Thomani is passionate about his animals

Meeting someone such as Thomani Nengovhela (18) from Tshivhulani village, near Sibasa, who has such a sincere love for animals is always heart-warming. Although he has not seen it all in life, this young man reckons he has seen enough to understand that people too often disappoint each other, and for that reason he prefers animals.

Thomani says that, besides the fact that not many people really understand him, he finds solace in the company of animals because they are friendly and loving and bring a sense of peace into his life. He spends a lot of his time surrounded by his guinea pigs (mbila), rabbits (mivhuda), racing pigeons and indigenous chicken.

His natural love of animals became evident when he was about 10 years old. “When my parents gave me money for lunch at school, I would not eat anything but rather save the money. One day, I surprised them when I came home with two pigeons that I bought with the money they gave me. I then made a cage and took care of them, although my parents did not understand it at first. I continued to save money without telling anybody, because I dreamed of having different kinds of animals that I could take care of here at home.”

Thomani, who is a first-year animal-production student at Madzivhandila College of Agriculture, recalls how his love of the animals was enhanced by the hard lockdown in 2020. “I felt so lonely that I decided to get something that would keep me busy during the lockdown restrictions. After some research on the Internet, I found people in Tzaneen who sold guinea pigs and rabbits. So, with the money I had saved, I bought two rabbits, two guinea pigs and two racing pigeons that I kept in cages. Of course, they all started multiplying and it was a pleasure seeing this and spending time with them every day.”

He says that, although he does not like to part with his pets, he is sometimes compelled to sell some of them as he needs money to buy food for them. “Some people who keep snakes as pets, especially pythons, come here and buy the rabbits and guinea pigs to feed their snakes. The money that I get from the sales is invested back into my pets because their food is very expensive. I am now saving money, so that I can erect more cages and register myself as a professional breeder. I also have a plan to write a guidebook on rabbits, guinea pigs and racing pigeons.”

Thomani’s parents, Tshitokisi (father) and Tovhowani (mother), have accepted that their son cannot be separated from his pets. “We understand and accept his love for the pets, and we give him our full support in taking care of them. That is why we even supported his idea of furthering his studies in the agricultural field,” said Tshitokisi.

Date:07 August 2022

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