Baby blue and gold death

[Kidzot]

We lost our baby BG yesterday after only having him two weeks. He was about 8 weeks old and we were hand feeding him. I measured the temperature every feeding with a thermometer and we weighed him every morning. We noticed that he spit up a little food but he was always a difficult eater, never bobbing but eating slowly. He was always very active, playing, and making cute baby noises and interacting with us. Two nights ago he had a very dark stool and yesterday morning he was not himself. His crop was not emptying completely so I gave him some warm water and tried to massage his crop thinking something was stuck in there. After a few hours I called the breeder to let him know that something was not right and as I was speaking to him, my husband was with the bird and the bird spit up water, then fell over and violently vomited dark brown liquid. He fell forward had some spasms, screamed a little, took two breaths and died. We were devastated. Does anyone have any idea what could have caused this. We did everything by the book and were very careful with the baby.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Oh my gosh! I am so very sorry!!!

How long have you had your baby? What did the breeder tell you about his untimely passing? Will you have a necropsy done to find out what caused your baby's death?

Is it at all possible he was aspirated?

I apologize for all the questions. Only a certified avian vet will be able to determine COD, unfortunately.

This is so very, very sad and tragic. Again, my sincere sympathies.

 

[Grinder]

Is this the first parrot you tried to wean yourself? Most reputable breeders will not sell an unweaned parrot simply because it is not something someone without a lot of experience should be doing on their own.

I am sorry for your loss and it must have been terrible seeing your baby fade away before your eyes.

I forgot who the poster was, but a forum member posted a lengthy thread on this very topic warning that this can happen. I hope more members read it and take it to heart.

 

[Kidzot]

This is the first parrot we were hand feeding but it's not our first bird. We have three other birds just not this young. And I was trained by the breeder before bringing him home. Also i am in constant contact with the breeder. I am not sure if he aspirated but he was fine until the night before last. No coughing, wheezing or anything else. We had him a little over two weeks and everything was fine. I will show pictures of the vomit and droppings to the breeder and see what he says. Thank you for your sympathies.

 

[Wdlodge]

Wow how unfortunate, so sorry for your loss. I had a tiel die in my hand once. I had no idea what was wrong with her. I was on the phone with my avian vet when it happened. It was so sad.

 

[tiedyed]

Oh no that must have been a horrible thing to witness. I would feel so helpless under those circumstances. My condolences. :sad:

 

[ruffledfeathers]

Oh no!! I am SO sorry for your loss. I can only imagine how terrible you must be feeling. I worry so much and i'm the type of person who needs answers, so i would personally want an avian vet's opinion just for closure and to know what went wrong with the little guy.

 

[emmett518]

Condolences. Losing pets is horrible. Please know that you're in our thoughts and prayers.

 

[MissTaz]

I'm so sorry for your loss! I hope that you find out what the cause was. God Bless!

 

[goalerjones]

Guessing it was a bleeding issue from the dark liquid/stools you spoke of. Sorry for your loss, me personally, despite the savings I would never hand feed a baby.

Your first symptom of the problem was the dark stool. If the color of the food wasn't a factor in the color of the stool, that should have been a vet visit. The blood probably backed up in his GI tract and that in turn led to the vomiting.

 

[Featheredsamurai]

That is just terrible! Keep the body in the fridge(not freezer!) so you vet can tell you the cause of death.

 

[Blancaej]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[Kidzot]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I do agree that it was probably internal bleeding. What I can't figure out is from what? He was in the same environment as at the breeders, Timothy hay and wood chip bedding. No toys or anything in the cage I kept him and it was under lock and key. No one could access him. And I definitely wasn't trying to save money, I wanted to hand feed to be closer to my bird. I will ask the vet and breeder what they think and I will report our findings. Thank you again.

 

[Turquoise]

Oh so sorry to hear you lost your feathered darling. Fly high over the Rainbow Bridge little blue one. Watch over your flock you left down here.

When they are that young so many things can go wrong in a moment's notice at no fault of yours. Even experienced breeders lose babies to aspiration easily til they get older. The breeder of my Catalina boys lost a baby macaw last year & a beautiful baby Rose Breast a few weeks ago. She has been raising parrots for many years.

I'm not saying your baby died from aspiration. I just wanted to give you a little piece of mind that losing the babies happens to experts also. You did your best & hopefully your vet can tell you what went wrong.

 

[MikeyTN]

What type of syringe or feeding utensil were you using??? IF you use one with the tip where you have the tip in the mouth, they can easily stab themselves in the crop sac or the back of their throat to cause internal bleeding.

 

[Kidzot]

The BG did not even want to eat from the syringe and it was a very short tip. H never really bopped for the food. I tried feeding through a spoon and even from a soft cup. Plus I always checked his mouth to make sure there was no dried food or wood chips inside so I looked all over his mouth. I hope I would have noticed a scratch or tear or blood. Everything looked good to me

 

[MikeyTN]

What formula were you using???

 

[Abigal7]

I am so sorry for your loss.

 

[Remy]

I'm so sorry for your loss. It does sound like some sort of internal bleeding, but I don't know why.

 

[Narkissios]

I dont post often but i have to say i am so devastated by this. I couldnt imagin loosing my baby. Sooo sorry for your loss.