Life has thrown a few curves in recent months. Sweet Mommacita died after miscarrying in the worst of the heat this summer. Fans, shelter, wet towels under her belly, and tlc just could not save Bina’s mom. One evening while checking on her, we found the fetus. Like Cocoa who carried small, we had no idea Momma was pregnant until it was too late. Mommacita passed soon after.
The death of another alpaca tore me to the core – how could I have taken on this responsibility of managing a herd and failed so miserably? Through my grief, I realized that yes, my naivety is partly to blame but the environment and care we provide our critters can only go so far. We purchased our herd without a history. We don’t know their ages. We did not know if they carried illnesses or if they had been vaccinated.
We believe Mommacita was older. Bina is barely a year old so Momma must have been impregnated soon after her birth last year. Momma’s fiber is coarse and straight while the hair of Moose, for example, is crimped and softer. The causes of her death will never be definitive. All I can do is move forward, keep learning and do the best I can with the rest of the herd.
As I mentioned in a previous post, my mother is now living with us. She has some health issues as well and spent a couple of days in the hospital. Now on hospice care, mom is doing well and getting out of the house more. Always a talented baker, she and her caregiver, Rose, baked an apple pie yesterday that Jim Bob exclaimed was one of the best pies he’s ever eaten.
On the joys of life, there is sweet Zeus who continues to grow and thrive. He is now eating hay like a champ and leaping in the air when I carry out their hay. He is still too young to bite into the pellets but curiously sniffs in his mamma’s feed buck before nursing. He is beautiful, fat, loving yet confidently independent.
Surviving the challenges life has thrown lately has not been easy. But I strive to practice a few minutes of mindful meditation daily, sneak off to the gym whenever possible, and express gratitude for the loving patient husband I am fortunate to have found in Nulato, Alaska.
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