Lost my Zebra Finch Sunny today
Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 11:04 pm
About a week ago I posted a thread here stating that my Zebe, Sunny, had been bleeding from her foot, not knowing why. She seemed fine for about a day until she was having trouble standing on the foot. My mom took her to the vet for me the next day and the doctor assumed it had to do with some twine that got caught around her foot and possibly cut off her circulation. The doctor told us to watch over her for a week and see if the foot would get any better. Initially, one of her toes had been darkened and was showing no signs of improving, eventually another toe blackened as well. This went on for about 4 or 5 days, until finally her entire foot with the exception of two toes started to swell up and look very irritated.
My dad and I took her back this morning and the doctor re-examined her. He decided that at this point our only options would be to amputate the leg, or let her suffer without amputation. Of course I didn't want her to suffer, so I opted for surgery. He said there was some risk that she would not make it through due to the size and generally fragile nature of the bird. It scared me to hear this, but the doctor and I agreed that it was the best course of action for her. So we discussed it and I paid for the operation. I had about 15-20 minutes with her before they had to take her to the back room. It was sad to think about this, but I realized this may be the last time I would ever see her. So I chatted with her, peeped at her and generally just enjoyed each others company like we always do. Then when it came time for them to take her back, I told her I loved her, gave her a kiss ( on the cage ) and said goodbye. And that was the last I ever saw her.
We weren't sure when she would be going in for the operation, we just knew it would be a while. So we stopped by PetCo to pick up some supplies for her and my other bird, Melody, and then headed back home. I did nothing but sit and wait for the phone call. I knew that there was a chance it would be bad news, so I asked my dad to be the one to answer it. The phone finally rang, after a minute of talking, he looked me in the eyes and gently shook his head. I dropped to my knees, heartbroken. She was gone.
The surgery had gone perfectly fine, and they were finishing up. Only she stopped breathing at the end of it, a complication with the anesthesia I think. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
We brought her back home, and I got to see her one last time. She was cold and stiff, but looked peaceful. I gave her one last kiss and goodbye. I'm still deciding what I would like to do with her, but I'm sure I'll figure something out.
She spent her final week awfully happy and perky, despite her worsening condition. So I can at least take comfort in knowing that she wasn't in any severe discomfort. She was a very happy and talkative bird all the time, always peeping and bouncing around. I got her on my birthday back in February, so I've had her for 8 months. It feels like it's been much longer, but it's sad to think I didn't even have that long with her. I loved her to death. I was going through some severe depression when I decided I'd like to adopt some birds. They really turned my life around. There were many key components that helped me battle my depression, but I like to think that my birds were one of the biggest contributors. She may not know it, but she served a great purpose in my life, and for that I am very grateful.
I'm still getting over the initial shocking heartbreak and grief of it all, and even though time heals wounds, this one may take a while. I miss her, I'll always miss her. I don't want to beat myself up with the " coulda/shoulda/wouldas " but it's hard not to. But that's just life I guess, these things happen, and we try our best to move on. It'll be hard, but I think I'll manage. I feel bad for Melody, she's all on her own now. I think once the grieving dies down I'll pick up a new friend for her. I can't let her go on by herself.
So yeah, I could go on forever about how awful I feel and how much I miss her, but I'll wrap things up here. I'm not religious, but wherever she may be, I hope she knows just how much I loved her.
Rest in peace, Sunny.
My dad and I took her back this morning and the doctor re-examined her. He decided that at this point our only options would be to amputate the leg, or let her suffer without amputation. Of course I didn't want her to suffer, so I opted for surgery. He said there was some risk that she would not make it through due to the size and generally fragile nature of the bird. It scared me to hear this, but the doctor and I agreed that it was the best course of action for her. So we discussed it and I paid for the operation. I had about 15-20 minutes with her before they had to take her to the back room. It was sad to think about this, but I realized this may be the last time I would ever see her. So I chatted with her, peeped at her and generally just enjoyed each others company like we always do. Then when it came time for them to take her back, I told her I loved her, gave her a kiss ( on the cage ) and said goodbye. And that was the last I ever saw her.
We weren't sure when she would be going in for the operation, we just knew it would be a while. So we stopped by PetCo to pick up some supplies for her and my other bird, Melody, and then headed back home. I did nothing but sit and wait for the phone call. I knew that there was a chance it would be bad news, so I asked my dad to be the one to answer it. The phone finally rang, after a minute of talking, he looked me in the eyes and gently shook his head. I dropped to my knees, heartbroken. She was gone.
The surgery had gone perfectly fine, and they were finishing up. Only she stopped breathing at the end of it, a complication with the anesthesia I think. I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
We brought her back home, and I got to see her one last time. She was cold and stiff, but looked peaceful. I gave her one last kiss and goodbye. I'm still deciding what I would like to do with her, but I'm sure I'll figure something out.
She spent her final week awfully happy and perky, despite her worsening condition. So I can at least take comfort in knowing that she wasn't in any severe discomfort. She was a very happy and talkative bird all the time, always peeping and bouncing around. I got her on my birthday back in February, so I've had her for 8 months. It feels like it's been much longer, but it's sad to think I didn't even have that long with her. I loved her to death. I was going through some severe depression when I decided I'd like to adopt some birds. They really turned my life around. There were many key components that helped me battle my depression, but I like to think that my birds were one of the biggest contributors. She may not know it, but she served a great purpose in my life, and for that I am very grateful.
I'm still getting over the initial shocking heartbreak and grief of it all, and even though time heals wounds, this one may take a while. I miss her, I'll always miss her. I don't want to beat myself up with the " coulda/shoulda/wouldas " but it's hard not to. But that's just life I guess, these things happen, and we try our best to move on. It'll be hard, but I think I'll manage. I feel bad for Melody, she's all on her own now. I think once the grieving dies down I'll pick up a new friend for her. I can't let her go on by herself.
So yeah, I could go on forever about how awful I feel and how much I miss her, but I'll wrap things up here. I'm not religious, but wherever she may be, I hope she knows just how much I loved her.
Rest in peace, Sunny.
Fly free little one...