Either the Crows or the Cats

I was locking up, leaving for dinner when I heard a commotion somewhere from among the treetops in the carpark.

I looked up and saw a huge flock of our resident crows circling and squawking.

Then a cat jumped down from one of the branches with a light coloured piece of material in its mouth.

A family walking passed stopped and stared at the cat as it dashed under a parked taxi.

I hurried over and asked the family if they identified the thing that was in the cat's mouth, and they said they think that it was a pigeon but they sounded uncertain.

I continued towards the hiding cat, knowing in my heart that we don't have light coloured resident pigeons here.

I hissed at the cat and looked under the taxi as the cat ran away.

My heart stopped.

I grabbed the body of the cockatiel.

I ran towards the clinic and absentmindedly repeated to the staring family:

"I am the vet here... I am the vet .. my clinic is over there."

As I brought the body into the clinic, I felt I could not breath.

I searched for a heartbeat from the cockatiel .. nothing.

A deep canine puncture in the back.

All gone in less than a minute.

Only silence.

Watch over your parrots carefully. Please.