MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Good Boxing Day morning ... the sun is peaking through the fog and I've come in for a coffee and a warm up before taking the dogs for a walk through the valley. We have our walk challenge over the Xmas holidays - a different walk every day -  but we can't go anywhere in the car at the moment as it's got a flat tyre.  Peter is outside changing the wheel for me, or was but actually he just asked me to raise it to the off-road height to get the wheel out from underneath, which means starting the engine, it seems it has a flat battery as well!

It's been an eventful few days, thanks to the forces of nature. We were hit extremely hard by the storm on Monday night. It was pretty ferocious by the middle of the afternoon and half of our field shelter roof was blown clean off and dropped onto the other side of the remaining roof.  The mums and crias were still occupying the space that had been under it - seemingly oblivious!  We rushed out to make sure that no-one was injured, all were safe, thank heavens.

Struggling to walk against the wind and blasted with spiky torrential rain, we tried to tow the displaced roof off the corner of the remaining one with the tractor, but to no avail, it was just too heavy and dangerous to continue. We hoped that the building wouldn't collapse onto my little Boris the Morris who is also housed in one end and directly under the wreck. I decided to move the mums and crias into the next field where they would have the shelter from our neighbours large house and huge conifer trees and so I wouldn't have to worry about them getting trapped if the building fell down.

We were expecting our friends Ken and Liz from Artwork Alpacas to come over for dinner, but I put them off til the next day, not wanting them out and about in the storm. The winds and rain continued to worsen during the night, there were times in the night I thought we might lose our own roof. The power went off at about 11.30pm and  it was very dark all round - just the odd flash which may have been lighting or power cable clashing.

At first light we looked out fearing what we might see - a very different view - half those huge conifers were down!  A quick head count from the bedroom window and all were accounted for and seemed fine. The shelter roof had moved again, folded onto itself, like a sandwich. After feeding and haying up we walked all the boundaries, lots of debris and another tree down in the woods, I think we were fairly lucky not to have more damage.

Our power stayed off for over 26 hours, apart from our log burner which also gives us hot water, we are all electric. Ken and Liz weren't coming for dinner that night either and offered to have us over for lunch on Christmas day as they had a generator!  We ate fish and chips and played cards by candlelight and listened to the local Radio - apparently there was free food and drink for those with no power - you could find out where to go by going on-line and venues would be listed on their website!!!!!!!!!

Christmas morning,  and we had power again - hurrah! However, Ken and Liz insisted that we still go for lunch and we had a lovely time.










Waiting for breakfast

A chilly start this morning ...

Here comes the sun

Marmalade inspecting the girls breakfast





PHOTO SHOOT

Alpacas are beautiful and a bit quirky, that's what we all love about them.  When you add a stunning model, a professional photographer with a unique style, stylists, hair and make-up artists they help make the most striking pictures.

Yesterday we played host to a fashion shoot by Emy Lou and whilst I can't share her pictures with you just yet,  I can show you some behind-the-scenes shots which I took with my phone. Emy, her model Valentina and team arrived around 9am, by which time the clear and frosty morning was rapidly deteriorating, with menacing, deep grey skies heralding the forecasted heavy showers for the day. Emy and her team settled themselves into the den for the day, which within a very short time resembled Rebecca's bedroom - well not that bad, but almost as much make-up!

I left them to it for a while and fed and moved animals about with Lucy.  Those clouds then dumped torrential rain, thoroughly soaking the already wet alpacas and adding that good old British chill to a dismal November day. There were however, brief glimpses of the sun, and the rain eventually moved along, allowing everyone to get on with the shoot. 

Rebecca and I herded animals about so that they stayed in the background, sometimes handing a soggy alpaca to the very scantily dressed Valentina, who I don't think had even seen one before, but who remained very chilled, or it could be that she was just frozen to the spot! We held a branch here and there and generally got in the way I suspect. It all took hours as the poor girl had to be thawed out between dresses. I did feel sorry for her, maybe modelling isn't all that glamorous after all! I think it was a pretty unique experience for everyone, we really enjoyed the day,  and I can't wait to see the finished pictures and video.  Emy Lou's website  Model Valentina 

Strike a pose?
Not the best 'get-up' for handling alpacas!
Rebecca gets in on the action!

