Montgomery and Ellingham

Meet Montgomery.  Born Saturday 5/25, Montgomery was soon running around the pasture as if he'd been here all week.  He couldn't wait to find out what he had been missing and Dam, Britney, had a hard time keeping up with him.

Weighing an extrememly healthy 17.6 lbs at birth, Montgomery is showing signs of growing a superfine fleece and we're excited to see how he develops.

Another stunning edition to our barn is Ellingham.  Just like his namesake on the Doc Martin TV Show, Ellingham decided to be a little different - right from the start.

The majority of cria are born in early morning or early afternoon so that there is time for their coats to dry before the onset of cooler night temperatures.  In the wild, if a newborn cria's coat does not have a chance to dry, there is little likelihood of the young alpaca lasting until morning.

Ellingham, however, defied the odds and entered this world at 5pm last Tuesday, 5/21.  Of course, he also had a loving barn family to make sure he got off to a good start - but it was hardly necessary.

Weighing a hefty 19 lbs at birth to his Dam, Opal, Ellingham has no illusions about his place in the pasture.  Although so young, he is looking like he is going to be one of the leaders of the pack, right up there with Martin, our first born.

Just as Edith Montgomery and Martin Ellingham were top of their class in medical school, we are hopeful that our two young cria also become top of their class.  Both cria have excellent stature and fine fleece which makes them excellent additions to the herd.
Let's hope they learn to get along a little better than Edith and Doc Martin.

Introducing Louisar

What a difference a couple of weeks can make.

Born at 7.30am on Sunday 12th May, during our Open Barn and Shearing Weekend, many visitors got to see this little one struggle to survive.  Named Louisar after Louisa Glasson on the Doc Martin TV Show, the spelling is in tribute to the English pronunciation of 'Louisa".

Appearing to hold her own during her first few hours, and weighing a healthy 15.7 lbs, she was unable to maintain her body temperature as night fell.

The first few days can be critical for a newborn cria - rarely can they regulate their body temperature in the beginning - and with the nights being so cold, it was touch and go.

Provided with a heating pad, Neck Warmer, Body Wrap and Cria Coat, Louisar was kept warm and toasty but it did hinder her getting around.  Dam, Cleopatra, looked on in wonder as her little cria received all the attention.

Just like her namesake on the Doc Martin TV Show, our Louisar had an undiagnosed issue that came to the surface.  Whereas Doc Martin recognized acute glaucoma in Louisa Glasson's eye during episode one, her vet (Buckeystown Veterinary Hospital) discovered our Louisar had a heart murmur.

We were assured that, just like human babies, heart murmurs in newborn cria are common.  However, with the combination of being a first cria for Cleopatra, the cold temperatures and harsh winds, plus the heart murmer, we supplimented her food with bottle feedings.

Within a few days, Louisa had graduated to the next size in Cria Coats and was able to explore the pasture for short intervals to help get her strength up.

Looking her her now, she is a picture of health and vitality and there is no sign of the heart murmur she was born with.  As predicted, it closed up within her first few days of life and Louisar is now pronking in the pasture with all the other cria.

A side effect of all the human interaction during her first days, Louisar is incredibly affectionate and loves being around people.

Martin and Louisar, our first two cria born this year, are fitting figureheads for our 2013 cria population.

We will be introducing some more namesakes from the Doc Martin Series over the next couple of days - and hoping to match personalities with their counterparts.  Until then......

Babies..... Part Two

Twister (boy) arrived on Thursday 16th May and had, so far, the heaviest birth weight of our new cria weighing in at 18.8 lbs.  Twister likes hanging out in the corner of the barn for now and has to be persuaded to experience grass under his feet.  Once out in the pasture, however, he enjoys hiding behind the long grasses and exploring his space.

Named for his distinctive coloring, which resembles a twisted chocolate and vanilla ice cream cone, Twister is definitely going to stand out in the barn.

Chaps (boy) arrived on the same day as Twister but weighed only 14 lbs at birth.  Our only Suri born so far this year, Chaps appeared tiny next to everyone else so we supplimented his feed to ensure he gets off to a good start.  Hesitant at first, he took to the bottle, and is now nursing well and has gained weight.

Dam, Chica, is very protective of her little cria and getting a photo of him by himself was a definite challenge.    He is certainly being well looked after by his Dam and she keeps him away from the rest of the herd while in the pasture.

