Introducing the Broome Farm Alpacas
(June 2003)
Standing
in the middle of a north Herefordshire field in a biting cold wind surrounded by
‘humming sheep’ can’t have been the most exiting day out that Mike Johnson
has ever been invited to, but there we were early in February on an
‘Introduction to Alpacas’ day. Having
fallen in love with these beautiful animals at the Royal Show last year and then
searched the internet for further information I came across the introduction day
organised by Hilary Shenton of Zarza Alpacas near Tenbury Wells in association
with Joy Whitehead of Bozedown Alpacas near Reading.
Joy has been breeding alpacas since 1989 when most of the stock available
in Britain came from zoos and has subsequently imported higher quality breeding
animals from Peru. Knowing that
Mike had recently given up keeping sheep, therefore having some spare grazing
pasture and anxious to convince him of the viability of keeping a few alpacas at
Broome Farm, we set off for what turned out to be a very informative and
enjoyable day – apart from a freezing wind and snow showers!
Alpacas
are part of the camelid family and are related to the other camelids of South
America – the guanaco, the llama and the vicuna.
They are reared primarily for their high quality fleece and have been
highly prized in the Andes of Peru, Chile and Bolivia for thousands of years. Due
to the demand for the fibre when the animals are shorn each year there is now a
thriving alpaca industry in America, Australia and Britain as well as South
America.
And
so it was that on 24th February (from left to right) Marnie, Lucifer,
Bellini and Delia arrived in Peterstow.
Marnie
and Delia are females who were both already expecting babies when they arrived.
Lucifer and Bellini are gelded males for companions as alpacas are herd
animals and prefer the company of others.
It has been a steep learning curve getting to grips with the basics of alpaca care such as vaccinations, worming and foot trimming as well as feeding but great excitement was to follow on 2nd May when a week earlier than expected Marnie gave birth to a beautiful baby boy.
Perry is now over a month old and
weighs about 30 lbs. He can often
be seen galloping at speed around the pasture stretching his legs and jumping at
Lucifer and Bellini asking them to play.
He
should soon have a companion as Delia is due to give birth in July.
In
the meantime we are expecting a specialist alpaca shearer to call early in June
after which we will have our first fleeces available for processing.
It
has been wonderful watching them settle in to their new home and they are
proving quite an attraction for the guests at the Broome.
I would especially like to thank Mike for all his assistance with the
practical and healthcare aspects of caring for the animals and Hilary who
watches over them, feeds them their breakfast each morning and spoils them with
carrots and apples!
Everyone
is welcome to visit the alpacas – Broome Farm is open every day for cream teas
as well as tastings and sales of the cider and perry made on the farm.
The dining room is open to non residents for evening meals for which
booking is essential.
Cindy
Smith