The dressing gown coming off between shots ... brrrr

Alpacas only slightly interested now - this kind of thing is always going on in our field!!

Brie and Cotton Fields - posing

Cast iron - makes for a very cold bum!

That's cosier!

Would quite like to eat that hay you're sat on!



THE BIG STORM

The warnings have gone out, the South of England, that's us, are to be battered by hurricane force winds and heavy rain starting this evening and into Monday … I know they have to err on the side of caution, but is it really going to be all that bad? Lovely here at the moment. Michael Fish has advised we batten down the hatches this time!  

I have been thinking about that storm, 25 October 1987, and how it affected my little life back then, I realise sharing this with you gives away just how ancient I am, certainly makes me feel it when I count up the years! However, it was really pretty dramatic at the time. 

I lived in a cute, but rather damp little flat above some old stables, on a private estate, where I worked as the stables manager. My employers, who lived in the big house, just a bit further up the drive, were away at the time. 

I don't remember much about the day, but certainly the evening was fairly wild, wet and windy. I had lit my little wood burner and was watching telly with my beloved dog Brindle on the sofa next to me, aware that there was a bit of a hooley going on outside. I had gone to bed, but couldn't sleep as the wind was making such a racket, there were large trees within feet of the back and side of my bedroom. 

In the early hours the burglar alarm went off at the big house,  I threw on a coat over my PJs and went outside, where I met the housekeeper, who lived in the flat next to mine, and together we fought against the elements to the house, to meet the police, who were apparently on their way to re-set the alarm or deal with intruders or something, no self-respecting bugler would be out in that weather would they?  We could hardly stay on our feet, and we had to shout at each other over the terrific roar of the wind. The power went off, and with it the alarm and having waited for what seemed like ages we abandoned the big house to return to the safety of our beds - the police never showed up.

As light dawned it was clear that this had been no ordinary storm - no way was my trusty Fiat Panda  (stop-it) going to leap over all those fallen trees in the drive, so Brindle and I set off on our expedition the mile or so down the hill to the yard - took a very long time, there were so many trees to clamber over. Thankfully, all the horses were safe and sound, as were the buildings.  No power of course, or phones - just my little battery radio, giving out regular updates of damage and lives lost as a result of hurricane storm winds over the South of England.

For three weeks I had no power, which meant no hot water or cooker either, thankfully I had a little pan in which I cooked bacon and stuff on top of my little wood burner, no shortage of firewood of course. I scrounged hot baths from various friends, many kindly fed me too, bless them. 

My lasting impressions of that great storm was the terrific roar of the wind, and it's awesome power. Once out and about, especially on the horses, the sight of all those beautiful trees, flattened like matchsticks for miles around the hangers of Selbourne, and the top of Noah Hill looking like a bald head.

I do hope they've got it wrong this time ..  we'll tie down a few things today,  put away some garden furniture and pot plants, and I might move Boris the Morris (car) to a safer place than his current abode in part of the field shelter.  I may decide to keep the mums and crias in, I think the other pacas will be OK - they will probably huddle together in the middle of the field,  we have trees everywhere, but when ever we've had gales before they seem to stay away from the trees.

Anyway, good luck where you are ...  keep safe and stay off the roads as much as possible, and lets hope its all a storm in a teacup!

SNAPPY-HAPPY


The sun came out briefly this afternoon, which improved my mood considerably .. I won't bore you with the details, but lets just say I had a difference of opinion with a car salesman, IGNORANT PIG, which left me VERY ANGRY... sorry, I'm over it now, and have my car back .... at last, after 11 days.

Anyway, sun out and trees looked stunning, so I took the camera out for a bit of paca-therapy - always works. They always look so beautiful against the autumn colours, don't they.








