Pepper’s winter newsletter 2024
How is Pepper this winter? Pepper is her usual conservative-self on the farm, making sure she grazes the best grass in the field and looking out for the herd, we’re sure she takes on the “look-out” night shift more often than others. Her fleece is growing beautifully this year again and we can tell she is happy and relaxed with those ears pointing backwards most days.
What care needs come with winter?
There’s so much care to be given during the winter season, we’re really kept on our toes.
Speaking of toes, one thing we’re really careful with is the wet season we’ve had and their foot care. To ensure their feet get some much needed dry time in the extremely wet weather we’ve experienced this winter, we decided to place the alpacas in the barn, whether that be overnight in some cases, or for a few days at a time in others. This helps prevent any fungal conditions or injuries to the foot caused by the wetness, as well as ensuring the fields are not damaged by overuse when they’re wet, which could be hard to recover from.
We’ve also routinely given the herd including Pepper in the middle here, their monthly vitamin A, D, E supplements, to ensure good health and to prevent rickets which they can be prone to. This is due to the shortened days with less hours of sunlight, mixed with their thick woolly fleeces at this time of year, there is less chance of their skin being able to adsorb vitamin D3.
With the wet whether, we also have to be extra vigilant with the alpaca’s gut health, and kept up with our quarterly egg counts for worms and parasites. We were really pleased with the results, showing good general management of the land and general regular health checks is the best prevention we can give. Pepper’s test results showed that her gut health was very good and there was no need for treatment this time.
Watch in video: From last winter, we show you how we manage and treat the alpacas for worms and parasites
Pepper in winter… adventure, fringe, confidence!
It’s our preference at shearing not to cut their fringes too short, both for practical (shading from the sun) and aesthetic reasons (we like it!) but this means at this time of year we have to check to see if a little trim is needed. What do you think for Pepper? Her fringe seems a little shorter than the rest of the herd, so it’s likely we will leave it alone.
As one of the eldest of the herd, Pepper is a great observer and will often relax whilst ruminating (using her special alpaca digestive system!) We’re certain in the coming months, she will move into the shade when the spring heat arrives.
As shy and reserved as Pepper may be, every now and then her adventurous side comes out and we find her in the oddest of places. This winter, she’s been climbing on, and falling off of the hay stack! Which, whilst she enjoys herself makes us nervous as she has a history of injuries.
Pepper still loves meeting with visitors, and every now and then, will allow them to stroke her neck without hesitation. We’re so impressed with Pepper’s confidence continuing to grow in this way. It’s a far cry from when she used to hide in her shelter during group visits and is a result of so much hard work we’ve done with the herd.
Winter news from the farm
This winter, we’re having a glamping glow up. Since opening up the glamping tent, we’ve had three complete seasons and received wonderful 5 star reviews. After 3 years, it’s time for a newer and better glamping tent, with more head room and better material for a cooler time in the heat and warmer time in the cold, we’re certain it’s only getting better for 2024. We’re keeping the exclusivity; a new tent doesn’t mean an additional tent, it’s staying special and private just for your group!
All 2023 babies on the farm are doing well. Blossom’s cria (baby alpaca) Buddy, and Astrid’s cria Joni have both started their halter training. This is less about training to walk with customers and more about them learning to be handled for regular health checks and at a minimum them be able to be walked if needed for healthcare (for example to travel to the vets). Our human baby Emilie is also doing well and getting to know the herd well, and they’re starting to get used to her too.
We are proud to re-appear on C4’s A New Life in the Sun: Where Are They Now? this winter.
We love sharing our updates with you all and others too. It must be kept a close secret, but as adopters of our beautiful herd, we’ll let you know the theme of this year’s episode focuses on us working with the wool, and also how the farm was baby central last year with both alpaca and human baby arrivals. Take a look at our blog for an account coming soon of what it’s like being involved in the show, as well as our social media to announce the date our contribution will be aired.
Wool workshops that are accessible to everyone.
We’ve been sharing our knowledge and skills with our regular wool workshops. These have proved very popular and not only to the general public, but we’ve also been asked to adapt these for groups too, including children and those with additional needs. We’re so happy we can share our passion for the alpacas and our knowledge about their incredible wool. We now have three different workshops available, alongside our partners Wecandoo.
