Premature alpaca cria
By Linda Blake, Southern Alpacas Stud
Alpaca babies are lovely fluffy creatures, usually full of life and activity from birth. Occasionally one will be frail and flat - maybe because they are very small, or because they were premature, born before their due date, or dysmature, which is born on time but not yet ready for this world. These fragile cria need intensive care, to...
Cria Preparation
As I was flipping through our calendar of the upcoming weeks and months, I realized that we suddenly have babies scheduled to arrive in the next 3 weeks. With an expected total of half a dozen cria this year, several of them are coming in late May. I prefer that most of our babies be born during June through August. In Montana's small Summer window, we try to breed our girls a...
As I have written over the years, alpaca fleece is a versatile material that can be created into many - from end use alpaca hats and alpaca socks like we sell as well as felting, dryer balls, felted soaps, insulation and other creative items. It all depends on what you want to do with it. However, if you are raising alpacas for pure joy and not overly interested in personally expanding into the...
Saving Your Alpacas' Life
“The Silent Killer”
Mycoplasma Haemolamae
This paper is to help you save your alpacas' life from one of the little-known alpaca diseases. The disease is Mycoplasma Haemolamae (MH). It is a “Silent Killer”! MH has been detected since the 1990's and was originally called Eperythrozoonosis or EPE. Recently the name...
Mycoplasma Haemolamae
This paper is to help you save your alpacas' life from one of the little-known alpaca diseases. The disease is Mycoplasma Haemolamae (MH). It is a “Silent Killer”! MH has been detected since the 1990's and was originally called Eperythrozoonosis or EPE. Recently the name...
When we first “discovered” alpacas 12 years ago, we were highly skeptical of the business model. Too easy – just have a baby alpaca, sell it and pay your mortgage. It was a tough sell, especially to our banker in order to take out a business loan. But, we penciled out how we could make it and stuck to it.
After nearly a thousand cold calls, marketing, advertising and showing around the country,...
THE RISE OF LIVESTOCK GUARDIAN DOGS
—23 February 2016
Predator protection on four legs
Since the dawn of time, man has found refuge and comfort in his partnership with dogs. For millennia, these loyal friends have shared our hearth-fire, hauled our heavy loads, assisted our hunts, and protected our families from harm. However, one of the most interesting services that these faithful...
Since the dawn of time, man has found refuge and comfort in his partnership with dogs. For millennia, these loyal friends have shared our hearth-fire, hauled our heavy loads, assisted our hunts, and protected our families from harm. However, one of the most interesting services that these faithful...
One of the most interesting parts of my job is to host farm visits for those wanting a one-on-one experience with alpacas. After 11 years of having a little bit of everyone – from potential alpaca buyers and classrooms to nursing homes and pre-vet students – I have a general checklist I find helpful when getting ready for a day of newcomers on the farm.
- Trust your surroundings. Is your farm...
For our eighth year in a row, we held our Open House as a community event. This year, we needed to push back our usually Last Weekend of September date to go to my sister-in-law's wedding in San Francisco.
Naturally the usual weekend was warm and sunny, about 70F. By the time the next weekend rolled around for our event, it was cold and drizzly, making the barn a safe haven from the teasing...
Naturally the usual weekend was warm and sunny, about 70F. By the time the next weekend rolled around for our event, it was cold and drizzly, making the barn a safe haven from the teasing...
I love alpacas! Many people love alpacas. But what supplies / requirements are there to keep alpacas happy? This checklist is going to vary depending on where you live, your weather and farm set-up, but these are some basic items and would take a look prior to having your alpacas on your farm:Barn Requirements - For the most part, alpacas like to be out and about, not cooped up in a barn....