cat food theif

[danceinchicken]

My cat tootie is kept in at night and let out in the morning with her food and water on my front porch. Lately I've noticed a bird ( not sure what ) steeling pieces of the cat food a few times a day. Days later this bird has become a regular. Its funny to watch, and normally I wouldn't mind BUT.!!! Should I be concerned for my cats health.?????

 

[Godsgrl]

I wouldn't worry about it. We have a bowl of cat food out for our barn cat that is regularly visited by cardinals. The cat is none the worse for it.

 

[danceinchicken]

I wouldn't worry about it. We have a bowl of cat food out for our barn cat that is regularly visited by cardinals. The cat is none the worse for it.

Thanks godsgrl. Then I'll just let go on. the bird doesn't seem to be any worse for it either. I think its a magpie ? Sounds like a baby crying.

 

[Godsgrl]

Thanks godsgrl. Then I'll just let go on. the bird doesn't seem to be any worse for it either. I think its a magpie ? Sounds like a baby crying.

You are welcome. Magpies look like crows in tuxedos, as I understand it. They also have a bad reputation as thieves, and will steal piglets and such things. We don't have them in GA, but I have seen them in CA when we visit.

 

[danceinchicken]

Now I'm going to have to find a bird book. Because this one is a sandy beige with a black pointy beak.

 

[Stacykins]

You are welcome. Magpies look like crows in tuxedos, as I understand it. They also have a bad reputation as thieves, and will steal piglets and such things. We don't have them in GA, but I have seen them in CA when we visit.

A magpie definitely cannot steal a piglet. The Black Billed Magpie (in the United States) weighs only 5-7 ounces. The Eurasian Magpie is also very light, ranging from 5-8 ounces.

To quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail, "A five ounce bird could not carry a 1lb coconut." So unless you have some massive, mutant magpies that have yet to be formally described as a species...they aren't stealing things that obviously weigh much more than themselves. They will scavenge after an animal dies, however.

Will they steal other things? Absolutely. Like other corvids, they have been known to steal shiny objects and eggs.

A bit of common sense goes a long way, sometimes.

 

[danceinchicken]

Any ways....... Found out what the bird is.....A GREY CATBIRD.