The Vet Shed

The Vet Shed An experienced large animal vet and farmer, now breeding high quality black huacaya alpacas in South Cheshire.

We were going to go out for the afternoon! Officially a week early at 336 days gestation but this is not unusual for alp...
23/05/2026

We were going to go out for the afternoon! Officially a week early at 336 days gestation but this is not unusual for alpacas. Certainly nothing wrong with this 8.80Kg little girl. Dark brown or bay black? Colour yet to be determined.
A great start to our birthing season.

Finally spring has arrived. These youngsters coming in this morning for another day training with Harper and Keele Vet S...
21/04/2026

Finally spring has arrived. These youngsters coming in this morning for another day training with Harper and Keele Vet Students.

The alpacas will all be sheared on Sunday and then will look very different. All alpacas have had their fleeces sent away for analysis so that the fleeces will be packed and graded accordingly as part of The Black Alpaca Fibre Project.

Just received 90 rolls of our alpaca fibre back from the mill.Alpaca fibre is warmer than wool and is hypoallergenic.As ...
03/02/2026

Just received 90 rolls of our alpaca fibre back from the mill.
Alpaca fibre is warmer than wool and is hypoallergenic.
As it is much finer than wool, it has a much lower itch factor too so is nicer to wear next to your skin.
Due to the very low level of lanolin found in alpaca fibre compared with wool, the fleece washing early in the production process uses a lot less water and detergent so is a more economical friendly product.

There are around 22 registered natural colours so luxury garments can be produced without the need for using unnatural dyes too.

So what are we going to produce with this fibre? We will show some of the garments we are having made on here at later point.

A special thanks to Clivewood Mill for their help and expertise.

What a beautiful day despite being -5C. The alpacas don’t mind the cold and at least they are not churning up the paddoc...
05/01/2026

What a beautiful day despite being -5C. The alpacas don’t mind the cold and at least they are not churning up the paddocks. We need to supplement with extra feed but are aware that too much concentrate feed is unnatural to the alpaca digestive system so free access to good quality hay is a must.
As the alpacas are eating very little grass and mostly dry feed, ensuring a supply of fresh water is really important. Our water troughs are freezing over within an hour of removing the surface ice so I am out several times a day.
❄️❄️❄️

Today we have weaned our baby alpacas away from their mums.Although it gives the now pregnant mums a chance to rest, it ...
11/11/2025

Today we have weaned our baby alpacas away from their mums.
Although it gives the now pregnant mums a chance to rest, it actually allows this years babies a chance to develop their own digestive systems, grazing properly rather than depending on falling levels of milk. Weaning actually allows us to manage the paddocks and rotate smaller groups in the wet winter months too.

Our babies are all between 4.5 and 5.5 months old and weigh between 30kg and 37kg. Weighing at weaning is important as it allows us to detect any problems early. We have dosed the babies with Vit B12 this morning to help bug development in the stomachs and we will monitor closely for Coccidial parasites which can flare up in youngsters when stressed.

Photographing black alpacas is a nightmare unless you like silhouettes.Two second places at the Royal Three Counties Fle...
10/09/2025

Photographing black alpacas is a nightmare unless you like silhouettes.
Two second places at the Royal Three Counties Fleece Show.
Top left is Butterley Irresistible Ivy, 12-24 month category and bottom left is Butterley Innocent In Black 6-12 month category.
Both of these girls are out of our own stud, the imported Estates Satin Cloud.
The reason they have coloured collars is that Satin’s offspring are so consistent looking that we are now struggling to tell them all apart.🫣

Dipping our toe into the world of alpaca showing with the Royal Three Counties Fleece Show.Butterley Ibiza Sunset won fi...
10/09/2025

Dipping our toe into the world of alpaca showing with the Royal Three Counties Fleece Show.
Butterley Ibiza Sunset won first place Fawn fleece in the 6 month to 12 month class and then reserve fawn champion overall up against some notable fawn breeders.

She is sired by Fowberry Constantine who is well known for producing champions, but the big thing for us is that Ibiza has been bred out of one of our True Black females, Butterley Noir D’Ebene. Competing against fawns out of White or Light females is always going to be a challenge.
Ibiza is with her Dam in the top pic.

Cria shearing today. Shearing this year’s babies allows them to grow a beautiful clean fleece ready for their first prop...
22/07/2025

Cria shearing today. Shearing this year’s babies allows them to grow a beautiful clean fleece ready for their first proper annual clip next April.
If left alone, their cria fleece would act like velcro and attract hay and other vegetable matter over the winter. All the babies this year are sired by Satin Cloud and on first impression, we should have some beautiful fleeces next spring.

Our final Cria of the year, five minutes after the delivery. Yet another girl!
27/06/2025

Our final Cria of the year, five minutes after the delivery. Yet another girl!

27/06/2025

Once the front leg locked at the elbow was pulled forward, mum was left to deliver on her own.

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5 Butterley Barns, Heywood Lane
Audlem
CW3OEX

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