Cats Protection’s Bridgend Adoption Centre has named five kittens after characters from the Black Panther movie to honour the late Chadwick Boseman.

The tabby and black kittens have been named Chadwick, T'challa, Nakia, Okoye and Ramonda following a call for naming suggestions on the centre’s social media.

Cat carer Emily Bright with three of the kittens

Their mother Tabatha was heavily pregnant when she arrived at the centre on 26 August, following the death of her previous owner, and gave birth to six kittens just a few days later on 2 September.

Tabatha feeding her kittens

Two of the kittens were much smaller than the others and sadly, despite vet care and the best efforts of the team to provide extra food, one did not survive. However the second of the smaller kittens, Ramonda, has thrived and grown stronger and healthier.

Tabatha did a great job caring for her kittens

Cat Care Assistant Emily Bright, who has been looking after Tabatha and her kittens, said: “The last few months have been difficult for so many, so we asked our Facebook supporters for names with a theme of happiness and positivity for these kittens. We loved the suggestion to honour Chadwick Boseman and think the kittens really suit their new names.

Emily gave all the kittens a helping hand

“Tabatha is such a lovely cat and has been so good with the kittens. She loves her food and a good fuss so we think she’ll make a wonderful family pet when the time comes to find her a new home.”

People's Postcode Lottery players' support helped us care for the kittens

“We’re really grateful to players of People’s Postcode Lottery who have raised more than £600 million for charities and good causes to-date, including Cats Protection. Their support helps fund roles like mine, allowing us to continue being there for cats in need, particularly during what has been a very challenging time.

The kittens are now looking all grown up and ready to find new homes

The kittens are now nine week old and will soon be ready to find new homes. If you would like to offer any of them a home, keep an eye on www.cats.org.uk/bridgend to find out when they become available.

If you would like to adopt a cat in your area, visit www.cats.org.uk/adopt-a-cat to find out how.