Elderly 15 Year Old Lovebird Appears to be in Good Health

[ravenwoods]

Our elderly Lovebird appears to be a Fischer's Lovebird and from his behavior we assume he is male. We got him in 1999 and we assume he was at most 2 years old at the time.

He doesn't fly hardly ever any more but is very active climbing around his catch and exercising his wings at times.

Other than not flying any more, he does not appear to be declining. Do these elderly birds decline gradually before they die, or do they generally just die suddenly without warning?

[Bubblelady]

While I suppose elderly birds can have sudden strokes like elderly humans, my Buddy declined gradually over 2 or 3 years, and another elderly lovie I know of, who recently died at 17, declined slowly as well. You are so fortunate to have the pleasure of his company for so long! Hopefully you have a few more years ahead. :happy: Oh, and you are obviously good Parronts!

[Mary in Florida]

Our Sweetpea, who died last summer at age 17, had declined especially in the last year before her death. She stopped flying, and we think she may have had a couple of small strokes since she seemed to have some balance issues sometimes- we noticed she sometimes tended to list to one side, and had a hard time climbing sometimes. That was physically- she still had the same spirit and zest for life she had shown from the beginning, and willing slaves who would transport her where she wanted to go when she chirped her request to go, feed her special food, and cuddle her non-stop when she wanted that.

I hope you still have a long time to go with your lovie, and treasure every minute you have with him! Since our lovie's death we have taken into our hearts and home two little sweethearts, a young lovebird (we think possibly a female from her behavior but don't know for sure) and a young Pacific Blue parrotlet, they're wonderful birds and we love them with all our hearts, but I still miss our Sweetpea every day....

[ravenwoods]

Thanks for the nice replies. Our Lovebird is currently enjoying a nice warm day in our house at 74 degrees fahrenheit but outside it is -32.

He had a close call about 7 or 8 years ago when our family got too busy and nobody noticed he ran out of food. He nearly died but was rushed to a vet. She gave him some glucose injections and was not hopeful about his recovery. She kept him overnight and the next day he was pretty much all better. Since then we've been careful to make sure he always has plenty of food.

When he still flew around the house he would visit us at the dinner table much to my wife's dismay. One time he landed on the toaster while it was toasting but quickly moved to a different spot when he discovered it was hot.

We now have a cat so have to be careful not to let him get eaten by the cat. But he did manage to humiliate the bird once when it jumped onto his cage. The cage then fell onto the cat giving the cat a terrible fright. It was months before the cat got brave enough to come near the cage.

[newclassic]

This is exactly what I wanted to know, and why I joined this forum. My lovebird is also 15--I got her during the summer of '97, and adopted her as soon as the breeder had her ready.

What are the telltale signs of old age? Do they tend to be gradual--e.g. over the span of a couple years--or does health rapidly decline within months before passing? Aside from accidents, what are common causes for parrot death (e.g. strokes, liver disease, etc)? When do lovebirds start dying of old age, if you discount accidents from the average?

My lovebird's wings are unclipped (she doesn't fly into windows or anything, we never have the doors open when she's out, etc), and she still flies around quite a bit--certainly less than when she was younger, but she still enjoys flying around the house. She's still curious about new things--whereas my 17yo cockatiel never interacts with new toys anymore, and doesn't like being out of his cage for long periods of time.

To tell the truth, her nutrition isn't fabulous--she's on a mostly fortified seed/pellet diet, as in the 15 years I've had her I could never get her to eat many fruits and vegetables. She loves corn, but never had an interest in anything else; I'd get her taste foods by nibbling on them in front of her, but she'd never actually eat them. I'm worried her diet might do her in, but believe me when I say I've tried. My lovebird's a peach-faced pied, btw.

[Cas]

My beautiful Teil died this year aged almost 23, he declined over a period of a year or so, then rapidly over a couple of months!

He loved toys and new things to the end, he loved human food and in the last few months we were not as careful with his diet, he reached the point that he had trouble shelling his seeds, so we adapted, i soaked his seeds for him , added hot water to his pellets to make them mushy, I gave him more cooked veggies and fruit, his last meal was peach that I had cut up for him. he also loved junk food, so when he would refuse to eat, i would bribe him with stewed apples and potato chips and bits of sweet biscuit. Enjoy what time you have with your elderly birds, they have given you so much, now it is time to give back to them!

[briloop]

My wife and I have a peach-faced lovebird. We think it is male. He is about three months shy of his 15th birthday. His name is Sunny.

Sunny gradually stopped flying over a several month period about three years ago. When Sunny is in his cage, he spends most of his time in a covered sleeping area. It almost seems like he is hiding from something or someone.

About half of his flight feathers are missing. I assume that a bird stops replacing feathers if they are old.

His wings were clipped twice during his first year of life, but not after that.

His feathers overall are not as vibrant in color compared to when he was young. He also has become weaker. We've had to lower the height of his perches so as to make it easier for him to climb up to the perches.

Otherwise, Sunny appears to be in good health.

[linda040899]

While 15 yrs old is elderly, it's not being on death's doorstep. Very first thing I would do is make an appointment with an avian vet and assess what's going on. I'm a retired breeder and many of my remaining flock are 15 yrs old and older. Yes, they slow down.

Please tell me about Sunny's diet. There are a few things that I've found help but first I need to know what you are feeding.

[briloop]

My wife and I have a peach-faced lovebird. We think it is male. He is about three months shy of his 15th birthday. His name is Sunny.

Sunny gradually stopped flying over a several month period about three years ago. When Sunny is in his cage, he spends most of his time in a covered sleeping area. It almost seems like he is hiding from something or someone.

About half of his flight feathers are missing. I assume that a bird stops replacing feathers if they are old.

His wings were clipped twice during his first year of life, but not after that.

His feathers overall are not as vibrant in color compared to when he was young. He also has become weaker. We've had to lower the height of his perches so as to make it easier for him to climb up to the perches.

Otherwise, Sunny appears to be in good health.

Sunny passed away two weeks ago on March 16, 2021. My wife witnessed his passing, and from what happened, it appeared that he had a heart attack. We knew his days were numbered because of the decline in his appearance, his weakness, and other signs.

[linda040899]

I'm so sorry to hear that Sunny passed away. Fifteen is a good life for a lovebird and Sunny is lucky to have lived with you! I've had a few parrots died from heart problems. It's like something is wrong, yet it isn't. Unfortunately, most heart problems in parrots are found postmortem.

Fly high and free at Rainbow Bridge, Sunny! You are in good company there.