OK I promise not to shout anymore ...  oooh - lots of lightning going on outside now, so guess we may get a power cut, which is normal for us in a thunder storm - must go and find some candles just in case. TTFN

I HAVE BEEN DOING STUFF, HONEST

- just not blogging! It's so mild for the middle of October, not that I'm complaining, we have masses of grass and it'll save on our Autumn feed and hay bill, they're all in very good condition! Only one problem with having so much grass is that most of the time it's too wet to poo pick, Peter, however doesn't view it as a problem is enjoying the break from his job! The crias are growing out really well - they're full of beans and I spent a happy 10 minutes or so, as the sun was going down, watching them all have a funny five minutes racing around the front field. The girls were definitely in the lead by the way, led most of the time by Flopsie and Bossy Boots.

We had some of our mated females scanned the other day, mostly the maidens, there were quite a few we didn't scan, we know them so well we can trust their spit-offs. It appears we have 20 pregnant females, a couple less than I thought, confused maidens who were running away at spit-off time, late developers maybe, anyway, 20's plenty to be going on with. Now I just have to wait til mid summer to see what we get.

Earlier this week the weather was just perfect and I was helping my friend Donna on her vineyard, which is on the hill just behind us. The view from their land is stunning, they're quite a bit higher than us and can see right over the Meon Valley and to the hills beyond.  I'd never picked grapes before, I found it really therapeutic, I had to try the odd one or two of course, they were surprisingly sweet, but with tough skins.  I'm looking forward to tasting the finished product in a few years time when it's been turned into Poppy Down Champagne. The bunches of grapes were so beautiful hanging there in the sunshine - I just had to take pictures of them.




Yesterday we hosted another training day for the Southern Alpaca Group, entitled 'Get it out of the Barn', which was given by Jean Field, all very inspiring and she brought along lots of samples of fabulous yarn and knitted products. Everyone seemed to enjoy the day and all learnt a lot and hopefully will now do something with their fleeces. Jean used one of our fleeces to demonstrate the importance of 'skirting'  before sending it away for processing.  I normally spend a few minutes on each one as it comes off at shearing time, doing just that, but this fleece was one that I hadn't done, thanks to one of our females, Calico, having a torsion and taking me away from my usual job right in the middle of shearing ... bless her, she was Ok and so was her cria by the way. The fleece certainly needed skirting and there must be a few more that I need to check before I send them off to UK Alpaca. Then our own fleece barn (stable) will be empty again, apart from just a few really pretty grey and appaloosa fleeces, which I would love to get spun, or even spin myself if I can remember how to do it and find the time! Even all our 'rubbish' legs and bellies, have gone off to Penrose Products to make duvets, one of which we now sleep under, and lovely it is too.

What else have I been doing ... oh yes painting, the kitchen, and the dog room, makes the rest of the house look a bit dull, but at least I've made a start. I'm on a bit of a clear out mission too, though it's more like mission impossible, why do we have so much stuff?
Soggy bums this morning
My planned, first time for ages, Sunday morning lay-in was scuppered far too early this morning by torrential rain and thunder ...  I like thunderstorms actually, but couldn't it have waited til at least 7am? As the rain pelted down in, what sounded like hose pipe proportions, I realised I had left the window open and got up to close it - a flash of lightening revealing all the pacas sat in a huddle in the middle of the field - I knew they wouldn't be cold though - each wearing their own alpaca duvet, and I snuggled back under mine! We've had a dry hour or two this morning so I did the rounds, and fed everyone, and then walked the dogs in the dry. Now its pouring with rain again, and windy, but still very mild. All the pacas are absolutely soaked, a shame as I have a couple coming on a beginners course this afternoon - soggy pacas don't leave the same impression as lovely dry fluffy ones do they! May have to be a slightly longer session in the classroom, with frequent tea and biscuit breaks! I hope they remember their waterproofs!

Oh, and one last item - our electricity poles have been replaced - we scrounged the old ones for gate posts and a shelter I'm planning to put up, and the boys just had to supervise!

