Alpacas make good bodyguards

Assuming your body is atop four legs and covered in curly wool.

Driving past a paddock full of sheep, I noticed one long-necked alpaca sitting amongst the herd. At first I thought the farmer must breed both animals for their fleece but there seemed to be loads of sheep with the lone alpaca.

My mum was also in the car and told me alpacas are often put in with sheep because they deter foxes from stealing away with a warm woolly meal. Why on earth would a fox be frightened by an alpaca? Surely to the predator they just look like dorky sheep? Apparently not...

I've learned that alpacas have a terrible, ear-bleedingly piercing scream that they let out when they sense a threat. This of course alerts the farmer of the danger as well as causing the hungry fox to decide the meal isn't worth the hearing loss. They have excellent eyesight over distance and will literally stomp some heads when needed. Whoa.