Most people keep cats, dogs or rabbits as pets - not so Pauline King.

Herts Advertiser: Jessica and Rosie WillisJessica and Rosie Willis (Image: Archant)

And it is her passion for alpacas which has resulted in her six-year-old grandchildren Rosie and Jessica Willis being filmed for a forthcoming episode of the CBeebies programme My Pet and Me.

Pauline has four alpacas which share a field at her Redbourn home with a rescue donkey and the twins, who live in St Albans and go to Fleetville Infants School, love being with them.

So when Pauline heard from a friend who wrote for the BBC that CBeebies were looking for children to appear in the show, she applied and sent photos of the girls with her alpacas.

After being interviewed by the producer, the girls spent two days being filmed for the programme. Pauline said: “They took it all in their stride. Two days is a long time for little ones.”

But they knew their subject well - they chatted with presenter Ferne Corrigan about the names of the alpacas and discussed how they were looked after.

Pauline said: “The girls come to us every week and they have more or less grown up with alpacas.”

The filming took in all aspects of life with alpacas as pets from what they eat to putting down food for them and other activities of a more personal nature.

Pauline has had the alpacas for around four years - and even though she had seen them everywhere when she was in Peru, it was while in Flamstead that she decided to provide a home for some.

She explained: “We liked alpacas and that summer went for a bike ride in Flamstead and I fell and broke my wrist. I had to wait for someone to pick me up and there was an alpaca staring at me. I thought how cute and bought three, one of which was pregnant.”

Pauline now has four alpacas - a fifth is probably on the way as she believes one is pregnant although it is in the nature of alpacas to hide their pregnancies - and she describes them as ‘lovely animals’ with an easy disposition which she enjoys watching out of her kitchen window.

The film crew are coming back in September to film - hopefully - the newborn and the episode of My Pet and Me featuring the twins is scheduled to be broadcast towards the end of this year.