WHEN it comes to alpacas, West Dorset is producing some fine specimens as two local breeders came away with Supreme Championships from the recent Royal Bath and West Show.

Alpha Alpacas based at Melplash won the prestigious show Huacaya Supreme Champion with two-year-old white female – Tinkerbell, which the judge Mr Tim Hey said would compete with the very best alpacas in the world.

Tinkerbell’s sister, Alpha Honesty, won the junior female championship at the show.

At the same show Carol Eyre of West Dorset Alpacas at Thorncombe won the Suri class championship with three-year-old Hernando.

Hernando then went on to win the Supreme Championship closely contended by his Suri female champion companion, Moonsbrooke Elite.

Hernando also went home with a sash for the best British-bred Suri.

The alpaca show at the Royal Bath and West always draws huge crowds and is run over the four days of the show. This latest success for Alpha is one of many in 2012 as the fleece from Alpha Lily won the Best of British award at the World Alpaca Conference having won its class against fleeces submitted by breeders in Australia, Canada the USA and UK. At the Devon County Show, Alpha won the white, beige and grey championships and one of their stud males – Peruvian Concepts Jack, was awarded the Reserve Show Champion.

Proud owner Di Davies has been breeding alpacas for 12 years and has developed the herd from an initial three females to the current herd of more than sixty – ranging in colour from white and fawn, to brown, grey and black.

“Building up a herd is a slow process as the alpaca, a native of South America, only produces one baby, or cria, per year after an 11-and-a half-month pregnancy,” she explained.

The alpaca is becoming increasingly popular in the UK with the British herd now in excess of 25,000 animals. Alpacas are bred for their very fine fibre which is sheared once per year and is used to produce knitwear and worsted cloth.

Alpacas are also used as guard animals to protect sheep, chickens and water fowl from unwanted visits from foxes and as eco friendly alternatives to a ride-on mower.