Red Hill animal rescuer reflects on journey

IN March this year, the non-profit organisation (NPO), Feeding the Furballs, celebrated its ninth birthday, a milestone for a rescue that began as a fledgling dream in 2014.

Red Hill resident and founder of the NPO, Farrah Khan Maharajh, helps distribute food and feed more than 740 animals from Richards Bay to Underberg, and has also hosted many outreach drives across KZN.

She recently reflected on her rescue journey which has spanned almost a decade.

“I’ve always loved animals, and cats especially. Animals are loyal and always there for you. They give you unconditional love. At high school, my friends would often tell me about litters they had, and I would assist where I could. They all thought I’d become a vet, but as I got older, I realised I could never make the difficult decisions they face,” she said.

Also read: Give an adult dog a home, says north Durban animal rescue organisation

“When I started the NPO, I truly felt we would only last a few months. But as word spread and the need grew, I felt we couldn’t let the animals down. My home is now referred to a Furball Central, which acts as our headquarters. There is now also a dedicated group of volunteers who assist me with the operations. In the nine years we’ve been in existence, we’ve moved from being purely a feeding scheme to being a full-on rescue, outreach and sanctuary to various cats with special needs,” she explained.

Maharajh, who is mom to several cats and kittens, also gave some insight into how Covid-19 and the KZN floods impacted the organisation.

“The pandemic and the hard lockdowns were really challenging for us. However, our funding and many of our donors were also impacted so that made it all the more challenging. We were one of the few organisations still actively rescuing and feeding animals in and around the province at the time. With the floods, our garage, which we use as storage, flooded, and we lost much of our stock. Parts of our driveway also collapsed due to the heavy rains. Thankfully, through our community and volunteers, we were able to rally donations to help us keep up our good work,” she said.

When asked how she would describe what her organisation does, Maharajh replied that it is multi-pronged.

“We fulfil several roles with Feeding the Furballs, including assisting rescuers with food and supplies so they may concentrate on their rescue work, our own active rescuing and Trap, Sterilise and Release (TSR), networking for animals in need of forever homes and inspiring others to help animals in need.”

If you would like to support Feeding the Furballs, visit their website at www.feedingthefurballs.org or their Facebook page under the same name.

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