Friday, September 13, 2013

Dealing with loss (29.07.13)

At the end of July, something bad happened...

I started to notice that the two youngest of my budgie flock, Leo and Pixie, were more quiet than usual. It was hot and clammy outside and I thought, the budgies must have had a bad night because of the weather; but what I failed to see is that both Leo and Pixie were showing the first symptoms of a slumbering illness.

The next day, I clearly noticed that something was wrong with Leo and Pixie. They didn't make a sound and they stayed in the same spot all the time. I got worried, drove to my parents to pick up a transport cage and called the veterinarian as soon as I had arrived there.

A couple of hours later, I arrived at the vet with all four of my budgies (Frodo, Isla, Leo and Pixie). Frodo and Isla weren't showing any symptoms up to this point, but it was clear that the two other budgies were very sick. I told the vet that Pixie had diarrhoea and that Leo seemed to have lost a lot of weight. The vet couldn't immediately say what was wrong with them, but she would examine them and keep them there for the night. I left, knowing that they were in good hands. After all, she has saved my budgies before.

The next morning, I got extremely bad news and it hit me like a bullet. Both Pixie and Leo had died in the early morning. It had gone really fast and the veterinarian was shocked - clearly she had no idea why this had happened.
My world crumbled apart after I heard the message on my phone. They were so young. They should have lived. I hadn't even had the chance to say goodbye to them. I should have reacted sooner. I should have taken them to the vet the day before. Frodo and Isla were still alive, but for the next couple of days I was terrified to hear more bad news.

While I kept blaming myself for what had happened, I had to wait for the autopsy to hear what had caused their deaths. Meanwhile, the vet kept Frodo and Isla in the hospital, so she could keep a close eye on them. We visited them every day, promising them that we would take them home soon, and everything would be allright.

One week later, the results came in: a streptococcal infection followed by sepsis. At least it happened quickly :-(

I read up on this disease and learnt that a lot of budgerigars can carry this kind of organisms without even being sick. There needs to be a trigger factor (something that weakens the bird so that they become an easy target for bacteria) that enables the bacteria to invade the blood stream and spread through the body. I learned that Frodo and Isla survived the disease because their immune system shielded them from getting sick. Then why did Pixie and Leo get sick? I'm not 100% sure but it has to do with genetics (they react differently to diseases than Frodo and Isla) and the fact that during their short lifespan, they didn't really have a chance to build up immunity against any diseases.

Trigger factors for bacterial infections include: overcrowding, poor diet, low hygiene, inadequate parasite control and extreme weather conditions. These factors can determine your bird's life or death so please indentify and correct them on time. When budgies are showing illness symptoms, then they're often very sick already.

I know for a fact that the extreme weather conditions were the trigger factor here. Secondly, I had bought what turned out to be the crappiest aviary in the world - I will tell you about this later.

We buried Leo and Pixie in a nearby forest, close to home, along with some of their favorite toys. It was the hardest thing to say goodbye to them and I hope I will see them again some day. I will never forget them and the good times we had together.

Frodo and Isla are back home, recovering from a week at the vet's place. They still call out for Leo and Pixie and it's heartbreaking, knowing that Leo was Frodo's mate. I know he misses her and there is nothing I can do to bring her and Pixie back. We are considering buying two new birds, because I know Frodo and Isla miss being part of a bigger bird flock. But first they need to recover. Dealing with loss is not easy, especially when you have the feeling that you lost your birds way too early. I hope Pixie and Leo find peace and freedom, wherever they are now.

Here are some of the last pictures I have of them:

Our little budgie flock.

Leo and Frodo, it's a shame they couldn't stay together.

This is Leo on the day before she got sick. I want to remember her this way <3 td="">

Pixie the explorer, she will always be in my heart <3 br="">

19 comments:

  1. Sad story, both of them would rest in peace!
    I don't want to imagine how you feel, I don't know what would happen if my little Azul was gone.
    Be strong!

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  2. I'm so sorry to hear this. My heart goes out to you.

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  3. I know how you feel, its terrible. But please don´t blame yourself. It wasn´t your fault! I remember when I lost Misty. I had only had her for about a week, and she was a year old yet. I blamed my self, I thought that it was my fault. But I was quite new to budgies, and she was ill with a crop illnes thing way before I got her. But just be happy that Frodo and Isla are there to comfort you. Sydney was there for me.

    Sydney & Mia :-)

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  4. I feel for you. I'd feel terrible if my little Sarge went the same way.

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  5. Hi, my name is Isolde. My budgie, Mr. Liz, just died. I would like to connect with you to share stories of my budgie and yours. So sorry about Leo and Pixie. They were both so beautiful. I hope Mr. Liz and Leo and Pixie are friends in budgie heaven.
    Please post again soon.

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  6. I also had a story like this my fave budgie died he was just so beautiful:-(

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  7. One time, my mom bought a pair of extremely beautiful budgies. My mom put them in the cage with the other budgies. We found the next morning that they were dead and that the others probably killed them out of jealousy.

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  8. Yeah, I checked them out after your last post and I'm totally obsessed. 
    RX labels for vets

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  9. So sad to read your story! But I learnt a lot from it.

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  10. I'm so sorry for your loss. My budgie Moi Moi (means sleepy) died when I was on a plane back home we only have my budgie Blue now, I know how you feel I also lost my first budgie Hulk to some disease, the doctor never found out and then the night we got back from the vet he died in his sleep. Don't worry I'm sure there are a lot of people out there who are experiencing the same thing.

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  11. I am so sorry for ur loss I relete my budgie passed away too😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

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  12. im a novice budgie owner, though have had a pair for the past 4 years, only this year i started to put a nest for the pair to breed. talk about the crappiest cage..hmm i had one, which is meant for cats actually but modified to suit the budgies. anyway, not sure whether this has contributed to the death of my 4 month old budgie. The cage which is placed at the back yard is often lit by a night sensor light of my immediate neighbor’s house. but recently, the sensor seem to have malfunction and it was total darkness. I could sense some restlessness among the budgies but i thought it was some excitement due to some new baby chicks fledgling and out of the cage. The budgie’s cage has one hole which is big enough for the head to peek through but never has any of the budgies escaped through it.
    The next day, noticed the 4 months old missing, and found a trail of bird feathers. Perhaps the scare of the darkness had driven the young chick out through the hole and mauled by the cats? i know there are a few who lingers around. Now im building an aviary for the remaining, the parents and 2 new chicks (2 months)

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  13. The more significant the loss, the more intense the grief. However, even subtle losses can lead to grief. For example, you might experience grief after the pet cremation dallas , moving away from home, graduating from college, changing jobs, selling your family home, or retiring from a career you loved.

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  15. Somthing similar happened to me, I realised that my under 1 year old Rita was gaining weight, We went to the vets ant the vets told us to give them antibiotics and gave us a bottle and a syringe, I gave to her with following the instructions on the bottle and when i gave it to her a few minutes later she collapsed and died

    So basically the vet killed my budgie

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  16. im so sorry to hear this

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