Karen's alpacas: HEART OF ENGLAND SHOW

I've unloaded the car and the show clothes are in the wash ready for next weekend. Thank goodness I packed extra fleeces... at one point I had 6 layers on and I was only just warm enough! Standing around on concrete for two days in one of those big cattle sheds is exhausting, but worth it sometimes!! It was a very good show, well organised by Paul Stead and the HOE team and the Judge Mary-Jo Smith did a sterling job with excellent oral reasoning, I left each class knowing that my alpaca had been thoroughly and fairly placed and why.

The first day's judging finished around 4pm and so we had plenty of time to relax back at the hotel. I took advantage of the swimming pool and sauna, which I had all to myself, it was lovely to get warm again! Then I put feet up in front of the telly for a couple of hours before meeting the gang for dinner just down the road for a really delicious steak and an excellent evening.

My trailor load of 10 were all placed. I won't bore you with too many details, but the stars were Bonami, who won Adult Fawn Male, then Champion Fawn Male. The Sorcerer won Intermediate Grey Male and then Reserve Champion to the great Nyetimber. Macy Grey won her little class and then Champion Grey Female. Our black girls did well too, Enigma won her section and Cotton Fields came 2nd in hers. All in all we had a great show and it was topped off by winning Best of British (both parents born in UK) with Bonami, and then the Medium (size) Herd Award. I drove home happy and proud.