Prue - The Mystery

Thank you, Jenny - I shall go in search for some of the horse product tomorrow!  The flies are still quite amazing here - despite the rain which is going from mild to moderate with alarming frequency.  I had problems once before with Barnaby Rudge getting fly bitten eyes but this year it has been worse for poor Storm and now for Lady Tulisa.  I had to resort to some orbenin in the eye for Storm as they were so raw on the eyelids and that did clear it up a bit.  Lady Tulisa's are not as bad but where she is still tiny and thin she does not move around as much.  I am now supplementing Tulisa with a bottle and, oddly, Lina seems to like this as she lies down next to me while I feed the baby!  If you knew Lina you would know this is really quite remarkable.  She is still dreadful with Carl and almost as bad with Sam!

We have had a busy weekend as I have been looking after the Shepherd's house and animals while he had an emergency trip to Cumbria (where the weather was better than it is here - in fact he hit a thunderstorm on the way back through Bristol earlier today).

But now for my real mystery - - - Prue!  Prue is supposedly pregnant.  She has spat off and she still does spit off.  She is VERY happy.  She has a largish tummy BUT she is now 381 days - so she can't be pregnant, particularly s there is no real udder.  I tried putting her in with Dude and she spat and kicked - normally she drops like a stone.  I tried her with Harry in case she preferred them black - she virtually jumped out of the pen!  Yet she just can't really be pregnant - she is a very little alpaca normally - here she is now.

Sam  held on too her last night whilst I poked around at her tummy and I am sure something pushed back!  Normally I wouldn't need someone to hold Prue whilst I fiddled around with her as she is very amenable.  But it must be all my imagination - but then again I was creeping around on my hands and knees yesterday, as you do, and (skip following picture if you are of a sensitive disposition) I am sure she is softening up at the back end - see the inner pink bit showing which it didn't a day or so ago.

Time will tell - but there is no mistake on the last mating date and, practically, it is not realistically that likely!
So here are a couple of cria pictures to end - first up is Trevor!  Somehow, Trevor always seems to require an exclamation mark!

Then Lady Tulisa - who really is as tiny as she appears and this is a rare moment without her coat.

Finally, Arctic Lad - must do the rest when the rain stops again!