Jj is for Jottings 45.  Farewell, April.

We have to report that, sadly, April’s health deteriorated a little on Friday – my diagnosis being a respiratory infection.  On Saturday morning she refused all food – which was a first.  The vet came in the early afternoon and confirmed my diagnosis, and we all decided that it was best to euthanase her.  She died with her head in my arms.

It is always difficult to get the timing right – to make the decision too early might result in wondering if animal could have been cured after all, and to leave it too late leads  to unnecessary suffering for the animal.  I think we timed it pretty well this time.

After April had died, it took 24 hours to get a digger to come and bury her.  In that time I brought the alpacas back from the front paddock – two of them being April’s daughters – so they could all see and understand.  I didn’t actually see anybody’s first reactions, because they were all too busy greeting Manuel and Nina, and didn’t go straight over to April.  However, the digger arrived the next day and the hole was dug.  As the digger was making its way across the paddock towards April, all the alpacas suddenly bunched together and moved near April, standing watching as she was gently scooped up.  Instead of following the digger back to the hole, as I expected, they all nosed around where April had been, and then gradually dispersed back to grazing.  I think we witnessed an alpaca send-off.