Sudden death

Cany · Aug 10, 2022

I am shattered... My ringneck died suddenly this evening... I don't know why.... Has it happened to anyone??

Cottonoid · Aug 10, 2022

Oh Cany, I'm so sorry!!

You are in the right place here; we definitely have members who have been through this and we all understand how terrible it is to lose our loved one

saxguy64 · Aug 10, 2022

Welcome to the forums, although I wish it was under happier circumstances. I'm so sorry for your loss. You're among friends here, many of whom have experienced exactly the same thing. It's often very difficult to figure out why it happened. Your avian vet may be able to do a necropsy to look for possibilities, but they still might not find the cause. That's a decision only you can make for yourself. Thing is, as prey animals, parrots will hide indication of illness until they just can't any longer, and by that time, it may be too late. It's truly heartbreaking, but unfortunately it happens. My sincerest condolences to you.

LaManuka · Aug 10, 2022

Oh Cany, welcome to the forums, but I’m so sorry for the shocking circumstances that led you to us. I think most of us here have suffered a similar sudden loss, I know I have and it is truly devastating. As @saxguy64 has mentioned, you could possibly try to have a necropsy performed by a certified avian vet, it would need to be done within the next few days and you’d need to store the body in the fridge (not the freezer) until it can be done, but sometimes even that is not 100% conclusive. The shock of losing a beloved bird this way is awful, my heart goes out to you and you have my every sympathy.

texsize · Aug 10, 2022

I am very sorry to hear about the loss of your ring neck.
I have lost birds suddenly without warning.
My beautiful Lutino Cockatiel Pinky died suddenly one morning during feeding.
She made one squawk and landed face down on the bottom of the cage.

But I have also lost dearly loved birds over illness and….
well I will never get over the death of my Red Lored Amazon Pacho. She died from eating her rope perch (and me not seeing the problem soon enough).
It was the worst feeling to be so completely helpless.

anyway given the choice I think quick is better than long and drawn out. Force feeding medications that do no good.

am sorry for your loss, it hurts bad no mater how it happened.

Laurasea · Aug 10, 2022

I'm sorry for your loss, its incredibly hard to loose them unexpectedly.

I have had it happen, I fed my girl treats came back an hour so later to her passing. Such an awful shock. Unfortunately she did end up having a bad sinus infection, really no symptoms ( one drop of clear fluid the day before thsts it) but this had bern a life long problem for her. As a chick she had aspirated from hand feeder abd ended up with only one functional nostril..but even knowing and having treated her numerous times over her 17 years with me...no signs things were so serious...playing, talking, active...had just eaten treats....

See birds evolved to hide illnesses. Like its written in their DNA and a hardwired behavior. Otherwise they would be targeted by predators or kicked out of the flock to save the flock from the spread if disease or predators attention.

So its not that we missed anything they really will do everything they can to hide it.

Most times they have been hiding that something is wrong. Our only tools and they aren't 100% by any means...it to monitor weight regularly as most birds with a health issue will start loosing weight. ( not always) a digital kitchen scale works well fir this . 5% weight loss get them checked by a veterinarian. Our only other tool is to be a poop watcher. As sometimes we can see changes with health issues. Like scant fecal matter ( nit eating enough) or extra large amounts of liquid or changes in tge liquid color to bright yellow or bright green ( bright green in first morning poop is normal tho as they've fasted overnight and have higher bike acids) or looking fir stringing poop or lots bubbles or mucus or anything weird. But keep in mind normal poops have a range of how they look. Will change color if with some fruits abd veg..can be wetter after a bath...so poop watching is an art

True sudden death is often exposure to a toxin....those darn chemicals in nonstick ( forget the name) are hidden in many things like air fryers, coating ironing boards , and the nonstick cookware that contains them ( we all have to research to make sure those are safe brands) or switch to cast iron , glass and stainless steel.

I'm just sharing as much as possible. Because I hope in time when you heal from this horror, you will want to share your life with parrots again. We only feel so much pain because we have loved so deeply. And even when we do everything possible the unexpected can happen.

There is something so incredibly amazing between humans and parrots.. they are more than pets.

Much love yo y

Cany · Aug 10, 2022

Laurasea said:
I'm sorry for your loss, its incredibly hard to loose them unexpectedly.

I have had it happen, I fed my girl treats came back an hour so later to her passing. Such an awful shock. Unfortunately she did end up having a bad sinus infection, really no symptoms ( one drop of clear fluid the day before thsts it) but this had bern a life long problem for her. As a chick she had aspirated from hand feeder abd ended up with only one functional nostril..but even knowing and having treated her numerous times over her 17 years with me...no signs things were so serious...playing, talking, active...had just eaten treats....

See birds evolved to hide illnesses. Like its written in their DNA and a hardwired behavior. Otherwise they would be targeted by predators or kicked out of the flock to save the flock from the spread if disease or predators attention.

So its not that we missed anything they really will do everything they can to hide it.

Most times they have been hiding that something is wrong. Our only tools and they aren't 100% by any means...it to monitor weight regularly as most birds with a health issue will start loosing weight. ( not always) a digital kitchen scale works well fir this . 5% weight loss get them checked by a veterinarian. Our only other tool is to be a poop watcher. As sometimes we can see changes with health issues. Like scant fecal matter ( nit eating enough) or extra large amounts of liquid or changes in tge liquid color to bright yellow or bright green ( bright green in first morning poop is normal tho as they've fasted overnight and have higher bike acids) or looking fir stringing poop or lots bubbles or mucus or anything weird. But keep in mind normal poops have a range of how they look. Will change color if with some fruits abd veg..can be wetter after a bath...so poop watching is an art

True sudden death is often exposure to a toxin....those darn chemicals in nonstick ( forget the name) are hidden in many things like air fryers, coating ironing boards , and the nonstick cookware that contains them ( we all have to research to make sure those are safe brands) or switch to cast iron , glass and stainless steel.

I'm just sharing as much as possible. Because I hope in time when you heal from this horror, you will want to share your life with parrots again. We only feel so much pain because we have loved so deeply. And even when we do everything possible the unexpected can happen.

There is something so incredibly amazing between humans and parrots.. they are more than pets.

Much love yo y