What is all this about...please you brought it take it with you

To those thoughtful people who use wee plastic bags to pick up your dog poo we appreciate you efforts to keep our 3/4 miles of footpaths clean. 

To those of you who then proceed to hang the bags in the hedges and fences in the absolute belief that their is somewhere on TOFT a 'poo fairy' who comes along in the night and spirits these packages away- I have to inform you , at risk of destroying your innocence forever. There is no such fairy and in my busy life I could do without having to dispose of your little presents. You brought these items with you, you used them, please take them away with you. The whole point of performing this worthwhile function is that they go back on your own bin, not in mine and certainly don't hang like urban Christmas decorations all over the countryside. 

Much love and thanks- the TOFT 'Poo Fairy' who wants to be made redundant ASAP by your change of habit. xxx

Sad days and happy days

Yesterday was a bit if a sad day at TOFT unfortunately, when one of our females aborted her Cria at 5 months. It's the first time ever we have witnessed one of the girls losing her Cria during the winter. We do naturally lose a couple of pregnancies overwinter sometimes early, rarely late. February time is always the hardest for the herd. We rarely find the pheotus but with around 60 pregnant females per annum it is inevitable that with the joys of livestock ownership come the random invasion of the occasional sadness. 'Twas ever thus. The rest of the herd are solid as a rock and with a bit of luck the weather will turn soon and the happy days of spring will be among us.

Incredible what you find on an alpaca hurdle on a cold and frosty morning

Work this one out. We had a good frost this morning at TOFT but I've never seen anything like this in all my days. Frost is truly a creative wonder.

TOFT Xmas Open day was a blast !!!!

Talk about lucky... After weeks and weeks of rain and damp the TOFT Xmas Open Day was blessed with dry weather. It threatened a few times but it never materialised and by 2.30 even the sun put in a guest appearance and warmed the cockles for an hour or so. Perfick!

The Tofties excelled themselves one and all. Kerry's pack of yarn hounds buzzed about like Santa's Elves on speed. Shirley and Caroline walked and talked their way around the puddles with the crowds. Uncle Keith combined his veteran car park duties with a stint as the man in red. Scott excelled as the TOFT happy Elf. Linda Freya and I kept a tight schedule moving with great aplomb on the alpaca walks. Tom, Adam Doug and Jules -the TOFT catering department jollied one and all into the sausage rolls and the atmosphere was... Very very Christmassy indeed. 

This annual Xmas fest seems firmly embedded in the calendar at TOFT. My wonderful mother in law and her daughter Sandra threw themselves headlong into Ding Dong Merrily the Bong. Auntie Lorna charmed one and all as the meet & greet lady. My Mum and Dad joined in the festivities toe ensure the octogenarians  were well represented and a great time was had by all. We had a great day on the ranch and judging by the reactions of our guests on Twitter, Facebook & Trip Advisor it would seem they did to - roll on 2016

A huge congratulations to Kerry and her ever expanding team of helpers and thanks to all those who came along to enjoy the day. Here's a few shots to cheer you up post Chrissy.

We hope you had a fabulous Christmas and wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year ! 

And finally in with the new....

At last I get the chance to spit and dish out a little shed envy. Our new shed is finished and I have been so busy trying to get it up and running in the lead up to Christmas that I haven't had tiime time to gloat. Not that I can really do it now as we still have a mass if internal work to do to get it all moving. 

We'd hadn't even got the LX in when Kerry and the TOFT yarn elves started to get busy moving the stock into the new packing areas. Christmas being the busiest of times for the TOFT Studio we have all been running around like Santas little helpers and it's hard to find time to keep everyone up to date. Anyway here's a few shots just to turn you a little green. Unless of course you've already got a great shed, in which case empathise with the workload. Internal shots to follow, when eventually we get tidied up in the New Year.

 

Alpaca at the NEC

Spent the morning at the NEC helping Harriett and Safi from the Toft Alpaca Shop get their stand into the building. The girls from the Toft Studio are there for the next four days having a crafty time with the Toft knitting yarns. The NEC was heaving with people scurrying around all over the place with boxes, bales and trolleys loaded with materials all needing sorting in some semblance of order to start trading in the morning ... I even spotted Kaffe Fassett mooching around investigating materials. Busy Busy Busy  Have a good show ladies!

Give us an and mate....

Found this pet boy stuck in the fence between fields yesterday evening. It always amazes me how alpacas when stuck, don't seem to struggle but sit or stand there calmly for ages confident that someone will come along and bale them out. I did just that and this boy soon went off wandering looking for his chomp.  A thankyou? I think not- that would have been truly amazing.

Alpaca chat

It's not all hard work when showing alpacas, there's always time for leaning over the fence and catching up on the goss!
Here's Shirley and friends talking, progeny, matings and alpaca sales at the Heart of England Alpaca Fiesta.
With the birthing season rapidly approaching there is a lot of alpaca chat in the air. There are wee huddles of alpaca owners leaning over fences all over the country getting excited about their imminent births and pondering their mating selections for 2014.

