As Ollie hit the three-month mark, Sara determined that he was not getting enough milk from Duchess (it is nothing to worry about, it just means he needs a little extra nutrition) so she began to supplement his diet with a bottle a couple times daily. Personality-wise, he is a good-natured, spunky little guy. Though he continues to be independent, he loves bottle time and (when she catches him) Ollie even allows Sara to plant kisses on his cheek!
Now that the general update is out of the way, I have two squeeful bits of news for you in this installment: I got to bottle-feed Ollie and, even more exciting, I officially purchased him! *commence flailing*
On December 29th, Logan (my husband) and I arrived at Foggy Bottom Alpacas and Mark (Sara’ father) was waiting for us. We signed the papers, I paid for Ollie, and then I received a folder containing health records, Ollie’s Alpaca Registry, Inc. certificate, and my copy of the papers. All of this means that, as Ollie’s official owner, though he will stay at Foggy Bottom Alpacas until he is weaned, I am now responsible for his “room and board” and any other expenses since he has reached the three-month mark.
After a bit of flailing and waiting for the bottles to heat up, it was time to feed Ollie! Mark informed me that he is a bit of a vigorous eater, so I had to hold the bottle tightly in my hand. Ollie was (im)patiently waiting for us in the pen when we got there, and after Mark got him started on the bottle, he let me take over. Here is a short video Logan took while I was feeding Ollie:
Mark was right that he is an enthusiastic eater, so I had to keep a tight hold on the bottle!
Ollie drinks from his bottle in the same position as if he were getting the milk from his mother.
You can see from this angle how Ollie is positioned just how he would be if he were getting the milk from his mother. I had to hold it at just the right angle and height.
Me feeding Ollie his bottle!
Ollie was hungry and ate nearly two whole bottles while I was there with him.
A close-up of Ollie drinking from his bottle.
I wondered how I would know when he was finished eating, but it was pretty obvious. Midway through his second bottle, Ollie stopped abruptly and became completely uninterested in the bottles.
Done with mealtime, he began to wander around doing whatever it is baby alpacas do when they are cozy and full, though I did nab him for a quick picture of us together to celebrate us being a family now.
As you can see, I am pretty happy about being Ollie’s official owner!
(I had that smile on my face all weekend!)
Up next, we’ll learn about Ollie’s parents and pedigree!
That is such a great pic of you and Ollie.
His little alpaca neck looks like it is made of rubber, so bendy and flexible. I can’t quite imagine eating anything in a position like that – guess I wouldn’t make a very good alpaca!
Thanks!
I don’t think I’ve stopped smiling since I bought him!
Yes, their necks can be very serpentine sometimes. There were a couple outtakes that we took where he truly looked bizarre at some angles!
Congratulations to you! How exciting to hear you’re making progress. Ollie is so adorable and looks so snuggly with your arm around his neck. I was wondering why he drank from his bottle with his neck bent like that until I read further. So fun to follow along with your journey!
Hi Terri! Thank you so much, it is really quite exciting and I especially love being able to share it with you all. It was awkward for me to feed him that way, but totally natural for him! He is a pretty snuggly little guy–when you can catch him.