Narrated by Nicci Prokopos – Harties Feral Cat Rescue Volunteer
Photography supplied by Nicci Prokopos
My name is Garfield, aka Golden Boy, and this is my story. Well, part thereof.
They called me “feral”, but that’s not true. Once, a long time ago, I had what I thought was a family. I was too young to remember, but I can’t forget the fear of all of a sudden having to fend for myself – facing hunger and the harsh elements with no shelter.
I’ve heard these creatures called “people” make statements like “they’re just animals, they’ll be fine”. Hearing this saddens me. If only they knew how we suffer, perhaps our circumstances would be different, and we’d be cared for.
Over time I became part of a feral colony. The two humans who started feeding us named us Romeo, Juliet, Mistress and Garfield. One day, they came with contraptions, and once inside, we were placed in a deep sleep. When we woke, our mating urges were gone – Romeo and I had lost our jewels. That contraption!
At some point, we lost Romeo and Mistress. Juliet and I didn’t understand. The nice humans shared our sadness and continued feeding us, even serving us delicious chicken. I started seeing less of the one human; they said she found a new home. But I still saw the short human almost every day, and one day I allowed her to touch me. Memories of a time long gone flooded my emotions, and I began to purr.
Then, one day they took Juliet and never brought her back. They said she was ill with cancer, and they wept. Once again, I found myself alone. It was decided to find a place of safety for me because they suspected that I’d been shot with a BB gun and my environment was no longer safe. I was injured and my human came looking for me again with that contraption! What for this time? It had already taken my jewels and my BFF, Juliet. I was hurting, but my human spoke to me so gently that I decided to finally give in… and then came the deep sleep.
This time when I awoke it was different – I was in a small room and my human was there. She told me to come out. The first two days (although I had shelter, food, water and a soft bed) I completely freaked, tearing the curtains and almost my stitches. My human came and sat with me a few times a day, stroking and comforting me. They said a kind lady was preparing a place for me and my human would take me to her in a few days. My bond with my human started to grow, and I looked forward to seeing her every day as she’d sit and hold me on her lap and talk to me. Her voice made me feel safe.
Then the day came for me to leave, and I entered the carrier without resistance. I didn’t make a sound while we were travelling, but I could hear my human’s heartbeat; it was strange. We arrived at our destination, I was introduced and let out. The kind lady was very nice, but I panicked once again: what was happening, why was I here?
Quickly, I ran to my human and rubbed against her. That’s when I heard the lady say, “Nicci, he isn’t feral at all, and it’s clear you have a bond.” She then asked, “Garfield will jy by my bly?” I went straight into the carrier and stayed there. That was a good move, because my human took me back with her – I was glad to be home, if that was what it was.
I love my human so much, even if she speaks to me in a weird voice; these humans can be strange. I’ve been through a lot, but now I have a home and a new mom and a new brother and sisters (all “fluffies” like me). It’s been over a month now, and even though I still go visit my old environment during the day (which stresses out my mom), I know where home is. I call when I arrive and my mom is always so happy to see me. She gives me wet food and we play. I’m still adjusting to this new life, but I have a home. I have love and I sleep next to my mom on a bed. My name is Garfield, aka Golden Boy (as my mom calls me), and this is a new chapter in my life story.
Nicci Prokopos, Garfield’s owner, shares…
After Juliet’s passing, Garfield was truly lost. I visited him every day at the now one-cat colony. When I received a report that kids had been seen shooting at him with a BB gun, my heart stopped! I rushed over but couldn’t find him. For two days, Daleen (my previous feeding partner) and I searched high and low and then he appeared.
We set a trap, and thank goodness he entered it. He had a massive injury caused by a devil’s fork security fence. I rushed him to our vet where he was operated on to suture the tear and check for pellets.
Our first night at home was terrifying – Garfield was completely disoriented: he wanted out. I wondered if I’d made the right decision to remove him from his outdoor home, but I knew his environment was no longer safe and his life was in danger.
Over the next few days, I found him in every conceivable hidey-hole, so collectively, Harties Feral Cat Rescue (the amazing NPO I volunteer for) and I decided to find a safe space for him. Cat Angel Alma van Zyl, who has a small feral group, agreed to offer Garfield a home, but he had other plans – he wanted to stay with me.
Over the following six weeks, Garfield learnt that having a permanent home was actually quite cool. He now follows me around like a puppy, sleeps on my bed, explores the outdoors and has turned into a regular purr machine!
