Tonka was the name I gave to the stray I started feeding many years ago - she was, I think, a neutered female, with blue eyes and the markings of a chocolate point siamese - she must have had a home once, but would never allow me to touch her, and resisted my attempts to entice her into the house
She was slowly going downhill, with weeping eyes and a wheezy chest, but this past month she was having real difficulty eating, and was getting very thin - I could see no chance of a recovery and she looked in pain so today I took the decision to get her to the vet to be euthanized
her buddy Titch will miss her - even this morning they were rubbing up against each other at the gate of the enclosure as usual, waiting for their breakfast, which sadly Tonka couldn't eat - Titch too is suffering from cat flu at the moment, but he is much younger and I expect he will recover
so farewell Tonka, my pretty girl - I wish you would have let me love you properly, but I think until recently you enjoyed your life outdoors