The fair weather has left us and we are in for a few days of what is vaguely described as ‘unsettled’ – a phrase that means rain is in there somewhere. We aren’t due the sleet that descended back on Bodmin Moor (we aren’t gloating) but we are due and indeed today have already had, a fair amount of rain.
As the photos show, the alpacas are not at all phased by this: they stay out in all sorts and even pose for the camera - with some shots being decidedly more ‘posed’ that others!!! By the time we took these, the goats were safely ensconced back in the barn, leaving the double field shelter nice and free for the alpacas to use, should they so choose - which they did not!! They may not have the lanolin of the sheep but their coats are so thick that even in very heavy rain the water does not always soak through. We were actually warned once that even if they appear to us to be soaking wet, to be wary of putting them in a barn to dry out as they may actually start to overheat!!! If they want shelter, they will find it. In common with a lot of animals, it is the combination of wind AND rain that often sends them seeking somewhere to escape.
We shall also of course be keeping an eye on the ‘mud’!!! The area outside the bottom 3-acre field shelter is rather squelchy already, but then that’s where the cows are!!!