A WOMAN who claims she is best friends with a seagull has been left injured after the bird broke into her home.
Hayley Binnington, 41, saw her pal crash into her West Sussex flat before he took a bite out of her nose.
Her seagull bestie Bernie then “regurgitated crabs” onto the floor before knocking over ornaments in the excitement of smelling Hayley’s day-old potato wedges.
The unemployed woman tried putting an end to the chaos by picking up the gull – but was forced to throw him out of the window after he attacked her.
The self-proclaimed “crazy animal feeder” also smashed her veneers which she had to superglue back on.
“Because he was in my hand, I decided to give him a cuddle before I let him go, but he pecked me,” Hayley added.
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“I think he was annoyed because he wanted the [potato] wedges.
“He bit my nose; I threw him out the window and suddenly my veneer was in my mouth! I was like, ‘oh no, what’s happened?’
“I’ve had to book a dentist appointment, but I’ve got some superglue for now to try and stick it back on.
“He really, really hurt my nose. I’ve got a cut. I’ve got to keep putting cream on and making sure it is cleaned properly.
“He cut all the way from one side, underneath and inside the nose, as well as down the middle and on the other side. So, I’ve got this snip on my nose. It’s all scabby and bloody.
“I’m fine though, it’ll go away.”
Despite the unexpected attack Bernie returned to the sixth-floor flat window straight away.
Hayley became besties with the seagull in 2020 and claim the pair have an affectionate relationship of hand holding – despite being fined £150 by her building manager for feeding birds.
Hayley added: “I’m his friend. I think he pretends to be my friend because he wants some food – but I think he loves me really.
“It was during Covid years, and everyone was indoors so he became sort of like a new best friend.
“He’s one of the only people I see really. I see him every day and I see my mum once a month.
“I’ve collected the feathers he leaves on the windowsill and I’m going to make a dreamcatcher out of them.”
Hayley shared the video of Bernie going berserk on TikTok which gained more than 2million views.
In the thousands of comments, one user said: “This is such an incredible relationship you have with him. He’s sassy and I love it.”
A second said: “What a giggle. Naughty Bernie haha.”
A third fan of the mischievous seagull wrote: “The way you speak to him just tells me all I need to know about Bernie and his chaotic lifestyle.”
However some suggested Hayley should be more careful when holding a wild seagull, who could cause her even more serious injury.
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One said: “What did you expect? He’s being a seagull not a pet cat!”
Another wrote: “You don’t pick him up like that – next time try getting his wings to his body then holding him with the wings next to his body.”
