagull and carried it home.
An intoxicated Erin had filmed herself with the seagull tucked under her arm while singing Valerie by Amy Winehouse.
00:02
02:24
Read More
In the clip, she said: ‘He’s a beauty.
Sign up for all of the latest stories
Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.
‘He actually wants to stop in my room and everything but I’ve got nowhere for him.’
The giant seagull appeared unfazed by the sudden attention as it was carried around like royalty.
She woke up the next morning with no recollection of the night before and was shocked to find the bird flapping about in her living room.
After taking the seagull to the vet, she ‘felt sick’ when they told her it had bird flu.
She promptly bleached her entire home after finding out the bird was infected.
What is bird flu?
Bird flu, or avian flu, is an infectious type of influenza that spreads among birds.
It can affect humans in rare cases, by being transmitted through touching infected birds, bedding and preparing or eating sick poultry.
Avian flu symptoms in humans include a very high temperature or feeling hot or shivery, aching muscles and headaches.
The last case of confirmed bird flu was confirmed in captive birds at a premises near Tow Law, Bishop Auckland in County Durham.
Erin said: ‘I saw the bird outside Wetherspoons and managed to pick him up without even a thought.
More Trending
- Full list of 156 bank branches shutting after Lloyds and Halifax confirm new closuresUK1 day agoBy Noora Mykkanen
- Woman, 18, suffers ‘life-changing’ injuries after hair is caught in funfair ride
- Full list of 37 Poundland stores set to close in the coming weeks
- Man in his 60s ‘raped in the street outside a church’
‘I don’t even know what made me pick him up.
‘I put him in my sitting room with a blanket. When I woke up in the morning, I’d forgotten and he was just floating around the sitting room.
‘I dropped him off at the vets the next day in a box and was told he had bird flu.
‘I felt sick and bleached my whole house.’
Exposing the Big Game 