The other day I went out into the field, and what did I find? A new baby!

Amber had her little cria. It’s a girl, and she’s doing well, bopping around. Playing with the other little girl we had last week. Our next cria are due today so we are on baby watch again for four of our alpaca mommas. Should be a Fun Fall!

This weekend alpaca farms across America will be hosting National Alpaca Farm Days on their alpaca farms. Our farm, Fairhope Alpacas, in beautiful Fairhope, Alabama will be open to the public on Saturday & Sunday, September 24 & 25th both days from 1-5 pm.
To find a farm near you, visit the National Alpaca Farm Days website and check out their farm locator. Go see an alpaca breeder near you this weekend to learn more about these magical creatures!
And if you do go see some pacas, come back and tell us about it in the comments section.

Charlie Wins at AOBA Nationals!

Jim and I bought our very first alpaca together. When we saw this little guy, Challenger’s Sir Charles, he stopped us both in our tracks. He was so cute and fluffy. He had so much presence!

Jim and I are supposed to be immune to that kind of charm, right? I mean we are both seasoned alpaca breeders of ten+ years… but I’m telling you…

he had me at hello.

Of course usually the ones that look great on the outside don’t have the fleece to back it up. It’s Murphy’s Law. So when we opened up this boy’s fleece, we both thought, “Jackpot!

Wook at that fuzzy head!

I knew we would have to buy him when, the next day, Jim told me that he had had trouble sleeping the night before. He had been thinking about Charlie all night. I knew Jim had gotten the alpaca fever again, and we would have to add him to our herd as a jr. herdsire.

Jim had previously owned Charlie’s sire, Legend’s Challenger for many years. Each time he did a breeding he wanted the result to turn out to be an alpaca like Charlie. But only occasionally do you get one as nice as this boy, which made it much easier to make the purchase. Jim said that only a handful of the Challenger offspring turned out to be the total package like Charlie is. So we are very thrilled to be partners on this male, Challenger’s Sir Charles, with Dave & Darlyne Spina of 3D Alpacas in Kentucky.

Jubilee Wins at AOBA Nationals!

Not to leave out this little beauty,

We also took Fairhope’s Jubilee to Colorado, and she won a Blue ribbon too (pictured above) in Composite. Jubilee is a beautiful Magnum daughter we have for sale until on special until bred this Fall. 16.9 AFD with incredible bloodlines. She’s a sister to our herdsire, Napster. Check her out.

So – buying alpacas is an emotional decision sometimes. Or is it? What do you think? Do you think with your brain or your heart when making buying decisions? I’d love to hear from my readers on this.

“When the sun gets hot and the moon gets hazy, good girls go bad, and it gets crazy!” — Unknown

This photo was taken of our some of our Fairhope Alpacas herd that is boarding in North Carolina with our friends at Augustyn Acres Alpacas. (I can’t fit all of our new alpacas at our farm in Alabama.) Melissa Augustyn was kind enough to bring out the camera and capture this moment as Shawnee was breeding one of the girls. The other girls gathered around, telling him, “Me next! Me next!” The hormones on them, I’m tellin ya.

Of all the pictures I have seen over the years, this one is the most defining of alpacas. Alpacas are really all about having babies and being pregnant. I love cria, so I love that about them.

I saw the quote above and it just seemed fittin’. Check out Sunday Citar on the Fresh Mommy blog. Tabitha is delightful, and her blog has amazing photography.

The 4th of July is coming up. I’m going to the beach, what fun plans do you guys have? Leave me a comment and tell me what you will be up to.

Above is one of the latest additions to our herd. Our farm, Fairhope Alpacas has recently acquired the girls from the Windy Ridge herd. We are so excited to add 20 amazing females to our herd. Later this Spring we will be sending our herdsire SCA Peruvian Magnum to cover most of them. The thought of it just gives me the vapors. sooooo exciting!

Jim and I believe in the future of the alpaca industry, and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to grow our herd. I have worked with Windy Ridge for several years and I know their bloodlines well. They are all about quality, just as we are. When they needed to get out of the business due to health problems, I was happy to be able to acquire their stable of lovely ladies, and one phenomenal boy. (more about him very soon!)

