A baby alpaca at a Westcountry attraction has undergone complex emergency surgery to save her eye.
Volunteers at Totnes Rare Breeds Farm, in South Devon, discovered that the three-week-old animal was injured a little over a week ago.
Young alpacas' eyes are vulnerable because they are large and protrude from the skull, and because its takes weeks for them to fully develop their blink reflex.
The incident, in which the youngster ruptured her cornea on a piece of straw, happened while she was feeding.
She was rushed to the vet for surgery, with the complex operation being carried out at Abbotskerswell Veterinary Centre by specialist surgeon Jim Carter.
Alpacas are notoriously difficult animals to sedate and a specialist anaesthetist also had to be drafted in from Taunton to carry out the procedure. The operation, which took several hours, was a success.
Staff are now closely monitoring the baby – named Amaretti – to ensure her eye is clean and protected while she is back at the farm recovering with her parents.
She has also now been issued with an Optivizor – a specially designed head guard to protect her eye as she recovers, while still allowing her to feed from her mother.
"It has been very worrying but she seems to be bouncing back now," Barrie Tolley, founder of the not-for-profit farm, said yesterday.
"She had a check-up on Friday and the vet seemed quite happy with how it is going. They did an absolutely incredible job.
"She has another check-up this Friday and, all being well, she'll have the stitches out a week after that.
"There was never any question that we would have the operation done. We are here for the animals and that's what keeps the business going."
People can keep up to date with Amaretti's progress at www.totnesrarebreeds.co.uk and also on its Facebook and Twitter pages.
