Conure support

Dear all,

We had a beloved conure for two years (we purchased as a baby) and he very quickly became I'll and ultimately aspirated on his own vomit while in the animal hospital and died. We are heartbroken, and have no idea how this happened. We went through a history, husbandry with the vet and didn't find a clear cause. We are likely going to adopt another conure and want to honor Luigis memory with a bird who lives for decades!! What are some important tips, health advice, etc. Ed went into bird parenting feeling knowledgeable-we know the basics about no Teflon, candles, sprays, open windows or fans. We checked his food regularly for mold. Looking for some expert advice here

Sorry to hear about Luigi.....

You might want to consider several species, then do as much research as you can on each, even writing up pros & cons sheets for each specie, then figure out which of those might best fit into your family.....

In your research, you can ask here or other groups/forums about a species' quirks, etc., you can check out youtube & listen to their screaming, though usually you will need to multiply what you hear by several decibels.....you mentioned going over Luigi's history with the vet, often it becomes just a guessing game unless a necropsy is performed, so without really knowing, things can't be ruled out.....

We often think of our feathered friends as more delicate than what they really are, actually most companion birds are pretty tough and though avian medicine has come a long way, there is no single medical encyclopedia that can answer all a vet's questions and though we do the best that we can for our feathered friends, there also is no guide that fits all situations for all birds.....I had a maroon-bellied conure live for 28 years and I've lost birds that were less than a year and although I have learned a lot more than my first couple of years being a bird slave, but a person who lives with companion birds for 50 years will still be learning.....

Welcome to the forum. So sorry you had to lose Luigi. I can understand your concerns before getting another one. Sometimes our feathered kids just have something wrong that takes a long time to show up & sometimes it never gives warning before it is too late. If the vet can't find a cause, it could be a defect Luigi was born with.

You gave him two good years & he was happy being your boy. He will be watching over ya'll & your new darling when you find the right feathered one that needs your love.

Hi,
i'm so sorry for the sudden loss of your bird. i know it's really tough and i just lost my sun conure last August, very suddenly, after having her for 11 years. Like weco said without a necropsy, it is very difficult to know what happened. (In my case, i "had" to know, wanting another bird and needing to know it wasn't something in my environment. It turned out to be blunt trauma in her own cage while i was at work--a freak 'accident'!) So i also understand that feeling of helplessness or fear of it happening again.

But like my vet told me when i was so shaken--it really isn't that likely to happen again with another bird if it was a freak illness or accident.

I looked around at different types of birds, watched video, went to bird stores, etc until i knew i wanted a blue crown. Once i knew, i just KNEW, and it was final in my mind. I'm so happy with my decision too, and he has made my grief over Georgie so much easier.