sirius as animagus - why didn't the deatheaters know pre OOP?

[potioncat]

No: HPFGUIDX 93832

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "laura_clapham2002" 
<laura_clapham2002 at y...> wrote:

{snip}
> In Voldy War 1 we know that Wormtail was passing information to 
Voldy 
> for a year before his fall.  Yet it is implied in OOP that the 
death 
> eaters did not know this until after Voldy's resurrection - ie 
Lucius 
> Malfoy recognising Sirius at Platform 9 3/4 in OOP. 

Potioncat:
I don't have books in front of me and I'm remembering some comments 
made on other posts, but here are some of my half-baked ideas.

--Someone on another post pointed out that there was a spy from the 
order for a year which may or may not have been Peter.  We do know 
he betrayed the Order but we don't know when he actually went over. 
I don't have a real opinion here, just a thought in the back of my 
head that things may not be what they seem.

--Whenever it was, it certainly looks as if he never told anyone 
about the animagus skills.  Perhaps he kept this secret so he would 
have an escape plan.  

--James, Sirius, and Peter didn't let the Order know about being 
animagi either.

Potioncat