Moving alpacas

Today we a small herd of alpacas to some excited new owners. Yesterday we collected the herd together and brought them over to the house ready for transport and delivery today. And what a very fine herd of alpacas they make.
As you can see Linda walked three of them them from their small paddock, stopped off to gather another last minute addition to the herd and then deposited them all in the overnight paddock.
All in less than half an hour and all done on halter. Considering that these pregnant ladies have not been on the halter since they were juniors it is remarkable how well the walked. No fuss no bother ' oh we are going for a walk are we? I remember this' .
The time spent training at junior levels pays all sorts of dividends later in life as like all alpacas they never forget!

A fine group of female alpacas ready for their new home.

Before we send off alpacas we have sold to their new home we put the selected alpacas together in their new family group for a couple of weeks so they bond together and we can check that they get on.
These three lovely coloured alpaca females are destined to depart next week and a very beautiful good natured trio they have become in the last week or so. All three alpacas are pregnant so by the end of the season this wee herd will have doubled. That's the way with livestock.

Alpaca herding

More photos of the junior alpacas on the move at Toft Alpacas.

Fashionable alpaca

Busy time this week ferrying the new Toft Alpaca collection into a promotional event in Regent Street. Kerry came along as creator and designer to set up the Toft Alpaca display and of course young Edward needed to be there to supervise. Meanwhile yours truly, the faithful family retainer, was lugging the stuff up two flights into the room. The things we do...

Alpaca halter training

Finally the wind dropped. The sun shone and it the warm spell we were granted we got to grips with the Toft Alpaca Junior Show Team. We had the help of our youngest daughter Laura who is up on the Manor for the weekend with her boyfriend Miko who is playing photographer whilst Shirley Lol and I worked with the alpacas.

A wee hint of Spring

Tucked away in a sheltered spot in our garden a burst of colour made its presence felt this week despite that cold east wind. The first Daffodils burst open and we cut a few to brighten up the Toft Alpaca Studio to at least give us hope that Spring is on its way.
Not that the alpacas mind this dry cold spell. They positively thrive on this ever present wind as long as that have enough to eat. Their fleeces seem to ping out and shout at you in this cold weather and when you open them up the brightness is truly startling!
But we humans have had enough of winter now. We need a little bit of warmth in the air to encourage all those people wanting alpacas and stud services to knock on our door and see the alpacas whilst they are still in fleece. I can't believe we'll be shearing in six weeks and winter hasn't let go its grip yet. Hey ho!

Toft Alpaca Open Day

A few more pics from a memorable Toft Alpaca Event

Alpaca fencing

Busy two days fencing the display paddocks easy for the Toft Alpacas open day today.
It always amazes me that an animal that could clear the four foot stock fencing by a foot and a half is kept in place by a three foot stock fence and two strands of plain wire.
It is truly remarkable the way alpacas see a straight line as a solid object and never jump or challenge the fences however simple they may be.
These fences I'm doing are far from that. I'm creating three display paddocks to enable the toft alpaca visitors to get close to the alpacas for photo's and fun. I've had five gates and 200 metres of stock fencing to put in by hand!
As you can see Archie the llama and his gang are supervising the job!

Ooh luvverly...Happy Easter.

It's a brutal old place the countryside. Some passing bird left me this present on my gate this morning. It's a small piece of a rabbits backbone I think. Probably from young Easter bunny despatched by a passing weasel. Then picked over by any passing predator. The whole world is busy eating each other if you look closely. At least my alpacas only eat grass.

Alpaca fleece sorting

Well there you go another day another dollar.
Harriet and I spent all day yesterday in a cold shed sorting through alpaca fleece for the Toft Alpaca Shop. We buy in tons of fleece a year from alpaca breeders all over the UK which we sort and spin into yarns to supply the shop. We sell many different grades of yarn in a multitude of colours and it's all made in the UK.
The beginning of this process begins on days like yesterday when the fleeces have to be sorted and graded into the batches for the mill. It's a mucky old job and you certainly feel as if you've done a days work at the end of it. Huge gratitude to the man/woman who invented the power shower!
This is the view from the shed and as you can see the alpacas are outside enjoying the sun. Somedays it can feel like they have the best deal... but there again the sleeping outside bit with only a woolly jumper to keep off the frost would definitely not suit. I think I'll stick with the shed!

Time to microchip the juniors

Thirty Toft Alpaca cria now have electronic ID's since Shirley Linda and Linda's daughter Gemma spent this afternoon popping microchips into the juniors. We pop the microchip in behind their left ears with a sizeable applicator. Then the chip sits in a wee pocket below the skin. If we were to put it in anywhere else they have a tendency to migrate and become a devil to find.
At least now the show team will have the necessary to get into the ring at the Heart of England Alpaca Fiesta on April 27th & 28th.

Welcome to a familiar story in a new home

Glad you've arrived with me at this new location. I shall use my best endeavours to amuse with my distinctive alpaca lifestyle .