Introducing Magellan

[kestrel_hawk]

Hello there. I am the mommy to one goofy Patagonian conure named Magellan, clutchmate to onlysmallwings's Malachi. He's overseeing the writing of this entry from the back of the couch beside me. Magellan is nearing 5 years of age, which seems a little impossible seeing as how I remember him pinfeathered and downy almost yesterday.

Magellan enjoys such pursuits as beatboxing with his daddy, preening my hair, mimicking/mocking cats, kissing his dog, and saying "woo" after I sneeze or blow my nose. ZuPreem grapes are his favorite pellet, but he wants little to do with regular/fresh food. He doesn't even like seeds; he will barely touch Lafeber NutriBerries. Picky kid.

Mr.Luckey and I also have two peach-faced lovebirds, who are ~13 and 9, and we used to have a cockatiel, but he passed away suddenly about 3 years ago, when he was only 4.

I really enjoy the interactivity of birds. They're very different than mammals in terms of type of care, companionship, etc. They take a definite shift in lifestyle, a fairly rigid schedule and more consideration regarding chemicals, fumes and temperatures, but every type of pet requires a slightly different set of needs and considerations.

Comments

[kestrel_hawk]

We did not do a proper necropsy on him, though we did have some blood work and a stool- and crop-stain done the day he was at the vet before he passed away. Technically, the cause of his death was aspiration-- he had been involuntarily regurgitating that day, which prompted us to take him to the vet, and he asphyxiated due to it at some point in the evening before we picked him up (they wanted to keep him overnight with no supervision! We said no, and went to pick him up right before close; too late). The cause of his involuntary regurgitation we do not know, and never will. His tests came back fair to healthy, with the only notable problem being anemia.
It is difficult to lose a pet at any age, of course, even at "ripe old x". I lost my lifelong pet cat when *I* was 17-- he was 19! Still tough. Aries, the cockatiel, was definitely the hardest pet I've ever lost though. I even helped to hand feed him in the pet store where I worked. :)

[sabr]

That's true, we experience loss so differently with each one, even the ones we have had long runs with.