I once adopted a baby cockatiel named Kyoko. She was quiet and gentle, content to snuggle at my boob.

One morning only a few days after we brought her home, I found her lying on the bottom of her cage.

I rushed her to the vet, where she died. It was too late.

The vet noted the broken feathers on her tail. He said this was an indication she’d been bullied by the other birds wherever she was before she came to us.

He said cockatiels are highly sensitive, so she was most likely already weak by the time we got her.

In not so many words, the vet said Kyoko died from rejection and cruelty.

Though it may not happen as quickly or directly for humans, we do, too.