mysterious death

Hello guys my moms blue and gold died last night a very fast death. She said she started puking and throwing up mucus and coughing. She then laid down and acted like she wanted to sleep and in the matter of 45 minutes she was gone. They are thinking that it is the food that they were giving her.does anyone know? I'm worried about my macaw we threw away all the food we had to be sure.

Do you remember what foods she was eating?

Something was very wrong, and what a scary situation. My strongest suggestion is to take the macaw to a avian vet and have the body looked over, they are the only people who can tell you what really happened.

It was just bulk bird seed. From a feed company.

Was she fed anything other than seeds? Could she have gotten into something she shouldn't have???

I'm so sorry for your loss, but there are so many "what if's", the only way to know the exact cause of death would be to have your certified avian vet perform a necropsy.

My mom and dad said she had just eaten some of her food and like 5 minutes later she started acting weird and they called the vet and the vet said it wasn't anything to worry about and they were getting ready to take her to a specialist and they didn't Bernanke it out of the driveway

Any details of the food they were eating that night?
Are you guys going to schedule an necropsy?

I'm really sorry for your loss.

I'm so very sorry for your loss. I agree with the others, the only way to know what caused the sudden death is to have a necropsy done. If you have another bird it would be wise to find out for sure, in case it was something contagious. A necropsy may give you some peace of mind and you'll know if your other bird is at risk. Birds are good at hiding illnesses as long as possible.

Dear Gabby, I am so sorry for your loss. There is really nothing I can say. Our birds are like our children. I will send a prayer for your comfort. Bonita

Please do let us know exactly what she ate off their plate. Some stuffs that we eat they shouldn't eat. I'm very sorry for their loss....

Her food was a general parrot mix that we got a feed company it has peanuts sunflower seeds and some smaller type seeds. And my parents and I do not have the money to pay for such a procedure. I do have a bird.

Sorry for the confusion, but we were referring to the food that your parents/you were consuming that night.


If you don't have money for a necropsy, I really reccomend at least getting your current bird checked out to make sure it's not an airborne disease/contagious to people/and to make sure your bird isn't sick as well.

I just re-read what you've said, I believe I had mistaken thinking she ate something off their plate. She ate from her dish and started acting strange shortly after....

She sounds like she was poisoned from something.....The only way to find out is through necropsy, otherwise there's no way to really know what she died from. I do hope you guys would read up on heavy metal poisoning and PTFE poisoning. Or even some household products that could cause it.

It certainly does sound like poisoning to me, but there is absolutely no way to tell without a necropsy.

There are a number of things, such as non-stick coated pans that get too hot that can cause what you are describing, as well as household poisons that she may have gotten into, or that contained some ingredient undetectable to us, but fatal to them.

Without a necropsy there is no way to know for sure.

First, I am sorry for your loss. It is so tragic to lose a feathered family member so suddenly

I was thinking the same thing as above posters-poisoning. Parrots are sensitive creatures, and plenty of things you'd never think of are deadly for them. I would think about what you were cooking with last night- any non-stick pots, pans or kitchen appliances (like a crock pot with non-stick interior)? The symptoms you describe sound very much like PTFE poisoning. You can't see, smell or taste the fumes, and as humans, we aren't affected. It can kill parrots very very quickly after exposure, even with vet treatment. So can fruit pits and seeds. Any chance the macaw got a hold of a peach pit or cherry pit or apple seeds? All of those naturally contain cyanide. Many houseplants are poisonous as well (could he have chewed on one by accident?). Another thought is anything that smells strongly (air fresheners, candles, cleaning chemicals). All have the potential of putting off fumes fatally toxic to parrots. I hope you are able to narrow down a potential cause and remove potential dangers from your home.