As soon as the sun rises come springtime by my house, my neighborhood fills with the sound of squawking magpies. It drives me nuts. I swear these birds were put on the earth to annoy me and pester my dogs. They seem to provoke you if you try to shoo them away or even mock you. Magpies are full of personality, to say the least. Well I was never a big fan of this bird, even though they are very beautiful. That was until I read about this family from Sydney and what happened to them when they found a baby magpie who had fallen out of its nest. The baby was abandoned and left for dead until the Bloom family found her in 2013. Cameron and Sam Bloom, along with their 3 young boys, have taken this baby magpie in and it has become a regular member of the family. They named the beautiful bird Penguin, because of the similar resemblance to the goofy black and white birds. Penguin The Magpie now has an Instagram account with over 171,000 followers! There is good reason for this bird’s popularity. Penguin is absolutely adorable so check out the video of her below.
Cameron Bloom is a professional photographer. Penguin is the perfect model as she is very photogenic and full of personality. This combination makes for some incredible family photos. These family photos are very unusual however, due to the fact that their family pet is a rescued magpie.
Penguin has made herself right at home with the Bloom family. You will often find her snuggling in the sheets of your bed when you wake up. She will attend dinner with the family and is always punctual. She loves toothpaste and will help you brush your teeth every single morning. Penguin is no ordinary magpie, to say the least.
The astounding thing about Penguin is that she is free to leave the Bloom house at anytime. They don’t clip her feathers so she can’t fly, they don’t lock her up in a cage inside their house. Penguin comes back almost each day to say hello to her family. If it’s raining outside, you can be sure that Penguin will be cozied up on some blankets with the family.
What a great family picture! Noah (far left) is the boy who discovered Penguin at just a few weeks old. Luckily Cameron (his father) stated, “We kept her because I felt confident that I had the time and knowledge to bring her up safely and healthily,” Mr. Bloom told Daily Mail Australia. “
My best friend is also a vet. Her diet was meticulously made so she had the right balance. It used to take me half an hour to mix it all together. The kids love her like a pet dog and it’s just become so normal having her around,” Mr. Bloom said.
“She likes to sing for us when she’s around the house and likes to fly onto your head or sit next to you and nibble on your ear. She also runs down the hallway in the morning sometimes to snuggle up in bed with us or the kids.”
Penguin is definitely a member of the family. She is an incredibly loving bird who cherishes the bond that has been built with her adopted family. Penguin lives a normal bird life outside of the Bloom house but whenever she wants, there is always a window open for her to come snuggle and be with her family. She enjoys dinner and snuggling. She plays with the boys and seems to love being a model behind Cameron’s camera. I wonder if her magpie friends are jealous. They must be when Penguin tells them what she had for dinner or where she slept. Of course communicating with the notorious magpie squawk.
Not to mention, Penguin is a wild bird. Penguin still spends a lot of her time outside flying free wherever she wants to go. She is not domesticated forcefully. She has taken on this opportunity by herself which makes this bird truly unique and special. It is like she is a professionally trained magpie but that is far from the case. She is just a very smart bird who has taken it upon herself to learn to become a Bloom after she was rescued.
Oftentimes she will sneak into the house at night and scurry down the hallway into one of the boy’s beds or into Cameron and Sam’s bed. They will wake up finding her snuggling in the blankets with her family. How many birds do you know of that want to sleep in a cozy bed?
It’s not every day you see a magpie joining you and your family for dinner but for the Bloom family and Penguin, this is quite the norm. Like I said before, although beautiful, I was never a big fan of the magpie but now I’m jealous of the bond and trust that has been created between these unlikely companions. I will look at magpies completely different from now on.
When I hear them waking me up every morning, I will wonder if they’re talking about Penguin, the Australian magpie who lives like a queen. I’m sure that’s why they want to wake me up every single morning before any rational, sane person wants to be up. They probably just want to say hello, become friends, and hang out with me. Okay maybe not, but it’s a better thought to wake up to than pure annoyance.
I’ve heard of parrots and other house birds acting like family pets full of personality. Well I’ve also had friends with birds and seen first hand that they don’t seem quite as interactive as Penguin. I see them sit on top of a cage and say funny things. They always want to bite your fingers if you get too close. There are a few cute YouTube videos of dancing birds out there but Penguin is much more than a few cute parlor tricks. Penguin is one of the family and acts just like a sibling to the Bloom brothers.
Most birds are very threatened by humans but not Penguin. She recognizes that they rescued her and saved her life. She also recognizes that she has an open door to her home and a family who loves her just as much as she loves them. Being a photographer, Cameron is able to capture her unique personality and bring to light just how special Penguin really is.
It is absolutely amazing to me to see the relationship between an animal who was rescued and released to the wild. Only to come back and create a loving bond with a family. She recognized the fact that she was rescued by the Bloom family and fell in love. Maybe it’s because she was so young when they rescued her that that’s all she knows. She has her animal instincts but always comes home to her loving family. She has a good thing going, why wouldn’t she?
Let’s not dismiss Cameron Bloom’s photography skills here either. This guy has some serious talent. It helps that he has some cute kids and a unique subject to work with but these photos are seriously amazing. He truly captures Penguin’s personality and her funny little quirks.
This is truly a friend that the Bloom family will never forget. She has become the most popular magpie in the world and rightfully so. I’ve never heard of anything like this happening before. This bird is absolutely adorable and the way she interacts with her human family just tugs at my heart-strings. It seems like she’s tugging at the world’s heart-strings as well with over 20,000 Instagram followers!
Apparently Penguin absolutely loves the smell of toothpaste and she will be right there on your shoulder, sometimes sticking her beak right inside your mouth while you’re brushing your teeth. This has become quite normal in the Bloom household and the boys just love getting ready with Penguin on their shoulders every morning.
I think that Penguin was a former model in her past life because this beautiful bird is amazing in front of the camera. It’s like she is posing for most of the pictures.
Well, needless to say, the Bloom family has something special on their hands, a family member by the name of Penguin. She has quite the story, making her one of the most unique birds I have ever heard of. She and the Bloom family should consider themselves lucky for finding each other. They saved her life and she has given them unconditional love ever since. What a beautiful story and to all the magpies that I’ve thrown pine cones at or yelled at, I apologize. I had no idea you were such amazing animals. Take a look at Penguin Bloom’s Instagram here and be sure to give her a follow.