Previously on Meerkat Manor...
Swift gave birth to her fifteenth litter
but faced a childcare crisis of her own making,
having kicked out all of her best nannies.
Gurke returned from his first roving trip
to a 'welcome home' smothering by Hakuna Matata.
While his uncle Belphegor buddied up with Pixie
for a boys' life of adventure.
And the seasonal rain finally arrived,
bringing with it hope of better times.
Two months of rain have transformed the manor.
What was once a dry, and desperate landscape
is now an Eden, rich with possibility.
But this new, green Kalahari
is not quite the paradise it appears.
Every change in the environment heralds a change in fortune.
And every silver lining has a cloud.
The summer downpours have resulted in an eruption
of tall sourgrass across the entire Manor.
which, when you're less than 12 inches tall,
makes it extremely difficult to see...
or be seen.
At the Hakuna Matata burrow
it's not just the height of the grass
that is proving to be an irritation.
The sap is causing eye infections
and itchy sores on everyone's skin.
Akida is finding lookout duty particularly uncomfortable
at a time when sharp eyes are needed more than ever.
Who knows what could be lurking in all this?
It's a big worry for Flint,
whose pups Ogg, Weatherwax, Greebo and Havelock
are still vulnerable,
and who now has another, even younger litter
who are too small to leave the burrow.
Proud Finnick stands dutifully by her,
having now fully embraced his role as responsible father.
The downside to this baby boom
is that with newborns underground
the family is effectively trapped at this overgrown burrow
for another two weeks at least.
Sencha is doing most of the babysitting,
assisted by Munchkin
who has suddenly taken to throwing her weight around.
And it's some weight.
Her large belly reveals that she's been courted by a rover...
and there's no hiding the consequences of their tryst.
Flint's already kicked her out once.
She's been allowed home to help care for the leader's newborns,
now that she is no longer a threat to them
but she's living on a knife-edge...
and she knows it.
So she's sucking up big time.
The problem is her incessant grooming and caressing
is just becoming another irritation, to Flint.
The tall grass is causing similar problems
for the Whiskers.
The difference is Swift's youngest pups -
Woolf, Bronte and Wilde -
are 7 weeks old and well on their way to independence.
The trio are bigger than most pups their age -
thanks to the banquet of bugs triggered by the summer rains.
In fact, there are round bellies everywhere you look.
The pups are now old enough to move with the rest of the family
so Swift can lead them to a better place to stay...
...if they can find their way to it!
Young Lupin keeps look-out for approaching danger.
And he's not the only one.
A lark panics...
at the sight of a pack of predators.
The flustered parent is protecting a chick
somewhere on the ground.
It would make a good meal for someone.
But it could be anywhere.
The second parent hits the panic button...
...seemingly offering a clue to the location of its young.
The clever lark is a decoy -
to lure the Whiskers away from the chick.
Their deception outsmarts Hachi!
But unfortunately, the tactic didn't work on Laika...
who's already tucking into her chick meal for one.
Whiskers 1 - Larks Nil.
Predators come in many guises.
Swift would do well to remember that
as she leads her family on.
Meanwhile, unable to venture far from their burrow,
the Hakuna Matata are heading up a nearby dune,
to get out of the grass.
Finnick is first to reach the top.
His view across the Manor is now very different
from the bleak dustbowl the family has had to endure
for so much of the year.
But this highpoint doesn't offer
the safe foraging they were hoping for.
The wind up here makes it hard to hear predators.
Exposed in the open,
it would be all too easy for a raptor to strike.
Perhaps this wasn't such a good idea after all.
Back at the burrow,
his roving adventures curtailed by the long grass,
young Gurke is patiently helping his aunties
babysit the new kids.
He's been stuck at home for days.
Beneath him, in the network of underground tunnels,
something is stirring.
It's Flint's new litter!
The five tiny pups stumble their way towards the entrance,
accompanied by Sencha.
First to appear is Seymour.
Then Yasha, Mooncake, Reef and Mae.
The 3 boys and 2 girls
have emerged several days earlier than expected.
They're far too young to leave the safety of the burrow
but Sencha isn't concerned.
She gently encourages them to suckle.
