Paul and I lost our bird, Booda, Christmas night...

[Prrkitty]

Over Christmas (Christmas night) ... our bird, Booda, got out of his cage (where he was being boarded)... and has not been found. At this point we can only assume he has died. It was not a deliberate act of negligence, which does help to a point... but still... the loss is and has been very hard on Paul and I.

We think even TeddyBear (our dog) knows something is wrong. He keeps going to where Booda's cage was... and looks and sniffs as if he's looking for Booda...

My heart is very heavy right now... I will check back here along and along to see how everyone is. And if anyone does need to get in touch with me... Dark Knight, Gerudo, Darky, and ShadowTiger know how to find me.

Be safe everyone <hug>

[Breaker]

That sucks about your bird. So like, they forgot to lock his cage and he flew away? That's pretty crappy. I've set you back to being a member, as per your request. Hope everything works out for you..

[Prrkitty]

That sucks about your bird. So like, they forgot to lock his cage and he flew away? That's pretty crappy. I've set you back to being a member, as per your request. Hope everything works out for you..

Thanks hon. His flight feathers were trimmed... but he could still get height and distance when he'd fly. The vet tech/assistant... removed his cage top when she took him out to give him his medicine... and 1) didn't put the cage top back on properly... and 2) apparently his cage door didn't drop down and close properly (it stuck in a partial open position) and 3) she forgot to put his cage cover over his cage... that night when she left. We know he wasn't strong enough to push up the cage door to even attempt to get out ... and he'd never before attempted to open his cage door. Even if his cage door had been open and the top not on properly - IF she'd put his sheet over his cage... he'd have stayed in his cage.

It wasn't a deliberate act of negligence... but ... the outcome still sucks.

[Breaker]

Negligence isn't deliberate, it's just negligence. I'd be extremely pissed off if I were in your situation, primarily at the vet tech. It all sounds very suspicious, as if maybe they're trying to hide something, but I'm the paranoid type. If the bird escaped, wouldn't it still have been in the office somewhere? And if it escaped (highly unlikely), could it still be in the surrounding area? They should be out searching for it, and at the very least reimburse you for the cost of the bird.

[Brasel]

I'm sorry Prr. Losing pets suck, and even more so when you have a real connection with them. I hope you guys feel better soon.

[Mercy]

If the bird escaped, wouldn't it still have been in the office somewhere?
This is what I do not get. When we boarded birds at my clinic, we kept them in a separate room just in case there were any escapes to avoid escapees possibly getting chomped by any of our four-legged patients/boarders and as a sort of airlock to keep escapees from the entrance. At the very least, they would have been within the confines of the clinic, itself, if the door to the bird room were left open. I would have fired any of my tech's, on the spot, if they managed to leave a cage open and then allowed a feather boarder to make it out the front doors. I suspect there is more to this story than they told you. I know it will not bring Booda back but do not allow them to charge you for any care that occurred during that time and request they pay you for your loss.

Many people who have not lived with a bird, or only experienced caged budgies as kids, do not often understand how much a part of our families they can become. You have my sympathies.

-m.

[gdorf]

I'm really sorry to hear this. Its no fun losing a pet in the family. :(

[Prrkitty]

His cage was actually in one of the exam rooms... with towels at the base of the doors so EVEN if he got out... he couldn't go anywhere. Well that was how it was supposed to be... she also left the door cracked open and therefore no towel at the base of the door. Therefore he was able to get out of that room and roam the clinic.

Yes there's many unanswered questions... thank you all for your sympathies and well wishes. No amount of money - even if we did sue them... wouldn't bring Booda back. And on top of all this/that... his liver disease had progressed so that the medication he was on was loosing it's potency. Paul and I knew what time we had with him was going to be limited... we just didn't know how limited.

<blah> I'm crying again... thanks y'all...
<hug>