Vet reflects on ‘heartbreaking’ alpaca shooting

A vet has described her “surreal and heartbreaking” experience of treating a pair of alpacas at the scene of a shooting.

The clinician’s comments come after the two animals, Phoebe and her daughter Frankie, returned home to their farm in East Hatley, Cambridgeshire, following weeks of treatment at the University of Cambridge’s Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital (QVSH).

Police are still investigating the March incident, in which four other alpacas were killed after being shot in the head with a rifle and a lamb also had to be euthanised after being mauled by a dog.

QVSH on-call farm vet, Elly Po, provided emergency treatment to Phoebe, as the female alpaca had suffered a gunshot wound to her mouth.

Crime scene

She said it was “part emergency care, part crime scene,” adding: “It was one of the most surreal and heartbreaking experiences I’ve had. Knowing the animals and their owner personally made it even harder, but when we realised Phoebe and Frankie had survived, we knew we had to give them the best chance.”

Dr Po assisted the police in their investigation after providing Phoebe with treatment; Frankie was said to be physically unharmed, but traumatised.

She said: “It felt like I’d stepped into a CSI episode. The mixture of emotions was overwhelming: adrenaline, sadness, anger, and disbelief.”

Team effort

The pair were taken to the veterinary hospital so Phoebe could receive surgical treatment and wound management, with Frankie serving as emotional support.

They were able to return to the farm after a hospital-wide effort involving members of the soft tissue surgery, anaesthesia, imaging and farm animal teams, assisted and observed by vet students.

Dr Po added: “The level of collaboration across the hospital was exceptional; Phoebe’s recovery is a testament to the skill, compassion, and dedication of our entire team.”

The alpacas’ owner, Dawn French, raised almost £9,000 via a GoFundMe to help with the vet care costs.