by entrancedbymyGCC » Fri Apr 02, 2010 7:14 pm
I think whenever we let another into our hearts, be they bird or cat or dog or horse or even human, we take the risk that we will suffer loss. With our shorter-lived pets, we may be more ready to accept it as they age, but anything can happen at any time. It seems that a young bird might be a slightly higher risk than an older one from what others have said, but even if you adopt an older bird, the first few months the risk of something going wrong is higher due to both the stress of change and the fact that you weren't in control of the previous environment.
My advice, for what it is worth, would be to decide what you really deep down want the most, without considering risk factors, and do that. In either case, you might want to insist on a well-bird checkup prior to closing the deal to acquire the bird, which should increase the odds of heading off a problem. I don't know how often that's permitted, but I've read advice to do it, and it is certainly typically a large part of the purchase process when buying a horse!
Most of all, be kind to yourself and let yourself heal. If getting a new bird right now seems stressful, maybe you can wait for a little while?
Scooter
Death Valley Scotty