New, New, NEW!!

Just to make sure the level of crazy doesnt slip around here, today we've welcomed another new puppy into the household.  Today we collected Coco, Yoyo's sister!!  She will be with us for a few weeks before heading for her permanent home in Melbourne with Alan, Aleisha and Jakey Baby!!  She's a bit of a princess and bedtime tonight required 2 firm 2 finger taps and a gruff NO! to settle her.. much more effort than was required for Yoyo!!  Hopefully tomorrow will be easier!!  She and Yoyo have had an exhausting time this afternoon renewing their bonds and racing around the yard like lunatics!!  LOL!!  She is as cute as a button and will fit in here perfectly :)

We've also welcomed some new crias to the home paddock, a really tiny and darling little solid true black (STB) female, Elani for Nefertiti.  She is a real live wire and has no idea she's punching way above her weight!!  An STB female for Phoebe, Flora, who is the apple of her mother's eye, a dark brown boy, Fabian, for Chianti - a first cria for her and for father Mandrake.  A stunning little grey boy, Esiotrot, for Cushla (by Bracken) and they all are good running game friends for Daisy, who has been just dying for some friends to turn up!!

Azzura with Avocado baby, and a visiting Esiotrot.

Tiny little Elani who was only 5.13kg when born, but is a real live wire!!  Her mum Nefertiti is a smaller alpaca, but Elani is even smaller again, despite her dad, Ez, being one of our biggest stud males.  She is a delight :)

Dark brown boy, Fabian, a very pretty cria, bit of a challenge for first time mum Chianti, but she's figured it out now and thankfully he is a robust and foreward little cria.

Phoebe is nearly 4 and she's been desperate to be a mum, and finally its happened in the best possible way, little Flora is a stunning little STB sweetheart and Phoebe is as happy as can be!!

Cushla is battling a stomach ulcer, so we are very glad she's managed to carry this baby to term.  She has produced a gorgeous little medium grey boy, Esiotrot.  Cushla's treatment continues and she is doing well.

A visit to Lavender Park

Yesterday I visited my friend Ruth King of Lavender Park Alpacas.  Had a lovely time meeting and cuddling the crias and meeting the mums.  This is the lovely Jaelea:

And this is Ruth with the delightful Zena, who not only has an excellent fleece, but also a gorgeous temperament.  Could have taken her home, no worries, but apparently that's true of everyone who has met her.... but she's NFS!

Babies, Oliver left (first cria for our boy LP Ezariah) and the very promising Zanthe right.

Oliver with milky moustache:

I was very pleased this one already had a halter fitted, because catch and hold could have been tricky!

Ruth's garden was looking wonderful, flowers and lushness everywhere :)  The aquilegas were stunning, masses of blooms:

And the dahlias flashy:

But the roses were the show stoppers, just fantastic, from big blousey doubles to the old fashioned singles:

Rookie Mistake

As we got close to shearing day I realised that I hadn't got around to putting ear tags in my little black girls, but thought I'd leave it till after shearing in case they got knocked and thus hurt, while they were on the table.  But now.... I have 4 little black weanlings who all look quite similar.  I am sure about Scarlett and Nefertiti, but I will have to line Chianti and Jumanji up against each other and see if I can figure out which is which!!

This is definitely Scarlett (Cushla x Alba):

And this is definitely Nefertiti (Black Narcissus x Alba):

But which of these is Chianti (Colette x Callisto) and which is Jumanji (Joeley x Alba)?  Any guesses Ruth King?  I'm thinking the top one is Chianti and the bottom one Jumanji??

At last....

Finally, at day 365, Myriah gave birth yesterday afternoon (!!) to a lovely big black male cria.  Mated to white last time, Myriah produced a white (female) cria, to black this time, a black (male) cria - that level of colour predictability is only to be applauded!!  She was not very impressed with her first cria and even today has no time for her, but she seems to be besotted with this little guy, don't know if the difference is the colour, or the sex, or just time!!  Either way he's doing very well thus far :) We've named him Monty.

Only Phoebe left to go, she's been walking around with her tail held out from her body - a sure sign, they say, that she'll 'go' tomorrow - for about a fortnight now!!

Pete comes running in the evening when I call him for his bottle, he is due to be weaned at the weekend... don't think he'll be pleased about that, but at 4 months of age, its time.  He and Lambchop can commiserate together while Sherrie has some alone time... must get a couple more ewes!!

Alpaca Boys, Scarlett Rose, Goulburn Auction and Orphaned Lambs

At present it is really hard to get any work at all done because I am raising 2 orphaned lambs, Pete and Dud.  Pete is doing well and loves his food, guzzles the bottle down with gusto, but Dud managed to steal a few half feeds from a ewe and having tasted real milk, he's not keen on my powdered replacement!!  He's still deciding whether to hang in there and live or give up and die.  I have been force feeding him and he's getting better, keep your fingers crossed for him.

Skinny is not looking too flash at the moment, his dilated pupils are a give-away that an asthma attack is imminent!

The Goulburn Poultry Auction was on again on Sunday, a speccy peacock who needed 3 cages because of his full train, a couple of nice polish hens and a few other good lookers, but managed to keep my hands in my pockets.

Went looking at alpaca boys, went with the intention of 'liking' Dusty a lovely rose grey male... but foolishly also looked at Sampson, a black with an excellent fleece... decided on Sampson!!

Dusty:

Dusty's fleece, hip, mid side and shoulder:

Jim with Sampson:

And his fleece shots, again hip, mid side and shoulder:

Also met Romeo who is a lovely boy:

Got to meet Porsche and her son Ferrari, and also catch up with Bentley :)  Bentley and Ferrari are good buds :)

The lovely Porsche:

Lunch with Freya and Shayne at the Astor in Goulburn was fun, and delicious, and then on to Canberra to visit Scarlett Rose... she had just woken up when these photos were taken, a bit mean, but time was a-tickin'.