This is the moment a rather cunning moggie becomes a real-life cat burglar, pinching a grand total of four chicks meant for some unsuspecting barn owls.
The mischievous feline was caught on camera lurking outside a bird box, sitting it out for a right time to strike while the owls guarded their dinner.
In the footage, the cat can be seen peeking over the side of the owls’ home, which houses five rescue birds, as the feathered inhabitants stand proudly over their grub – and initially seems to disappear.
The mischievous feline was caught on camera lurking outside a bird box, sitting it out for a right time to strike while the owls guarded their dinner
But when the rescue barn owls take off into the night, the opportunistic puss creeps down onto the feeding platform.
And the cat even has the audacity to gorge on the owls’ food in their own territory, bringing his haul into the owls’ box one-by-one.
The footage is the first ever video filmed by married couple Danelle and Brendan Murray, who run the Owl Rescue Centre in Hartbeespoort, South Africa.
Centre co-owner Danelle, from South Africa, said: ‘We hadn’t seen this very opportunistic cat before. It’s possibly a stray from the surrounding farm area.
But when the rescue barn owls take off into the night, the opportunistic puss creeps down onto the feeding platform
And the cat even has the audacity to gorge on the owls’ food in their own territory, bringing his haul into the owls’ box one-by-one
‘The cat definitely had a full stomach. We saw the footage the night it was filmed, and later we discovered that the cat had actually eaten six of the day-old chickens before leaving.
‘Feral cats are often attracted to the sanctuary because of the food availability. Whenever possible, they are trapped and taken to a rescue facility that finds homes for them.’
Danelle says the five barn owls who lost out on their dinner have resided in the ‘owl release box’ for just under six months, having been placed there as babies so that they can slowly adjust to being in the wild.
And according to Danelle, this cheeky feline isn’t the only visitor the owls have to contend with for their dinner, which is provided to them by the centre to help reintroduce them to the wild.
With their new camera gear in tow, it looks likely they could well catch many other cheeky creatures trying to pinch the owls’ meals.
Danelle, who claims the centre takes care of around 600 owls each year, said: ‘We feed them day-old chickens and rodents.
‘The food that we place to support feed the owls often attract visitors of all kinds. In this case it was the opportunistic cat.
‘We sometimes have crows eating the left over food. There are also genets, caracal and leopard on the farm, who are would from time to time visit our feeding platforms.’
Centre co-owner Danelle said: ‘The cat definitely had a full stomach. We saw the footage the night it was filmed, and later we discovered that the cat had actually eaten six of the day-old chickens before leaving’