When Steve Mackenzie and Laura Drake bought three alpacas as a hobby, they had no idea that five years later they would have around 60 animals and be running popular walks with alpacas and llamas in the grounds of their home at Bardsea on the Furness peninsula in Cumbria. They now have one of the largest herds in the county and Steve says: ‘When we first got them, I started to put some photographs on Instagram for friends; it grew from there and we have now been named as the number one activity in the area on Tripadvisor.’ A visit to Bardsea Alpacas and Llamas begins with a warm welcome and a meet and greet session presented by Steve, as Lancashire Life discovered .
He gives visitors a relaxed and humorous introduction to some of the animals and explains how to handle and stroke them. The animals all have their own unique personality and are carefully matched with the people who walk with them who are each given a bag of treats and shown how to feed them. Laura and student Imogen Sutcliffe, who is training to be a vet and has taken a student placement at the attraction, harness the animals with head collars and leads and bring them into the paddock.
Seven-year-old Perry. (Image: Emily Rothery) The animals are males of all sizes and colours, from Cosmos a large Appaloosa llama who has an unusual spotted coat, to little alpaca Arcade. The animals are quite at ease with people and like to be stroked on their necks but on their own terms.
Walking with alpacas and llamas gives.
