03/07/2025
For those of you who have met Sherbert, a post from our CEO:
This is going to suck.
Sherbert took her last breath at 4:19 this morning, laying between Dana and I getting loved on and told she was a good little bird.
Dana got Sherbert more than 20 years ago as a baby Caique from a reputable breeder. From the beginning, Sherbert was playful, feisty and mischievous. Sherbert was a big part of our life, and our rescue. She regularly went camping with us, she was used as a "species ambassador" at several pet expo's, and she had a prominent and recurring role at Loma Linda University church during their animal Vespers programs. She was a well traveled bird.
Somewhere around 8 or 10 years ago, she had a massive seizure during a Veterinarian check for an unrelated issue. She seized for 9 hours straight and required 2 large doses of Va**um to eventually come out of it. It took several months for her to regain strength and coordination back on her left side. She spent much of that time in a small cage building up strength re-learning how to perch and climb. It was a good 6 weeks before she was making her normal chirps, squeeks, meows and saying her name. Since then, she has had countless other seizures, sometimes stress induced, sometimes just out of the blue. These were never able to be diagnosed. We knew from then on, that our time with her was limited, and we made sure to continue taking her on family trips. She went on our most recent camping trip just a few weeks ago and got tons of love, treats, and excitement.
When we got home last night, she was on the bottom of the cage and appeared to have suffered another significant seizure. She was exhausted. Initially we thought she had died, but I noticed the tiniest movement of her tongue, so I scooped her up and got her on a heating pad and started some supportive care. Dana was able to sooth her and we saw normal respirations in a few minutes.
Vet services at night are a challenge to begin with, this is especially the case for exotics. We have some ability to do stabilization and supportive care at home from doing the rescue for so long, but there wasn't really a viable option for vet care until the morning. Sherbert appeared to recognize us, she slept hard but woke up several times and made chirps and clicks in response to Dana's voice and touch, she even gave a couple of tail shakes, which is generally a happy sign for parrots. Her bowels were still working, and she made a couple of poops that looked unremarkable.
Unfortunately, she never fully came out of it. She spent her last hours being loved on by Dana and I, in a comfortable and warm spot. She's been with us throughout our entire marriage, Nico's whole life, etc.
Sherbert was a great little bird. She is going to be missed.
