Chores and Cria Games

"You should not be working in this heat," non-farming friends tell me. They assume that the alpacas and eight acres of land take care of themselves. It is business as usual on Stormwind Farm. If anything, I work harder because the alpacas have to be hosed down every few hours to keep them cool. Water buckets have to be scrubbed and filled several times a day. 

I took advantage of the hot, dry weather to spray the fence lines with an herbicide. In general, we try hard to use organic practices and avoid harmful chemicals. I time the spraying so it needs to be done only once a year. Yesterday, I leveled the "community bathroom areas" in the pastures with new soil.

Less pleasant chores were the disposal of a dead chipmunk and a dead groundhog in the spacious dog yard—victims of our Whippet Diesel. As usual, David screamed and carried on about Diesel's misdeeds. Three little birds had fallen out of their nest in the boy barn. They seemed quite mature to me, so I left them to their own devices. Today, all three were still alive and lively.

The alpaca babies are lively as well, despite the heat. They have been named. Rosie's cria was named Caira by her new owner. I gave Caramel's daughter the name Aura Lea, and Breeze's girl will be known as Juanita. Caira and Aura Lea are very close to each other. At first, they did not welcome Juanita to join in their games, but they have been getting better about including her. The mothers take turns baby-sitting the little ones.