Happy New Year

Well Christmas is over for another year, we had the usual bugs that go around at this time of the year but we are all better now. It is cold and icy on Dartmoor and although it looks beautiful in the sunshine the ground is like iron. I really feel for the people who have had all the snow and are having to go out to feed up their stock. Our animals are eating loads of hay and we have upped their dry feed as well with Alfalfa. The female herd over in Widecombe all look great all dry and fluffy, they still have the hedgerows to pick at but the grass is frozen solid. The llamas and the young male alpacas have moved down to the bottom field which gives them much more shelter and the female llamas Jazz & Georgina have moved into the yard with the field shelter, they are getting on a bit and really appreciate having the use of the shelter at night, during the day they get the run of an area which isn't normally grazed around our shed and the chicken run. They seem to be OK but we have taken to giving them two feeds a day as they were losing a bit of condition.

We went on a llama walk on New years Eve which was really good, cold but very enjoyable, we took a route from our fields and out on to a Dr Blackall's Drive and down to New Bridge car park where we had left the trailer in position to bring us back. It work really well being able to do a one way trek means we can cover different areas of the moor.

We were going to do another walk on New Years Day but it was very cold and really not suitable for young children so we have put that one off till better weather.

It's back to work tomorrow something that Steve is not looking froward too, If this weather continues at least I will be able to finish the decorating in the holiday cottages ready for the summer season.

We really should start planning what we are going to do this year with shows, breeding,s and sales. We have to decide if we are going to show at the Futurity or just go and watch, I may be very thick but I couldn't find the nominated sires on the website so I don't know which alpacas I could enter, I will have to study it again later. On breedings, our first cria is due at the end of March and we have a couple of maidens which can be breed in the spring so we need to decide if we will use our studs or go out for breeding with these. We do need to sell some females this year as we are short of space, but how do you decide which ones to sell, maybe I am to sentimental but they all have their own personalities. It is very difficult!. We will also have some very well train young males for sale as we are using them to go out with the llamas for walks on the moor, all this helps with handling as they are so used to being haltered, feet checked etc.

Any way better get the dinner on or I will be in trouble.