A trekking company has seen a surge in demand for alpaca visits – from care homes.
Knightley Alpaca Trekking started out offering walk experiences to the general public, but in recent months has been swamped with enquiries by care homes to take the animals in to meet the residents.
Furry friends Teddy and Carlos have now become true stars who are helping to create unique memories for the people they visit.
“It is very rewarding to see the faces of residents and staff when they’re interacting with the alpacas,” said Ollie Bryan, one of the owners of the business.
“We walk around the care homes with them, even taking them in the lifts, and they’ll go into the bedrooms – the people who can’t get out of bed don’t miss out.
“We’ve spoken to people whose family members have been visited by the alpacas and, because of dementia, they don’t remember much but the alpacas have left a lasting impression on them.
“They bring a lot of smiles to a lot of people, even some who are on end-of-life care.”
The alpacas’ first care home visit was to Crispin Court, in Stafford, but they have been receiving requests from a much wider area and have visited over 25 places in recent months.
Care home visits now make up half of the company’s bookings.
Ollie and wife Clare decided to follow their dream of owning alpacas during the Covid lockdown period and launched the family business, close to Gnosall, near Stafford, in April 2021.
Whilst Ollie still works full-time as a plant hire manager, Clare gave up her factory job to concentrate on the business fully last year.
They now have 10 alpacas and still offer treks as well as visiting schools and attending events.
The next stop in their plans to reach a wider audience is getting involved in weddings and offering team building experiences.
The alpacas will attend their first wedding in May, where guests will be able have their photographs taken with them, as well as pet and feed them.
