What bird keepers choose when they lose a bird
In the RSPCA's pet-loss survey, only 13.4%[1] of bereaved owners felt fully understood by others. These polls let you see how other bird keepers faced the same decisions, and add your own answer anonymously.
- One anonymous vote per poll
- Questions written for bird owners, not dog owners
- Live results you can check any time
Why we ask
Why we run polls for bird owners
Bird keepers are often a minority among their friends, and losing a bird can feel oddly lonely. The published research on pet loss is mostly about dogs and cats, and there's almost nothing on questions like whether to let a surviving budgie see its partner's body. Our polls are a small way of filling that gap.
They also help us write better guides. If many readers say they didn't know a necropsy was possible, that tells us to explain it earlier. Browse every poll below, vote in any that apply, and come back later to see how the picture has shifted on the live results page.
Browse every poll
How bird keepers handle sudden losses, feathers, flockmates and the tiny amount of ash that comes home.
Which bird are you thinking about today?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Did you keep (or would you keep) any of your bird's feathers?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
How did your bird's death happen?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Would you want a necropsy to find out why your bird died?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If your bird had a companion, did you let them see the body?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If a small bird returns only a pinch of ash, would you still choose private cremation?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Could your parrot outlive you, and is there a plan for that?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Which memorial feels most like your bird?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Reading the numbers
How to read a reader poll sensibly
These are votes from people who found this site, not a random sample of bird owners. People who are grieving, planning for an elderly parrot or dealing with a sudden loss are all more likely to take part, and that shapes the answers. Treat the results as a conversation among keepers, not a statistic.
- Each browser gets one vote per poll, and we don't record who voted.
- Results update live, so percentages move as more people take part.
- Small numbers of votes can swing a result a lot, so look at the total too.
- Where published research exists, we link to it so you can compare.
What the questions reveal
Feathers, ashes and the tiny-remains question
Two of our polls get at something unique to birds. One asks whether you kept feathers; the other asks whether you'd still choose private cremation knowing a small bird may return only a pinch. We don't know how the results will settle, and that's the point: owners weigh this differently.
Did you keep (or would you keep) any of your bird's feathers?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If you're making this decision now, the ashes weight estimator shows the likely amount for your species, and our guide to feather shadowboxes explains how to collect and store feathers so they keep their color.
When there was no warning
Sudden deaths and the necropsy question
Birds mask illness, so a lot of losses arrive without warning. Our poll on how your bird died is there partly so that people who found their bird on the cage floor can see they're not alone. The companion question asks whether you'd want a necropsy, and whether you knew it was an option at all.
How did your bird's death happen?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Anticipatory grief is common even when death comes quickly afterward: 75.4%[2] of respondents in the RSPCA's pet bereavement survey felt it before their pet died. Our page on grief after losing a bird talks about both kinds of loss.
Birds left behind, and birds that outlive us
Flockmates, long lives and planning ahead
The flockmate poll asks whether you let a surviving bird see its companion's body, a practice some keepers swear by and others avoid. The lifespan poll asks whether your parrot could outlive you. That's a real possibility: the published median for many large parrots runs to two decades, and the record for a Major Mitchell's cockatoo is 82 years[3].
budgie 5.5 yr; African grey 9 yr[4]
Our notes on flockmates after a loss cover the first days for a surviving bird, and the pet age calculator helps you see where an older parrot sits.
Beyond the living room cage
Why backyard hens and aviary birds belong in these polls
When people picture a pet bird they usually imagine a parrot on a perch indoors. Plenty of our readers keep hens in the garden or a mixed aviary of finches and budgies instead. The first poll on this page asks which kind of bird you're thinking about, so results for other questions can be read with that mix in mind.
Which bird are you thinking about today?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Aviary and flock keepers face extra decisions, such as whether a sudden death needs a vet's attention before anything else. Our services page explains multi-bird cremation, and the aftercare options comparison helps if you're weighing cremation against burial for a hen. Local rules on flocks differ too, which our local pages cover.
Across all pets
Bird questions alongside every pet owner's questions
Alongside the bird polls you'll find general ones that every pet owner on our network can answer, about cost, grief and memorials. They make it possible to see whether bird keepers answer differently from dog or cat owners. In the RSPCA's research, 99.3%[5] of respondents saw their pet as family, a friend or a companion, and nothing about that changes with feathers.
When you're ready to act on a decision, tell us about your bird and we'll find options that match what you chose. The bird cremation services page describes each one. One more reason these questions matter: by our estimate, ~6.8 per 100 adults[6] in the UK may have found a pet's death harder than any human loss, a figure we worked out from the PLOS ONE study of UK bereavement. Small birds are part of that picture.
Reader polls
What would you choose?
Vote anonymously and see how other readers answered. The results are live counts from people who visit this site, so they show real opinions, not a scientific sample.
Did you keep (or would you keep) any of your bird's feathers?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
If your bird had a companion, did you let them see the body?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
What was the hardest part of losing your pet?
Tap an answer to vote and see how others answered. Anonymous.
Questions people ask
Are the polls anonymous?
Yes. We don't ask for your name or email to vote, and we don't link votes to anything you send through the contact form. Each browser can vote once per poll so results aren't skewed by repeat voting.
Can I change my vote?
Not at the moment. One vote per poll keeps the results fair. If your situation changes, for example your bird has since died and you'd now answer differently, that's understandable, and it's one reason we treat results as a snapshot rather than a fixed finding.
Why don't you show results before I vote?
Seeing other people's answers first can nudge your own. Voting first gives a more honest picture. You can always see full live results on the results page without voting, if you'd rather not take part.
Can I suggest a poll question?
Please do. Send it through the contact form. Questions about situations specific to birds, such as aviaries, pet hens or rehoming a parrot that outlives its owner, are especially welcome because they're rarely covered anywhere else.
Do you use poll answers to contact me?
No. Votes aren't connected to any contact details, and voting never triggers an email. If you'd like options for your own bird, that only happens when you fill in the separate request form and choose to send it.
Sources and our estimates
- [1] Only 13.4% of bereaved pet owners felt fully understood by others. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
- [2] 75.4% of RSPCA pet-loss survey respondents experienced anticipatory grief before their pet died. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
- [3] The oldest parrot on record, Cookie, a Major Mitchell's cockatoo at Brookfield Zoo, was at least 82 years and 88 days old when he died on 27 August 2016. Guinness World Records - Oldest parrot ever, 2016.
- [4] Median life expectancy in captivity is 5.5 years for budgerigars, 9 years for cockatiels and 9 years for African grey parrots, versus captive longevity records of 18, 35 and 48 years. Association of Avian Veterinarians - Care for Senior Parrots (client handout), Table 1.
- [5] In the RSPCA's pet-loss survey (over 4,000 respondents), 99.3% saw their pet as family, a friend or a companion. RSPCA — Pet Loss Survey Results, 2026.
- [6] About 7 in every 100 UK adults may have had a pet's death hit harder than any human loss. Our estimate: 32.6% have lost a pet x 21% chose pet as most distressing. How we calculate.
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