Friday, July 27, 2007

 
We're a little sad today at our house.

our parakeet, Ms. DeBird, died.

She came to us from our next-door neighbors. They said that a relative of theirs had found this parakeet at their bird feeder, and caught it, and gave it to them, but they were going on vacation and would we mind keeping an eye on "Mr. Bird" for them, for just a little while?

and that became three years.

She was bossy, aggressive, demanding, pushy, not at all friendly. but she'd whistle back at you if you whistled at her just right, which was adorable.

She seemed not to have suffered tremendously, although her feathers were looking kind of rumpled over the past week. I thought she was just molting. I feel so bad that I was wrong.

It's sad to lose an animal. And you know it's dumb and foolish to grieve over a parakeet of all things, and embarrassing, yet it's sometimes easier to grieve for a pet than a person.

Comments:
Not dumb and foolish. You should have seen my boulder-headed father when his parakeet died. He moped for days. Then he did a post-mortem on him to see what killed him. (kidney tumors)
 
sorry to hear that ap.
 
wow, really rootie? jeez, they must have been microscopic. I mean, parakeets are small, and a parakeet's kidneys are pretty small, so the tumors would have had to be itsee bitsee.

Antiprince is in charge of the parakeet sendoff to Valhalla, usually accomplished with The Big Spoon in the backyard under the mulberry. he did that this morning, nobly and bravely and with much dignity, unlike the first time we lost a flock member, where we wept like children for an hour.

thanks, ren.
 
aw, I'm sorry, AP. R.I.P.
 
not at all dumb and foolish.

my ladyfriend lost her rats last year (yes, she had pet rats; two of them) and she was very, very sad. she'd only had them for a year, even, and in that year she'd grown very attached.

a friend of ours just lost her rabbit of 9 years. she was devastated.

i'm sorry you lost your bird friend.
 
That's sad, AP. Even an ornery pet is tough to lose.
 
He used a binocular microscope and 2 pair of tweezers.

I think a Big Spoon is a much more dignified send-off.
 
We've shared our home with several birds over the years, and it really is a loss when they go. We're actually thinking of turning an underused room into an aviary for a larger bird because they live longer (way longer).
 
hi sage!

yeah, bigger birds have significantly longer lifespans. don't parrots live to be, like 50 or 60? something ridiculously long like that?

now that things have settled down, though - we've noticed that the remaining flock seems, well, happier, if that term can reasonably be applied. they're chirpier, more active, everyone seems to be eating better. maybe we won't get a fourth bird after all.
 
Parrots can live to be over 100. apparently Winston Churchill's parrot is still alive; and is prone to saying things like "fuck the Nazis," or something of that sort.
 
I'm so sorry about your birdie! :( My condolences to you!
 
thanks, daisy!

yeah, we're all okay now. the remaining birds are totally NOT in mourning.

I wonder who's taking care of Winston Churchill's parrot. you think it's, like, the National Trust?
 
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So sorry, AP. I've lost a few birds myself; it's never easy.
 
amber - didn't you have finches?
 
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