When you've got nothing to lose, you might as well try anything. That was the thought process behind Mrs Hopkin's idea to start feeding one of her wee pet lambs an alcoholic remedy.

"I've two pet Blackies, and one of them was blowing up. I took it to the vet and he said, "There's nothing we can do for it, it will be dead in a couple of days."

That wasn't good enough. "I thought, well I suffer from wind, and I take a spot of brandy in hot water and it helps me, so I decided to try it with the wee lamb."

On her farm at Mosblown, the old bottle of whisky was looked out, a spot was poured into a bottle, along with two laxatives and some water and a brisk shake saw the concoction ready.

The lamb wouldn't take it. "Ya wee bugger, I thought," says Mrs Hopkin, "you'll take it all right." She persevered and the lamb eventually relented. The next day she did the same and gave the bottle before its feed. Again, it wasn't keen. By day three, it was running toward her and poking its head through the gate ready for its 'tonic'.

The whisky ran dry, and she went back through the drinks cabinet. It was on to Drambuie, now this was a drink that a lamb could enjoy, she couldn't get it to let go of the bottle. Little lamb loved it.

"I don't drink, so these bottles have been lying around my house for years since my husband passed away some 20 years ago, and when the Drambuie was finished, I tried an old bottle of Martini."

The Martini was not a hit, but a big spoon of honey in the mix and the wee lamb can now almost be lifted off the ground while it hangs on tightly to the bottle of sweet medicine.

The other wee lamb just stands back and waits while its pal gets the medicine, then they both get their milk.

And has the medicine worked. Of course it has. The poorly lamb is coming on leaps and bounds, and their pet names have just been announced, AA and TT. Alcoholics Anonymous and Teatotal – how apt.