Okay, I apologize if I misunderstood part of your question. The life span you quoted is a little on the high side. The range given for Amazons is usually predicted as 40-80 years. I think we see these large ranges in predictions because, in the grand scheme of things, we have been living with parrots as pets for a short period of time. The length of time we have been truly studying them in depth and keeping good records is even shorter. Even highly qualified, Certified Avian Vets will not pin themselves down too tightly on these estimates. So, yes, you are totally justified in being concerned about what will happen to your bird after you are gone. You are also right about how silly it can sound to non-bird people. Pretty much everything we do for, put up with, and get concerned about, sounds silly to most non-bird people. I'm used to it, as I'm sure you and all the rest of us "silly bird people" are. They think it's silly. I for one, salute you for showing that much concern and wanting to plan ahead. I worry a lot about the same things with my own flock. Especially my African Grey. His bond to me borders on the unhealthy, for his sake. The amount of trauma and the length of time it may take for the future adjustment will depend a lot on more than one thing. As already covered, those very detailed and up to date records will be vital to a new owner in cutting down on that adjustment period. Making firm arrangements, in advance, with whomever you want to take responsibility for your bird, is very important and helpful, if it's possible. If you have a person or persons in mind, giving your bird as much exposure and socialization with those people will go a long way in shortening his adjustment time. If you have no particular person in mind yet for this agreement, the next best thing you can do is to socialize him with as many people as possible. Other "silly bird people" are you best choices of course as they will know how to act around him, what to do and what not to do and they can make him feel at ease being around and being handled by, "strangers". If he has never, or rarely, had other people interacting with him, it's obviously going to take longer, at his age, than if he has been accustomed to the comings and goings of a lot of people, other than you. The sooner you can manage some of that socialization to begin, the better. If he is accustomed to interacting with other people, you are off to a good start. Other than the logistical and financial suggestions, there is not a lot of information out there about smoothing the transition. Only those of us who experience and understand the depth of our bond with our parrots, realize there will be so much more to it than that. I see it as one of the aspects of sharing our life with a parrot where we are left to depend more on our own common sense and knowledge of our bird than on the literature that may be available. We can be, (I know I am) very torn over this. The emotional side of me is very honored at the tight bond I have with my Grey and can feel a bit of jealousy if he shows any acceptance of other people. The good judgement side knows I have to make every effort to get him accustomed to other people, have as many folks as possible interacting with him, etc., in hopes of making his life easier when the time comes. There is one thing I read a long time ago that made a lot of sense to me, knowing how parrots bond. Gruesome and morbid as it may sound, it could help the bird tremendously. The article related the story of a pair of Macaws who had a bond with each other that had spanned many years. One of them took ill and died at the vet's office. The remaining bird spent a very long time, sitting under the cage, wailing in grief, calling it's mate and weaving back and forth. Another situation was compared in which one of a bonded pair of parrots suddenly died in the cage and in the presence of it's mate. As sad as it was, it was the best way since the remaining bird had the opportunity to realize it's mate was gone and would not be coming back. The bird had closure, as it were and adjusted to solo life much sooner. The suggestion was that if there is any way possible, our parrots should be allowed to actually see our dead body. If we die at home, that should not be a problem. If we end up at a mortuary, it should be possible for the parrot to be given a "private viewing". Yep, sounds really creepy and far fetched at first but if you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. It is a request that I have made known to everyone who might be involved at the time of my death. Folks may not understand but they don't have to. They only have to care enough about me to make every attempt to carry out my wishes as respects my parrots. No matter how in depth we prepare or how many arrangements we make, there is still going to be a period of grieving, adjustment to new surroundings and people and the establishing of a bond with the new caretaker. We can only do our best to make every possible preparation in advance and hope that once we are gone, all will go as smoothly as possible. One last suggestion, also something I have done, is to get a copy of The Second-hand Parrot by Mattie Sue Athan and Dianalee Deter. It has excellent information and suggestions for dealing with a rehomed parrot. That's exactly what our birds will become when we are gone. Having a copy of that book filed with our current bird records is a good idea I think. It gives me a little bit more peace of mind, knowing I'm leaving every scrap of information I can think of, to help my flock's new owner/s. I hope this has given you more information and a lot of food for thought as respects things you can do to plan ahead for your bird. Patricia
Edited by Skydanzer on April 9 2006 at 4:36 AM
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