Sun conure passed away

[Fightonrob]

Hello everyone,

I have two parrots a Amazon and a Sun Conure. I decided to take them in the shower with me. I took the Amazon with me first and she enjoyed it. I then put my conure in and she didn't seem to like it much so I took her out. About 2 mins after my conure was acting abnormal. Not standing and breathing heavy. I was scared out of my mind monitoring her and for about 10 minutes she was just laying down. All of a sudden she flapped her wings and tilted her head back and passed away. What could of been the cause of this? I'm so heartbroken and I can't seem to not blame myself for this. My bird was about 14 years old.

 

[Mariar]

I am sooo sorry to hear about your loss, did he get water in his lungs?maybe stress from the shower? It’s hard to tell
My heart goes out to you!!

 

[Fightonrob]

Hello Mariar,

It didn't seem like she got water in her mouth. The mist was just hitting her. But I can stop blaming myself thinking I might of stressed her out so much in the shower. I'm so heartbroken.

 

[noodles123]

I am so sorry...how awful for you.

They can inhale it through their nostrils if breathing heavily/scared (a little water won't hurt them but if she was already hyperventilating and enough landed there, it is possible..). She could have had a heart attack due to fear. Was she familiar with the shower? Had she been allowed to adjust to the sound of the water/bathroom etc over time?
Were you using any strongly scented body washes etc? Anything with tea-tree oil?
It is also possible that the temperature shift caused a shock to her system, in conjunction with the presumptive stress of the shower (if you had it really warm in there and then took her out into a cool house)...lots of combined stress factors potentially...they do struggle to regulate temperature, but I doubt that is the only thing that was going on.


Again, I am so sorry. It's hard to know exactly what happened, but things can scare them badly (I had to sign a waiver at one vets' office to get my bird a nail trim, as some get very frightened).

You could get a necroscopy if you see an avian vet. If you do choose this route, preservation via refrigeration is crucial.

 

[Laurasea]

I’m so very sorry for your loss.,
Such an awful shock and unexpected. Yiu we’re trying to enrich and make your burds life better.

It is possible that too much water got in the nose, that’s how they breath.
But more likely your bird had a hidden problem or illness. Birds evolved over millions of years to hide illness, as they are a prey species. And as a flock , sick burds are kicked out to save the flock, so birds hide to keep predators from targeting them and to stay with the flock. So it’s not that miss signs it’s that there are no signs sometimes. So your bird could have been dealing with something and the shower pushed them over the edge, which might have been days away regardless.

This is a tragedy, but why it happened is so hard to say. I don’t think you are to blame at all.

The head back thing happens as death happens, most creatures do this. It’s not pain or the sign of anything, it’s just part of the process of passing over.

It’s awful to be the witness of a loved ones passing. But I think we offer comfort by being with them.

14 is a good life , a long life. Tho age ranges are given as possible longer .., but 10 -15 or so is the average tho. I did research in this awhile back

It hurts it just hurts so much . I wish our love didn’t have such a high price

 

[wrench13]

So sorry and sad for the loss of your sunnie. We had a special parrot pass away like that just pffft, and he was gone. Take comfort that she lived a life with love and caring, and she will always be with you. You'll see her again over the bridge as she comes flapping up to you.

 

[Flboy]

I am so sorry! Such a shock!

 

[Cagzo]

I dont think it could have been the fault of the shower as my Conure dives her head right under her bath water.
It isnt your fault,but Im so sorry to hear this,more than likely what Laurasea said.

 

[Fightonrob]

Thank you everyone for the kind words and I hope this helps with the healing process. I've been a total and complete mess these last two days. It's hard not having her around. It's hard to see myself okay with out here there.

 

[Scott]

My deepest condolences for the sudden loss of your Sun Conure. My guess is it was more stress related than physical reaction to water. Parrots are programmed to avoid displaying illness, might have been a pre-existing condition. As noodles123 suggested, a necropsy by certified avian vet might determine cause. Please don't blame yourself, many folks shower birds and they are generally able to avoid ingesting harmful amounts of water.