Field shelter changing again.

It was time to change over the boys' shelter this week.  They know when this is going to happen because the human brings his barrow to carry things so they hang around to get in.

Fyta waits patiently at the door until the earth floor has a covering - then he and the others will go in and have a good roll around.

After rolling around Fergus decides he will stay inside whilst Faro and Fyta get on with some grazing.

Fergus is still limping around but he is getting about OK, just a lot slower than he normally would.

We had a lovely visit on Friday from neighbours Amanda and daughter Evie.  The boys knew that carrots would be on offer and Fyta showed his bad manners by getting his head into the bowl - much to Evie's delight! Nice to see you, ladies.

 Whilst the humans did all the chatting, the boys decided that that was boring and lay down in the warm sunshine nearby. Fyta in front, Faro behind and a horizontal Fergus close by!

And finally........ there are bunches of Nerines out in bloom around the garden, their bright pink flowers contrasting with the surrounding greenery.

Summer returned - for 2 days!

Faro (left) and Fyta in the sand pit which has been in full use this week as we had a couple of days of scorching sunshine. Faro's nose shows he's been rolling in the sand!

And here he is in close-up, his nose and whiskers covered in sand as were his legs and under-carriage.

The water trays were also in full use this week.  Fyta is getting splashed here with Fergus waiting for his turn.  He is still holding up his leg when he stands and is not taking his full weight on his fore-leg yet.

Even the Grumpy Gardener was called in to hoze the undercarriages which the boys all love when the heat gets too much.

After the hozing-down comes a lie-down in the sandpit once more.  Fergus enjoying the sunshine and sand!

A long range shot of all the boys in the sand pit at once.  When we had 4 boys they couldn't quite all fit in comfortably, but these 3 boys can.

And finally.....................the sunflowers have burst into flower this week with the strong sunshine.  Plenty of butterflies around the garden and this flower has attracted lots of insects including the wasp at the bottom.

Autumn has arrived.

Fergus - still limping around the paddocks after his accident 7 weeks ago, but getting on OK and grazing well.

If there is one thing that Fergus hates it's if another alpaca comes close to him when he's eating his carrots!  This is the result - Fergus indicating to Fyta to move away or he will spit!

All three boys are normally quite happy grazing alongside each other however.  Fyta is in the background and Faro is in the middle.

We've had gales for most of this week and horizontal rain yesterday, but sometimes the sun appears and it gets hot for the boys.

This looks like the middle of the night but in fact it's only 8.00pm, Fergus photographed as the boys' paddock is being closed up for the night.

Another windy day as indicated by the raspberry bushes blowing about and with Faro keeping an eye on the human taking the photos!

This is the last large flower on any of the Buddleia bushes around our garden and the Peacock butterfly is making good use of it!  The Swallows and House Martins have all flown south now - hope to see them again next Spring.

And finally...........success with his runner beans for the Grumpy Gardener.  He hasn't been as lucky with his brassicas - the caterpillars have won this year!

Late summer sunshine.

The 'dynamic duo' - Fyta (left) and Faro on the hunt for carrots or tit-bits from the human.

A long way behind is Fergus who can be seen in the background, still limping badly but getting around. Faro is alert - tail and ears up!

Fergus makes it to the carrots and soon finishes them off.  The boys have been on their Verm-X granules with their feed this week, the last doze was today so they will be pleased not to have any more until next month!

We've had a couple of nice days this week (for a change!) so whilst the humans are busy in the garden and cutting grass, the boys take it easy in the sunshine.

Fergus again - another day and another handful of carrot slices!

Cheeky boy - Fyta, always wanting to get his nose into the camera lens and pose for a photo!

And finally.........A view down on the boys in their paddocks from a different angle.  Faro is easily seen walking up hill, Fyta is behind a small pine in the middle and Fergus is at the bottom left, in front of the Gunnera plant.

A wet start to the day.

Early morning in the field shelter after pouring rain overnight.  The boys stay in the shelter if it is heavy rain so they are nice and dry!  Fyta (left) Faro and Fergus wait for the human to fill up their hay buckets again for breakfast.

A picture taken from inside the shelter with rain still falling outside.  The boys will finish their hay before venturing out to get wet! We've had heavy downpours during this week.

Fyta (front) and Faro - the 'dynamic duo', always up to a bit of mischief and chasing each other around the paddocks.  They have different natures from Fergus who is much less energetic although all three boys are the same age.

A familiar pose from Faro who, if he is disturbed during his hay munching, will stand like this with a mouthful of hay!

Fergus - gradually getting more mobile after his leg injury.  He still limps badly but gets around all the paddocks now, following the other two boys and grazing well.  He's a lovely boy.

A feature of the weather this week has been the gales and when this happens the boys tend to lie down in a hollow in the paddock below our house. Alpaca owners will be familiar with the 'burnt' grass area around the poo piles, seen here at top right.

And finally..........part of the Grumpy Gardener's haul of onions this summer which is better than he expected.  They are laid out in the garage to dry before being hung from the rafters over winter.  The varieties are 'Red Baron' (front) and 'Sturon'.