Earl and Clyde are two of our white male huacaya alpacas, born in the UK in Devon at a place called Meadow Farm. Clyde was born in September 2013 and Earl joined him a year later in August 2014. From the moment Earl and Clyde arrived at the farm in September 2015 they have been inseparable; sharing meals, running around the field together and occasionally having a lovers’ tiff.
Every day they (and our other boys) are fed a mixture of vitamins and minerals called ‘Camelibre’ to help keep them healthy. They also have access to as much hay as they can eat and a large barn for when the weather turns. Every couple of months they have a pamper session where they have the hair around their eyes trimmed so they can see clearly, and a toenail trim so they can be comfortable when walking. In the winter we additionally feed them vitamin paste, which includes a boost of vitamins A, D, E, B12 and K. As we don’t have much sunlight in the UK during the winter months these vitamins help to keep their bones strong and stop them getting a condition called rickets, which causes brittle bones.
Both Earl and Clyde have strong, contrasting personalities. Earl really loves cuddles and kisses whereas Clyde would rather be admired from a distance! Clyde’s favourite place is in the hay room where he can help himself to whatever he pleases; he could spend hours systematically picking and choosing hay from various bales. On the same theme, Earl’s favourite place is in the feed room where he’s figured out how to tip the lid off the feed bin and help himself while my back is turned. Despite him being naughty, I can’t help but laugh, and a cuddle and a behind the ear scratch will generally follow this.
If you ever take Clyde on an alpaca walk without Earl they both get stressed and upset and make sweet humming noises to each other, calling out for the other one to return. For this reason we will keep Earl and Clyde together for life. This is just one way we ensure each alpaca is happy, by learning about each one’s personality – their likes and dislikes, quirks and imperfections.
To learn more about the other alpacas in our small herd visit our “Meet Our Alpacas” page.
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