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Alpacas for Fleece and Fun! by Gay DeHart We first saw the Open Farm Day advertisement in October, 2002 "Come learn about investing in alpacas." We went. We weren’t hooked at first, but we were intrigued and visited two other farms that weekend. Over time, spending time with the alpacas in the pastures, we finally got hooked, even in the rain. It seemed like every time we went looking, it was raining. By December we had bought our first three females: one pregnant mature female, one pregnant maiden and one maiden to be bred in the Spring. The most disappointing part was waiting for our girls to come home. We had fencing to get done! In April we held a "pasture clearing day" at our 100-year-old farm to get ready for fencing. The pastures hadn’t been cleared back to the old stone walls in many years. Part of the appeal of the alpacas, was to have animals roaming the fields again. In May the alpacas arrived and by August we had our first cria. What a treat! 
Now, five years later, we still love looking out in the morning to see the alpacas kushed
in he half-light; or all making a mad dash for the barn to get away from the bugs. Certainly
the greatest joy is watching the newest cria begin to explore. In the evenings; their favorite
past-time is to make mad dashes back and forth in the pasture.Though our teenage daughter refuses to have anything to do with them, and doesn’t know their names, she still takes her friends out to see them. Our two sons are great alpaca handlers and help with shots but their favorite activity is halter training. It isn’t complicated, doesn’t take a lot of time; but does take patience and it is fun to see these two teenage boys gently coaxing an alpaca on the end of a lead. Shearing days are a team effort with a neighboring farm and we have fun! The best part is watching the beautiful blanket of fiber come off and scooping it up. Sending out the raw fleece and getting back the beautiful skeins is another delight. Ah, if I would just learn to knit, I would be all set! Alpaca farming is a part-time venture for us; it blends nicely with the other things we do. It is the perfect fit for Chuck to be able to take care of the animals while making chairs in our other home-based business, Shaker View Furniture. I work off the farm as a grant writer. We attend shows and fairs, hold Open Farm Days and can be as involved as we like in alpaca-related activities. But our favorite alpaca-related activity is just spending time with these peaceful animals. |
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