The Queen of Alpacas

Well Tessa was due to give Emilia her injection at 3 p.m. yesterday afternoon. It was with some trepidation that we caught her and put her on a halter. Mike was standing by in case of a repeat of her prima donna behaviour of recent times.

I walked her across the yard and she looked like a race horse on its way to the race. She held her body taught and proud and her nostrils were flaring and everything about her said"Come on boy - make my day". Dirty Harry had nothing on her.

She has not been on a halter since she was shown at the Devon Show in 2007 but she had not forgotten her training. She looked absolutely stunning.

We put her in a temporary pen to await Tessa's arrival and Mike left me to keep an eye on her. She was very restless but did not actually try to jump out.

Fortunately Tessa was very much on time and I held Emilia whilst she Estrumated her - a very quick injection. It was a real anti-climax as the alpaca behaved perfectly. I walked her back to the herd and now we have to wait about three days before trying to mate her again.

I have alerted A & E to my impending arrival!! The Animal Psychologist is on call to counsel the rejected and battered male.

Mike is away at a dog show today with Millie and Jake so I am left to my own devices. I am planning to reorganise the paddocks and barn to make handling the alpacas easier, as we have been discussing lately. We have many reasons to separate certain groups for others and it is quite difficult to decide which to prioritise.

I am hoping the weather will stay dry as there are lots of outdoor jobs which are getting behind.