Tamara
Rollerblading along the road
Pigwidgeon passed away today. My heart is absolutely broken. He died just the way I wanted him to though, in his tent in his sleep.
He had had a couple of rough days since the weekend, throwing up his food and the such, which isn't out of the normal since the tumor had gotten so big.
I thought of him as my invincible bird. He was a rescue from our downstairs neighbor who was moving and didn't feel like they would have room for him. When we got him over 2 1/2 years ago, his cancer was in the beginning stages and Dr. B gave him 3-6 months to live. He had really bad fatty liver disease as he had been on an awful seed diet.
Within a month of having him, we got Hedwig and that was the best thing ever for him. He was much more perky.
I took him in for a follow-up 3-4 months after his first check up, and Dr. B showed me how the tumor had progressed and gave him another 3-6 months.
However, he just kept chugging along. We did clear up that fatty liver problem and that was a very gratifying experience in not only helping his health but using him as an example of how to change over a bad diet and get a bird's health back on track. He would occasionally get really sick and then later he'd be himself perky again. In the past year or so, he's gotten a lot more cuddly and needy. He would often fly to us and cuddle with us or just hang out with us.
Funnily, when he was feeling sick, he would go in the bottom of his cage and get fluffy, and Hedwig would have none of that! She would get soooooo mad. She would go flying down there real quick and yell at him and push him back up on to his perches no matter how many times he went to the bottom. They cuddled together in their tent and she would preen him as he would also preen her. She took good care of him.
About 5 months ago, we thought we were going to lose him. He appeared to have a stroke and couldn't use one side of his body. We put him in a hospital cage and kept him warm. The next day, though, he was using both sides of his body and was himself again.
He was a character for sure. He always was getting into trouble. Whether he'd tempt fate by stealing food from the lovies or just try and hang out with them, it was always a wonderment that he didn't get more than just an occasional foot bite. He did lose the end of one toe one time when he just made a bad mistake with our lovebirds! There was blood everywhere when we had to try and get him and clean him up. Eeek. He loved to go into the babies' cages as well. Silly boy.
Rodney found him around 10am this morning. He was in his tent and had been sleeping. He slept a lot generally anyways. He went peacefully. I always said I just wanted him to go in his sleep in his tent rather than us find him in the bottom and that's the way he went. A Mother's comfort for me.
I miss him so much already. He was a joy and God gave us so much extra time with him. That was truly a blessing and I can't be more grateful for the time I had with him as well as his ability to bring light and joy into my life.
