Goodbye Bella

[cdog]

I'm devastated to be writing this, but Bella has passed away. Everything was normal this morning when I let Sully and her out, so I was shocked to find her lifeless when I came home.
I walked into my room at 3:30 to put her and Sully away and let the babies out as I always do. When I entered though, I could not see Bella, all I saw was Sully. I called for her but when she did not come, I figured she was hiding. She sometimes sat on my bed so I looked for her there, but then I noticed a gap underneath my pillow. I gently lifted my pillow and there she was. At first she looked fine, but when I touched her my heart sank, she did not move. She had burrowed too far in and could not get out. As I held her in my hands I looked over to Sully and I could see that he knew.

She was the sweetest bird I knew, she lived for rides on my shoulder and nutriberries. She would have been 6 years old on May 5, far too young. I don't know what Sully will do when he realizes she won't be coming to bed tonight.

You are free Bella, I hope where you are has all the nutriberries you could ever want. You will be forever loved.

[kendrafitz]

Chris, I am so sorry for the loss of Bella. I know your heart must be broken, as well as Sullys.

Fly free little Bella.

[wingman]

So sorry to hear this news...I truly believe the Good Lord has a place in heaven for all his colorful creatures... to much beauty to just waste away, I'm sure Bella is having a great time:angel:

[cdog]

Thank you both.
Sully is being very quiet, I can see in his eyes that he knows something is wrong.

[wingman]

he is gonna grieve....just talk softly to him ...maybe give him an extra treat to make him feel a little bit better...I think they really understand when we talk to them...maybe and this is just an idea you could put a feather or 2 of Bella's in the bird tent, it may carry her scent and it may help him to have her scent around for a few days... let us know how he is doing.....

[cdog]

I gave him extra mango(his favorite). I wish I could put something in a tent for him but they did not have a tent as they were a breeding pair and Bella would have used it as a nest.
She wanted to nest this year but I did not let her. I always covered anything that could be used as a nest but I did not block my pillow this morning, a mistake I will sadly never forget.

[Lady]

Oh Chris :im so sorry:,

It's one of the hardest things we have to to deal with, when a dearly loved member of the family leaves us. I hope time will help heal your pain and love will heal your heart.

[jtbirds]

So sorry for your loss. I hope you plan to find a cause of death for your sake and sullys sake:(. Again I am so sorry..

[cdog]

As awful as it sounds, I believe the cause of death is suffocation. She was so far under my pillow, in between it and a towel, that she could not get out.

[Casper's 2nd best friend]

Poor, poor Sulley. Poor, poor you. They looked so beautiful together. Whatever you do, do not blame yourself, none of us would have considered a pillow to be a hazard. I agree with Justin that it might be a good idea to have the cause of death investigated - it might have been a heart attack or some other medical reason and she just crawled in there to be comfy.

[spiritbird]

Sorry for this tragic accident.

[Cedardave]

Im terrably sorry for your loss.When we and our flock lose one its easy to blame ones self.There are millions of reasons things happen.Pillow...no pillow....perhaps she felt something was wrong and went there with the end result in mind.I have/am experiancing the grief of loss.Your birds and you will mourn.Remember to honour your lost and cherish each moment with those still here.Dont waste your energy on blameing yourself.....were all thinking of you

[plax]

I'm so very sorry about Bella, Chris :'(. I know that her passing has ripped part of your heart away and I can only imagine your level of pain. Accidents are something I worry deeply about with my guys, so I've mulled many of the potentials over and over in my mind. I'm thus painfully aware of how horribly devastated I will be should any of those scenarios occur. It's impossible to replace the cherished and unique personality of a loved one... when one is taken, he or she must live on in our hearts, ever part of who we are. Bella will always be with you.

[cdog]

Thank you all. Last night was very hard, I could not sleep in my bed because the image of her under my pillow just kept haunting me. Sully is taking this better than I thought he would, he hasn't been calling for her but he seems very sad.

[94lt1]

Sorry for your loss.. Its painful to lose our feathered friends... Sad she died that way... Sending positive thoughts your way..

[Macaw Lover]

:im so sorry: Maybe it was not the pillow itself, but a place she might have gone to if she was not feeling good and that just happened like that. My thought would be if she was actually caught she would have started screaming and Sully would have too.

Sully is morning too so you can be a comfort for him as he will be for you. I also believe if an animal dies, their friends should be shown the body so they can say their last goodbyes just like we do. Then understand and need to grieve too.

[cdog]

That's exactly what I did, I held her out for them to see. The look that Sully had when I held her told me he knew.

[Mare]

I'm so sorry..I know how close we become with our birds. Condolences..my heart goes out to you.