Sadly this was turning into a bad year for illness and death in the cat population and many of the kittens had viruses, probably mostly herpes or calicivirus, which weakened them considerably. It seemed that the humans were spending all their time bathing tiny eyes, wiping tiny noses and trying to encourage the kittens to eat food laced with antibiotics. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it sadly didn’t.

Dawn had already lost kitten Swallow to the virus as, by the time Dawn brought the kittens to the garden for weaning, it was too late to turn Swallow’s health around as the virus had taken too strong a hold.

Linnet’s eyes were so firmly glued closed that it took many days of bathing them to encourage them to open and we really wondered what we would find when we finally managed to open them. Amazingly, we discovered two perfectly formed eyes, although the virus left her eyes cloudy and she would spend her life partially sighted. Brother Cetti’s eyes were similarly affected but not as badly, and Raven seemed unaffected.

Cheese’s kittens who Souci was helping to rear were also struck down by the virus, and she lost Turmeric and Persil at only a few weeks old, leaving just Oregano to fight on as best he could.

Oregano was a lovely kitten, a friend to everyone, and was generous with his cuddles and accepted by all. He was happy eating from any of the food bowls and the other families always made room for him when he arrived. He didn’t develop as he should, but his time was happy, if much too short.

Lychee seemed to be spending a lot of her life on antibiotics for recurring respiratory tract infections, but in between there were periods when she was happy little playful cat, enjoying life in the garden. She remained tiny compared to her sister Mini, and it was obvious that she had some underlying condition which was leaving her vulnerable to repeated infections.

And then there was Tumbleweed – ever the jester, always ready to play however big he was growing, still full of mischief, easy to look after and happily healthy.

Tumbleweed was the perpetual kitten, a friend to all, and a timely reminder that there was still a lot to smile about in the garden.