Chaps is still our tiniest cria and, after a slow start, is now 14.7 lbs.

Ivory (girl) joined the herd on Saturday and weighed in just behind Twister on birth weight at a nice 18.4 lbs.  Only 3 days old, Ivory is enjoying the sunshine in the pasture and fighting sleep while Dam, Ebony, grazes near by.  Ebony is also keeping her cria away from the rest of the herd and it's amazing to see the mothering instincts at work.

As more cria arrive, we will continue to post pictures and information on their personalities as they develop.

Feel free to come visit for yourself during our opening hours and Save The Date for our Babypalooza on June 22nd and 23rd.


Details will be posted on our website as the become finalized.

Babies....Babies....Everywhere!

A cold spring has gotten us off to a slow start in the cria department this year but now it's warmed up, we're making up for lost time.

Martin, already introduced via blog and FaceBook, arrived just in time for our Shearing Weekend and is growing from strength to strength.  Starting out at 16.3 lbs, he is now a whopping 23.4 lbs.

Martin is keeping a very close eye on our next arrival, Louisar.  Born just two days after Martin, Louisar got off to a much slower start.

Weighing a healthy 15.7 lbs, she had difficulty nursing in the beginning so we fed her supplimentary bottles of milk and yogurt to keep her strength up.  She is very affectionate with people and will probably end up being one of the barn favorites.  She is now 17.8 lbs, nursing well and getting stronger every day.

Next came Sox.  Born on Wednesday 15th May, Sox weighed 17.9 lb at birth and is already bigger than Louisar - who appears to be letting him know pasture etiquette.  Sox has a fun loving personality and is always looking for the other crias to play with him.  If anyone is caught resting for too long, Sox will jump over them to get them moving.

Named for the the white 'sock' on his front left foot, Sox is easy to spot and looking like he's going to be the barn mischief maker.  Visitors to our Farm will enjoy watching his antics in the pasture.

Tomorrow, we'll introduce the next three cria born this year - it's going to be a busy spring.  Check back here tomorrow for details or stop by and visit in person.  

It's looking like we will have plenty of new personalities for you to enjoy by Babypalooza on June 22nd and 23rd.

Introducing "Doc" Martin - Our First Alpaca Baby Of 2013

Born Thursday, "Doc" Martin became our first alpaca baby of 2013.

Before we even knew he had arrived, he was exploring the pasture and investigating his new surroundings.

Dam, Liberty, is going to have her work cut out keeping track of this little man.  He is all over the place and seen sticking his nose where it doesn't always belong.

Like his name sake, this little guy is going to find himself in trouble if he doesn't learn to mind his alpaca manners in the pasture.  Luckily, Liberty is staying pretty close to make sure he doesn't get into too much trouble with the other expectant mommies.

Named after the TV Show which airs on PBS (Thursday nights), our alpacas this year will be named after the characters in the show.  For those who don't follow the series, it is about “Doc” Martin Ellingham who finds himself back home in a Cornish village after his illustrious medical career in London goes awry. The townspeople are not used to the doctor’s blunt opinions and insensitive manners, often leading to mayhem in the town of Portwenn.

Liberty wants us to shout the good news about the birth of her cria but we're keeping "mum" about the next choice of name.  If anyone would like to post ideas, please feel free to do so.  Remember, we are keeping in the Doc Martin Theme for 2013.

Buckingham's Choice Retirement Community

Visitors and Residents of Buckingham's Choice Retirement Community came and spent the morning with us today and it was a treat for everyone concerned.

Ice Man had a lovely time meeting all the new people and very much enjoyed all the attention he received.

Mobility was difficult for some, so we brought the alpacas to the people, and it was a nice change of scenery for Ice Man and Mason - our stars of the morning.

Some of our bigger boys wanted to get in on the action, especially when the carrots came out.  There's nothing quite like the experience of feeding an alpaca lip to lip.  They are so incredibly gentle with super soft noses that it has to be experienced to be believed.

Smiles were plentiful and our alpacas certainly enjoyed all the extra treats they were given today.  Ice Man, one of our Juvenile Boys, and Mason, one of our Yearling Boys, have pens in the back of the barn so they seldom get treats from visitors.

Thank you Buckingham's Choice.  We look forward to you coming back to visit us again.  Maybe we will have a baby to show you at your next visit.