AUTUMN JABS AND TRAINING DAYS

The whole herd have had their toenails trimmed and their Autumn wormer, and the crias have had their first dose of AD&E as now that the days are getting shorter, they need their liquid sunshine to prevent the possible onset of rickets. Next job is to book a visit from our scanner chap to confirm our pregnancies, I think from spit-offs we have around 25, but I like to be certain, a couple of the maidens don't seem to know what to do when approached by the big boys, I'm hoping they've all taken and when I know for sure I will be putting some on our sales list, reluctantly I hasten to add, but sadly I can't keep them all.

We're hosting a couple of Southern Alpaca Group (SAG) training days this month.  Vet Day on Saturday 5th October with Camelid Specialist Peter Aitken, who will talk us through parasites and skin problems, crias and nutrition and probably much more, it'll be a great chance for learning and for asking all those questions. Then on Saturday 19th October will be a  Fibre Day with Jean Field - everything you need to know on what to do with your fleeces from shearing to processing and how and where to market your products, and a chance to have a go at spinning and weaving.  We have places on both these days available, you don't have to be a Member of SAG, so if you'd like to come along then we'd be pleased to see you - give me call or drop me an email info@mvalpacas.co.uk

We had a few visitors today - an Alpaca Experience morning for Flora and her friends as her birthday treat, they all had a great time learning about the alpacas, getting involved in some husbandry tasks and leading Bond and Baylee through an agility course. This afternoon a lovely family came over who are thinking of getting some alpacas as field pets. (I rather suspect they might and here are some pics of the boys to tempt them further - how can they resist?!)

Touchwood - "Pick Me"!!

And my friends!

Jack Black & Touchwood

Agent

ROMSEY SHOW REPORT - WITH MATCH STICKS!

Is it just me, or are shows really tiring?!!! The match sticks are to prevent me closing my eyes right now...

Just now I was watching The Americas Cup on telly, I'm definitely not a sailor, I don't have the stomach for it, but I was glued, or thought I was, the Kiwis almost capsized and I'd missed it - I'd nodded off! How middle aged is that?

The Show was a great success, I think, well no complaints registered, perhaps I was asleep??? !! The day before, Friday 13th was not quite so straight forward however, mainly thanks to Ellis Transport company who didn't deliver the BAS hurdles on Thursday as arranged and confirmed! You are named and shamed! Nikki and I, had a fantastic team of volunteers to set up - Sue, Ray and Lisa, Andy and Sally and Keith - we would never have done it without them. A couple of other hitches, well a hitch but no electrics on the new car, and a power cut before bed, which meant finding show clothes and car keys by candlelight, all added to the stresses of the day.

I'm one of those people who can never sleep if I know I have to get up early, with my 5.30 alarm set I had a series of nightmares, including running out of diesel on the way to the show ... etc.

Thank heavens it was a dry dawn and stayed dry for the day, but for a little drizzle now and then.  Our team of Stewards Jay, Gary and Keith, did a great job, making the whole day run smoothly. Our Judge Nick Harrington Smith educated the audience and exhibitors alike with his oral reasoning. Congratulations to the Supreme Suri from Spring Farm Alpacas and Huacaya Hanley Hall Polaris.

With help from the exhibitors stacking their hurdles, for which we are extremely grateful, the marquee was soon empty again and we were driving off the show ground as the light began to fade.

Our own show team of 10 were all placed, with 2 Champions and 2 Reserve Champions and they are all back out in the field as if nothing had happened.

Now it's pouring with rain and windy and I'm going to watch or maybe sleep through Jane Austin..

 Intermediate Fawn Females - Melissa 3rd

Nick working his way through the Supreme line-up



A CATCH UP

I haven't done this for ages, a sign that I've had nothing to tell you that I thought you'd be interested in, been very lazy or been doing other stuff. Well all of the above apply.

My plans to tighten up our birthing season paid off this year and Rebecca and I went on a little holiday to Rhodes for a week, Peter stayed at home, he doesn't do holidays, very handy, meant all the animals and pot plants were looked after, bless him. I had forgotten just how beneficial a complete break away from everything was ... definitely to be repeated next year! Rhodes is lovely, my first visit. The weather was perfect, hot and sunny every day, lovely warm sea to swim in and those wonderful warm evenings that we just never get in the UK. We hired a car and explored the island - the old Town being the highlight, if you like ancient castles and little twisty lanes with cobble stones full of little shops to get lost in, then this is the place to go.

