Dexter, in his box, the day we found him.
Well...Dexter died at some point Friday night.
I'm not sure how it happened, but I woke up Saturday morning and realized that I had slept in. Dexter always woke me up at around 6:30 so I knew something was wrong when the clock said 10. I woke Corey up, and after looking in the cage, he confirmed that Dexter had died.
We were definitely confused. The night before we were teaching him how to fly and he was such a trooper. Jumping off the cage into blankets over and over again--he was getting really good, too.
But also, the night he died he went to bed really early. We had given him a bath, bundled him up in a towel, had the heater gently blowing on him, and put him in his cage with a blanket covering it. He went to sleep fast. I figured the bath wore him out and the cage being dark and cozy made him fall asleep. That was around 9PM. Then around midnight, I checked on him before going to sleep. I pet him and stroked his wings, which woke him up. He started walking towards my hand, and I noticed that he was walking oddly. He leaned to his right against a towel in his cage so that his left food went sliding away from him with every step. It was weird, no doubt, and I said something like "whoa, Dexter's walkin funny" to Corey, but then I passed it off as him being delirious after waking up from a deep sleep. He may have died shortly after that.
I'm not sure how it happened, but I woke up Saturday morning and realized that I had slept in. Dexter always woke me up at around 6:30 so I knew something was wrong when the clock said 10. I woke Corey up, and after looking in the cage, he confirmed that Dexter had died.
We were definitely confused. The night before we were teaching him how to fly and he was such a trooper. Jumping off the cage into blankets over and over again--he was getting really good, too.
But also, the night he died he went to bed really early. We had given him a bath, bundled him up in a towel, had the heater gently blowing on him, and put him in his cage with a blanket covering it. He went to sleep fast. I figured the bath wore him out and the cage being dark and cozy made him fall asleep. That was around 9PM. Then around midnight, I checked on him before going to sleep. I pet him and stroked his wings, which woke him up. He started walking towards my hand, and I noticed that he was walking oddly. He leaned to his right against a towel in his cage so that his left food went sliding away from him with every step. It was weird, no doubt, and I said something like "whoa, Dexter's walkin funny" to Corey, but then I passed it off as him being delirious after waking up from a deep sleep. He may have died shortly after that.
The only other warning sign was that he was also pooping a lot. Like, every 10 minutes. For the past 2 days. I'm not sure if that is normal or not, but on a few occasions I thought that he may have an intestinal issue. He would first get into a fit of extreme panic-y hunger, then when I would feed him he would immediately fall asleep. So immediate that he would only get 1 or 2 bites down. Then he'd wake up 10 minutes later, poop a lot, and then start the panic of hunger again. This could all be normal, but it's my only idea of what could have been wrong with him.
The only thing I deeply hope, is that I did nothing to kill him. Maybe he wasn't supposed to eat cat food...that's what I read and what advice I got, but maybe it was a bad brand or he was allergic to it. Or maybe it was the bath...he was certainly fully feathered and we made sure to keep him warm, but maybe it was still too cold for him to handle. Or maybe he was sick the whole time. I might have to go with that theory just for my own selfish well being.
Rest in Peace Dexter! Although we only had 3 short days together, you will be missed.
The only thing I deeply hope, is that I did nothing to kill him. Maybe he wasn't supposed to eat cat food...that's what I read and what advice I got, but maybe it was a bad brand or he was allergic to it. Or maybe it was the bath...he was certainly fully feathered and we made sure to keep him warm, but maybe it was still too cold for him to handle. Or maybe he was sick the whole time. I might have to go with that theory just for my own selfish well being.
Rest in Peace Dexter! Although we only had 3 short days together, you will be missed.
Dexter (5/8/2012--5/12/2012)
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