Munchkin can't provide milk while she's pregnant
so she keeps guard instead.
She can't afford anything to go wrong.
If she gets kicked out,
she will very likely miscarry her own pups.
With feeding time over, the kids start to find their feet
but their innocent play is about to be rudely interrupted.
Still agitated from his experience on the dune,
Finnick is horrified to see his pups in the open...
and leaps into action.
But instead of shepherding them
back into the safety of the burrow,
he does the unthinkable...
...and starts moving them AWAY!
What IS he doing??
Reef and Seymour are now out in the open,
away from the burrow and no-one seems to know what to do.
Over in Whiskers territory, keeping everyone together
is proving just as nerve-wracking for Swift
as she searches for a burrow free of sourgrass.
The difference is, her organised move
could be about to pay off.
Finally, the grass recedes...
and Swift's plan... is revealed.
The cattle pen.
The birthplace of Rollo, Ragnar and Floki.
What a sight for sore eyes!
And an ingenious move on Swift's part.
Grazed and trampled by their old neighbours,
the grass is not a problem here.
And the old place still has all the welcome features
that made it such a good family home earlier in the year.
But as the Whiskers get down to burrow renovations
they don't notice...
...that a new neighbour has moved in.
Swift's nemesis.
But this one has its eye on higher prey.
Much higher prey.
Like the larks,
the sparrow weavers become increasingly flustered...
a sure sign their nest contains offspring.
With no thought for their own safety,
the parents try to mob the invader,
but their frantic efforts are futile.
Whatever life is in the nest...
is ruthlessly snuffed out.
It's a bad day to be a bird.
Swift won't tolerate such a deadly neighbour...
so the Whiskers' quest for a safe home... continues.
What should be a safe home is proving to be anything but,
for the latest Hakuna Matata brood.
And it's all down to their dad.
Finnick's left Reef and Seymour out in the open...
and is now systematically removing the rest
from the safety of the burrow.
Yasha is next.
Everyone's thrown into confusion as he heads back for another.
He seems to think they're at risk
and need to be moved to safety.
But leaving them out into the open like this
is anything but safe, it's crazy!
Mooncake is the fourth to be abandoned.
Finnick doesn't appear to have a plan at all!
Munchin watches helplessly.
There's nothing she can do.
Finnick has rank on his side.
Finally, Dad responds to Mooncake's cries for help.
He seems to have changed his mind
and now wants to return her to the burrow.
But what about the others?
Gurke retrieves Yasha...
but seems unsure if he's done the right thing.
In the end, it's Sencha who steps in...
leaving her post at the burrow...
to gently chaperone Yasha back towards safety.
Just as Flint appears.
Uh-oh.
One by one, she gathers them up.
Starting with Reef...
then Yasha.
Finnick sheepishly offers up Mooncake and is reprimanded.
But there's still one missing.
Where's Seymour?
All pups accounted for.
Woe betide Finnick if he pulls that stunt again.
Munchkin anxiously tries to make amends.
This happened on her watch.
And no amount of grovelling is going to change that fact.
It's been a long day for everyone.
The Whiskers have been travelling for hours
but they still haven't found the perfect burrow.
Wary of concealed dangers,
Swift keeps stopping to check what lies ahead.
This vantage point offers a decent view.
But something closer catches her eye.
How strange.
A grasshopper...
...impaled on a branch.
How did it get into this position?
A shrike - also known as the butcher bird -
was planning to eat it later.
But you snooze... you lose!
That's now Whiskers 2, Birds Nil.
Swift's view from the fallen tree
revealed more than a bite to eat.
She now knows exactly where she's taking them.
Of course!
The water tank!
The home that served them so well in the past...
...especially when Hachi, Laika and Fly were small.
The benefits are obvious.
The surroundings are lush but not overwhelming.
And the water tank is like a fortress
with a reinforced bunker and protected sentry positions
which Lupin seems more than happy with.
Yes.
This will do nicely.
But as the Whiskers settle down in their old home,
some members of the family are carrying a secret...
one that cannot be hidden for much longer...
and one which owes less
to the abundance of food brought by the rains...
than it does to the persistence of rovers.
Swift's tolerance of her daughters
is about to be tested once more.