A West Lothian mum was nearly brought to tears after the inclusive and special experience her family had on a day out at the Alpaca Training Centre in Stirlingshire.
Stacey Hutchinson, 39, took her son for a day out with a close friend during the spring break and was blown away by the emotional bond he had with the wheelchair trained llama at the animal experience centre.
Little Frankie has a rare form of childhood epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome which is a life limiting illness that confides him to a wheelchair a lot of the time.
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The Whitburn mum explained that they often face challenges when visiting different places and can feel like an "inconvenience" which is upsetting for the family.
During the Easter Holidays close pal also called Stacey had booked the Alpaca Trekking Centre in Thornhill Stirling for her two boys and asked if Stacey and Frankie wanted to come along last minute.
The group called the centre and explained about Frankie's condition to which the animal centre said: "We'll make it work."
Immediately the mum was blown away by their attitude which got even better when the family arrived at the alpaca centre the next day.
Speaking to Edinburgh Live Stacey said: "Frankie has Dravet Syndrome which is a life limiting illness and he often suffers from seizures.
"When we phoned up to ask if they could fit us into the booking last minute and mentioned that Frankie was in a wheelchair they were totally accommodating and said 'we will make it work.'
"They also explained that because of the bad weather - it had been raining all week - an off road wheelchair would be better so we could get the most out of the experience.
"When we arrived they booked us a space right next to the door so it was easy to access and we could easily go in.
"They included Frankie all day long through every activity even when we thought he might not be able to take part.
"We got to spend time with Ted the wheelchair trained alpaca who was super super gentle.
"Frankie functions around 12-18months and he can say a few single words only. He certainly grabs and prods like a small child would and Ted the alpaca was super gentle and calm."
Claire the guide went the extra mile to make sure the family had a fantastic experience at the centre.
The mum continued: "Claire was super calm and patient and really reassuring, even though I was worried at first with her I had no reason to.
"IT was like a private tour, the other boys went ahead and Ted just followed behind. She even said we could just stay longer and trek around the field if we wanted to.
"Frankie can stand but he is really wobbly, Claire helped get Frankie out of his chair and we all managed to stand and get a family picture which was really nice."
The experience isn't always so positive when visiting new places though.
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Stacey said: "We have been to a lot of different places, sometimes you feel like an inconvenience.
"It is limited when you have disabilities but I don't like to use that word I prefer to call it all different abilities and the Alpaca Trekking centre catered for all abilities."
Stacey and her family said they'd definitely be back to the outdoor centre and wanted to make sure other families that use wheelchairs know that the Alpaca Centre is an accessible place to go.
