Peppercorn (Mélènge) died sometime between 11 pm and 1:30 am, we'll call it this morning. He would have accepted Warm Toasties last night, but mostly because he was so weak. It didn't seem fair to take advantage of that, so I left him alone.

I spent quite a bit of time hovering over him these past couple of days, seeing if he was eating, seeing if he was still alive, giving him more snacks. I fear he suffered at the end, that he starved to death. Finster Guilt. Even though I did everything I knew how. Maybe not guilt so much as sorrow.

He got the nickname Peppercorn (Squeezin's) at the end, since all he seemed to eat was corn, and that got pretty sticky. I thought about taking a picture, but having a corn kernel stuck to the tip of your beak is hardly a dignified way to be remembered. Besides, the camera's flash might have bothered him.

He was a good bird.

R.I.P. Peppercorn (Mélènge), ? — August 29, 2005.