Ancient walls round old Rhodes

A very hot day for a climb to the top of the Acropolis,
 no we didn't ride on the donkeys!

Came home with seeds from this plant - no idea what it is but will
try my best to grow it!

Typical little lane in Rhodes - I think we were lost at this point!
All was fine on our return, we made the most of the last few lovely warm and sunny days of our summer with days out to the beach,  a toe in the sea here was was freezing!

So Rebecca back to school and time for Autumn jobs with the pacas. With our birthing season in mind for next year I had done all our breedings over a 4 week period finishing at the beginning of August. Time to do the last spit off and we have 25 rejecting, which is plenty for us. Most of them from our new Snowmass boys and a few from The Sorcerer.. can't wait to see the results ... roll on next June!

That done, the round of toenails, weighing crias and moving into new paddocks. Now some sad news.
Little Hunky Dory, the one with the splint on my last post, sadly passed away last week. Apart from his very crooked legs (the splint was actually working really well) and being very small, he had always had problems in the pooing department. I was regularly giving him enemas, as he always seemed constipated and I suspect that he wasn't quite right inside.

Last Saturday we had Alresford Show, our group of pet boys in our marquee were very popular as usual and we had a lot of serious enquiries from prospective purchasers.  I slipped away in the afternoon to go to the auction at the Classic which was fun and very interesting - this time I managed to sit on my hands!

This Saturday is the Romsey Show, and as at the moment I am keeping everything crossed for a dry day - the forecast can best be described as dodgy. We have over 100 entries and with Nick judging it promises to be a great day, whatever the weather. I will take some pics and report next week.

Sun setting so much earlier now

I love Autumn

Add caption
All was fine on our return, we made the most of the last few lovely warm and sunny days of our summer with days out to the beach,  a toe in the sea here was was freezing!

So Rebecca back to school and time for Autumn jobs with the pacas. With our birthing season in mind for next year I had done all our breedings over a 4 week period finishing at the beginning of August. Time to do the last spit off and we have 25 rejecting, which is plenty for us. Most of them from our new Snowmass boys and a few from The Sorcerer.. can't wait to see the results ... roll on next June!

That done, the round of toenails, weighing crias and moving into new paddocks. Now some sad news.
Little Hunky Dory, the one with the splint on my last post, sadly passed away last week. Apart from his very crooked legs (the splint was actually working really well) and being very small, he had always had problems in the pooing department. I was regularly giving him enemas, as he always seemed constipated and I suspect that he wasn't quite right inside.

Last Saturday we had Alresford Show, our group of pet boys in our marquee were very popular as usual and we had a lot of serious enquiries from prospective purchasers.  I slipped away in the afternoon to go to the auction at the Classic which was fun and very interesting - this time I managed to sit on my hands!

This Saturday is the Romsey Show, and as at the moment I am keeping everything crossed for a dry day - the forecast can best be described as dodgy. We have over 100 entries and with Nick judging it promises to be a great day, whatever the weather. I will take some pics and report next week.

ELLINGHAM SHOW

A really quick update on the show - Ellingham is less than an hour away for us, so we didn't have to get up too early, it was fun, very relaxed and enjoyable, with perfect weather and plenty of time to chat.  I'm looking forward to next year's already!  I really liked having our own pen next to the show ring, with our car and trailor beside us, none of that lugging about of stuff! Our little show team of 4 intermediate females and 3 adult males did us proud, with 1 x 3rd, 2 x 2nd, 4 x 1st and The Sorcerer, Macy Grey and Enigma all awarded colour Champions.

Back home and little Hunky Dory had lost his splint which I put on yesterday, my first attempt, so tomorrow I will have to adjust it slightly and use a bit more vet-wrap to hopefully hold it in place a bit longer.

Now for fish and chips and a large GnT ... oh and I have a very red nose!

Hunky Dory

The boys

The girls hiding in the trailor!

Our Champions - Enigma, Macy Grey and The Sorcerer