The seven ages of man as portrayed by Shakespeare in ‘As You Like It’ takes the lifelong journey of man from childhood to old age.

We might not have known Ana right the way from kittenhood to his elderly years, but all the same, four-and-a-half years is a considerable time for a feral cat to be around the same area. We saw Ana go from a leggy youngster into an ambitious young cat, and then into a confident and respected alpha-male. His face told his story, his jowls becoming more prominent, his eyes more closed and his jaw heavier-set, the occasional war-wound by way of a scratch here or there. But he remained loyal, not only to his mother but also to the humans. When someone was ill, Ana would lie on the bedroom windowsill, or station himself on the ground under the window. He was known to come into the house where we might catch a glimpse of an orange stump disappearing into a room, patrolling through, before pronouncing everything safe and exiting the way he came.

And so the seven ages of Ana portray a cat maturing into his chosen role before taking the brave step of moving on to his own area where he would be king of his own colony.

The First Age
This is pretty much how Ana looked when we first made his acquaintance. He was a handsome youngster (and still had a full tail).

The Second Age
His face was filling out and he was building up muscle. Young Ana was still there, but there was a certain maturity about him now.

The Third Age
Still fully-tailed, Ana had taken on guard cat duties and would sit on the front wall opposite the house, where he could see the humans through the windows.

The Fourth Age
Now sporting a stump for a tail, Ana was known locally as ‘The Cat With The Aerial’. He was becoming a force to be reckoned with in the neighbourhood, but still returned to the garden to eat and spend time with his mother.

The Fifth Age
Now a fully-fledged guard cat, Ana would station himself on the bedroom windowsill when anyone was unwell. On waking, this would be your view.

The Sixth Age
Ana may have been a mature, alpha-male cat, but that didn’t mean he had lost his playful side. He would be tempted to the terrace by the smell of cooking from the kitchen, and would ‘hide’ round the corner. He knew there was no food forthcoming as the cats were never fed on the terrace, but he just enjoyed the company.

The Seventh Age
This is pretty much how Ana Half-Tail, Warrior Cat, King of the Culvert looked when he left the garden to set up his own colony. He was a most handsome cat, noble, loyal and wise, ambitious and smart.

Much as we missed Ana, it was unlikely that he would satisfied to spend his entire life in and around the garden. He had plans, and we had to respect that.