Nobody

Photo by Marte Nyhammer

After the Erskine Creek Fire of 2016, the feral cat population dwindled to one: a cat called Nobody.

Nobody belonged to the family in the big white house above Cook Peak, one of 257 homes destroyed by fire. The owners never returned to rebuild or search for their cat. Traumatized and alone, Nobody moved down to Cook Peak and lived under the chicken coop. He was a sturdy, midnight-coated cat who lived off gophers and drank from the pig's trough. I tried many times to approach, but I could never get closer than a car length before he bolted. Mostly, he watched from afar and wanted only space.

Last fall, I stopped seeing the cat in the mornings while feeding the pigs, then in the evenings, until I stopped seeing him at all.

Feral and outdoor cats don't last long at Cook Peak. I have learned not to get attached, but it never gets easier, especially when coyotes scream in the night. I know what is happening out there, and my heart sinks. It happened to Pindi, Ruthie, and our best cat, Sheldon.

Only indoor cats survive at Cook Peak, like Mr. Leonard. Anything else is eventually lost to the wild, becoming just another Nobody.