Here’s a surprise. One of Martha Stewart’s cats is buddies with one of her peacocks. It’s an unlikely friendship. As unexpected as a home-innovating genius and a lyrical rap master becoming tight buddies. But with both Stewart and Snoop being intelligent, creative, and sublimely savvy at business, it’s a friendship that makes sense when you think about it. Just like kitty cat Blackie Stewart and his new peacock acquaintance.
And while a friendship between a feline and a bird seems strange at first thought, it’s really not. Let’s start with the most obvious similarity: feline and peafowl are majestic and beautiful creatures. Secondly, cats are intelligent and loyal, just like peafowl. And these big elegant birds enjoy roaming the grounds and taking in the sunshine just like cats do. Plus, both bird and cat know the humans bring the food, so it’s best to buddy up with them too! So, maybe cats and peacocks are more alike than we realize. And, once again, Martha Stewart has taught us something new and wonderful with a post that shows cat and bird can be friends.
Did You Know Peafowl Are “Clever” Birds?
In a recent blog post, Stewart told fans about her “curious and social” collection of peafowl. And with 17 peahens and peacocks strolling the grounds of her Bedford, New York, farm, she’s got the quite ostentation.
Of her feathered friends, Stewart wrote, “Peafowl are very social birds – they usually travel in groups, enjoy exploring, and often play together, especially under the sunlight.”
“They are also very loyal and tend to stay where they are well-fed and well-protected at night.”
Stewart’s peafowl are happy to stick around her farm, where life is good for a bird. In addition to “a very safe and comfortable pen,” the pretty party gets plenty of room to stretch their feathers and strut proudly about the property. These clever birds often hang out together, roaming the property and chowing down on bugs, plants, and grains. Yet, whenever Stewart calls out to them, they always respond in their less than melodious cry. If you’ve never heard a peacock’s cry, it can be an eerie experience as their calls can sometimes sound like a woman wailing for help. Regardless of their haunting calls, the fowl are quite jovial asking for their snacks when Stewart comes outside.
Peacock and Cat Have Friendly Encounter
And one of these curious birds recently made friends with Stewart’s greenhouse cat, Blackie, as they came across each other while stomping the grounds on their own separate jaunts. Stewart posted the encounter to her Instagram, querying, “Who is stalking whom?”
But as we watch, it turns out the only stalking going on is two friends chasing down the idea of how they can hang out together. Toward the end of the clip, the peacock finally flaps up to the top of the fence so cat and bird can meet face to face. Surprised by his new friend, Blackie says hello with a couple of curious meows.
It’s just as Stewart wrote, “Peacocks and cats can be friends.”
And Blackie is a good friend to have. As Stewart shared in an interview with Today, the big black cat found them, showing up from an origin unknown. And at Stewart’s farm, this lucky boy “fell into heaven.”
“I have one major conservatory greenhouse that he lives in,” said the 80-year-old cat mom of her buddy, Blackie. “He is a hunter. The two lady cats are not really hunters. Blackie actually kills varmints every single day. Somehow he manages to find something to kill, that killer.”
Lucky for the peafowl, Blackie doesn’t have a taste for exotic birds!
Peacock Facts
As a bonus, here are some fun facts about peacocks as shared by Martha Stewart:
- Peafowl is the collective term for the birds, with peacocks being male, peahens female, and babies called peachicks.
- Members of the pheasant family, there are two Asiatic species and one from Africa –
- Blue or Indian peafowl hail from India and Sri Lanka.
- The Green peafowl is native to Java and Burma.
- The Congo peafowl originates from the African rain forests.
- A family of peafowl is known as a bevy or ostentation.
- Peacocks don’t grow the first feather of their showy tails until the age of three.
- Peahens are brown with a green throat and don’t have fanning tails like males.
- The feather fan on the top of both male and female heads is called a corona.
- Peacocks ‘meow’ when rain is approaching.
And there you go. Information on peacocks you never thought you wanted to know! You can thank Blackie Stewart and his peacock friend for the fun!
H/T: www.mashed.com
Feature Image: @marthastewart/Instagram