At the end of October, our little Lera passed away. I didn’t post about it at the time – we were going through Cooper’s problems and losing Lera on top of that was a bit too much. Denial was easier – every time I went to start her memorial video/post I would just end up in tears. Lera was such a force. I didn’t want to say goodbye.

We found Lera on Craigslist. She belonged to a boy who was going off to college and the family didn’t want to care for her. She was a tiny little thing, but she was easy to tame. After her quarantine, she was happy to be with the flock. And though she was the smallest, she soon became the alpha. No one messed with Lera! In her time with us, she had three boyfriends, Gordie, Harvey and then Felix. She was sweet to them all.

Lera loved to play. She loved shredding and chewing, and was into everything. She was front and center in all the budgie shenanigans. Lera enjoyed upending the water dishes (and taking baths in them) and kicking seed out of the food dishes. She liked to crawl down our shirts (nesting behavior). She was a very determined budgie – if you didn’t want her somewhere, that’s where she would be.

Lera had health issues almost as soon as we brought her home. Her first visit at the vet was because she couldn’t balance on her perch. She was very ill, but with Harvey’s care, she made a full recovery. She was our miracle bird. She had to have regular beak trims, and was diagnosed with liver problems. She also had a recurring abdominal bulge (due to reproductive issues). We routinely took her in for fluid withdrawals. Toward the end, the bulge was larger and would come back more frequently. But through all her health problems, she was active and happy. The last bulge, I think, proved too much. She died just two days from her next vet visit.

It’s hard to believe she is gone. Even though she was given a short life span, she continually bounced back. She was our alpha, out little spitfire, our miracle bird. We loved her so much. There is definitely a Lera sized hole in our hearts.

Save

Save