You might want to check out this site, for some other vet listings...
http://www.talktothevet.com/VETERINA...erinarians.HTM
There are of course more out there that you could look for... I just can't seem to find one any closer...
I'm not sure what caused her death. She had no cold symptoms, no blood, etc. She was VERY well fed and cared for daily. She was always singing and chirping to her favorite song, which I played daily for them.
If a bird dies, you can get a necropsy, which most of the time can tell one the cause of death... You would still need the birds body, and it would have to have been refrigerated after you found the birds body or else it wouldn't be too easy to find out for sure... You can still take your current birds to the avian vet to get them checked out with full blood panel and fecal exams, or atleast Ava to see if she might be carying something...
I now have her mate, Ava, who I can tell is already depressed. My sister has two parakeets in her room, and Ava can hear them chirping and she calls to them etc. I hate to do it, but I'm going to leave Ava by herself for at least a week, to make sure she isn't sick and doesn't give a sickness to any other birds. Here's my problem.
Can you please tell us what you fed your birds, what size cage they had, and anything else that you may think could have played a role... It could possibly have to do with the water, however I don't know what you give your birds, and it seems as if the ones you have left are still doing fine...
As far as leaving her alone for a week, that wont tell you anything... If your sisters birds didn't pick up anything from Ava and her lost friend, then you need to make sure that you don't handle your sisters birds, and she doesn't handle Ava without a chance of clothes and a shower inbetween handling them. Otherwise, they all could be at risk for whatever may have happened to Raine. You would have to keep them seperate for ATLEAST 30 days minimum, and up to 60 days. A good well thorough vet check would help as well.
Ava is at least 4-5 years old, which in my parakeet experience, they none have lived to 7 years old. I'd hate to get another parakeet, and have Ava die, then have to get another. It would be a never ending cycle. And I'd already decided after Raine and Ava were gone, I wasn't getting anymore (going to college in Jan.). My sister has already said I couldn't put Ava with her two parakeets b/c she doesn't want any to be singled out. So here's the question: Should I leave Ava by herself and risk her getting depressed, or get another parakeet and have it by itself for years after Ava is gone??? Thanks in advance.
My oldest budgie is currently around 9 or 10 years old. I've had since he was about 5, 6 years old. My other budgie is about 6 years old now. Besides a good seed mix (from a birdstore or pet supply store), they are also offered fresh foods whenever possible (carrots, lettuce, apples, bananas, corn, parsley, bell peppers, etc). If budgies are given an adequate sized cage (one that they can comfortly fly in and/or get plenty of out of cage time to fly around, each day), along with a well balanced diet they can live well into their teens.
If you are going to collage in January, will you still be taking care of Ava, or might you become too busy and not be able to spend time with Ava??? If so, is your sister willing to take Ava, or would you be more interested in finding Ava a new home? You could wait till November before finding her a new home, if you whish. It's not a good idea to give or sell birds in December because of Christmas and the bird would be a 'fad' for several months for a new kid before being forgotten after some time (I've seen this before, though it was during the summer). If you wait till January, then you might just overload yourself with too much and get overly stressed about it that you wont know what to do. So start thinking now if you want to keep your budgie, or maybe find her a new home before it's too late.
In the meantime, try to get Ava checked out by an avian vet, and be sure to provide her with extra toys, and extra attention so she wont feel so lonely.