The Animals

On the farm we have some exciting and entertaining personalities, who delight us every day.

With sheep losses on the increase, due to foxes, we decided to experiment with 3 llamas (Toby, Tripoli, Harrison) and 3 alpacas (Snow, Strop, Sooty) as sheep guards, especially during lambing. So far we haven't been disappointed. Lamb survival soared to almost 100%, and drought aside, results would almost be perfect. They are wonderful cheeky animals, plenty of curiosity and attitude, and a very soft spot for a bucket of lucerne chaff. Don't ever leave a gate open, as they seem to smell one from miles away, and your roses will be severely pruned.

We maintain a small recovery paddock near the homestead for stock that is sick or injured, with a chance of recovery. The picture shows some recent residents, getting the royal treatment.

Grumpy became a pet (and we use the term loosely) after he was soundly beaten up by two of his collegues over ewe territory. We brought him back to the recovery paddock, where he is now entrenched. He has no teeth, but plenty of attitude, and will happily knock you over if his daily feeds are late arriving. We still love him, and we are looking for a few understanding girlfriends, who might put up with him.

Click on any of the images to enlarge