One of the challenges over the years that Jim and I both faced as alpaca breeders of “small farms” was that it was difficult to grow our herds if we were also selling well. Breeding all of these girls this Spring will make for a wonderful growth spurt for our herd in the Spring of 2012.

I can hardly wait! Thanks Windy Ridge and the Tharp family for the opportunity. We luv you and wish you all the best.

And sure enough. Everyone on the farm stopped what they were doing to come by and see the new baby.

I have found that to be true no matter what the size of your farm. No matter how many cria you’ve had over the years. Whenever a cria is born – everything else stops. And everybody comes by to see the new baby.

Today it was Misty Maui’s cria sired by Black Icecapade. Boy, have we been looking forward to this one! (And it is a boy.)

Here is the little guy with his dam, Misty Maui. Wobbly, but strong. His ears started out floppy but they were straightening up quickly.

Alpacas are super social animals, and they ALL want to meet the newest member of the herd. He will be the most popular guy on the farm today.

Wait, cutie! Those are the front legs. Uh – Try the back legs.

(common novice mistake at the milk bar)

He sure is BROWN! That’s one thing for sure. Black Icecapade and Misty Maui made one BROWN baby. I give this breeding two thumbs up. Thanks Roni and Brad Perkins at Providence Alpaca Farm who did the breeding for us.

Her mom didn’t know what to make of her at first, but now they are inseparable.

I bought her mom, Niida, because I thought she was the prettiest thing ever. And that she and Magnum would make a perfect match. So far it’s a good combo.

Alpacas are very social, and the girls wanted to meet the new addition to the herd. NieNie is the only cria we have on the farm right now so she is the star!

Nie Nie’s floppy ears are a sign of her prematurity. She was about two weeks early. That will either go away on its own by straightening up, or we should be able to fix it be taping them later if the problem persists. (In Nie Nie’s case it is already correcting itself.)

The bond between dam and cria is one of my favorite parts of raising alpacas. It is so tender, so gentle and loving that it sometimes takes my breath away.

Way too young to be getting significant nutrition from grass, tiny NieNie imitates her dam’s grazing behavior at just a few days old because “I want to be just like Mom!” Precious.

If you like this post you might also like:

Tiny Alpaca Phoenix Rises

Meet New Alpaca Cria Sista

Meet George & Martha the Alpacas

Saturday, November 6, 2010

An educational seminar designed to provide you with all the information you need to know to start your alpaca farm.

This seminar will be held at Fairhope Alpacas in Fairhope, Alabama, home to more than 40 huacaya alpacas. It will be hosted by Katy Spears who has been successfully breeding high quality alpacas full-time for the past eleven years.

Topics will include:

The history and utility of alpacas

Investment opportunity

Tax benefits

Development of business plans

Purchase selection

Herd management including parasite prevention & basic nutrition

Simple daily care of alpacas

Managing alpacas in hot, humid climates

Fleece and what to do with it

Marketing and selling your alpacas

Bring all your alpaca questions! There will also be an opportunity to get “hands-on” experience working with the alpacas in the afternoon.

So join us on Saturday, November 6 from 9:00am-5:00pm (Central Time) for this educational alpaca event. Cost is $45 per person or $80 for two people from the same farm. This includes breakfast, lunch, the seminar, handouts, “hands-on” experience and a suggested reading list to take home with you. Class size is limited so register today to reserve your place.

Contact Katy Spears at 251-583-5251 for more information. Click here for registration form.

See what past attendees have said about Alpacas 101. Visit our farm’s website. Our alpacas are on SALE for 40% off for a limited time. Visit our sale list!

She looked up at me innocently.

“What?”

“That’s how I drink,” she said.

Though it was weird, it was one of the cutest things I’d ever seen. I had to stop what I was doing and just watch her for at least 15 minutes.

This alpaca, Foxy Lady, was biting the side of the bucket with her teeth and sucking the water in as her method of drinking. Alpacas usually put their mouths IN the bucket and drink. I wonder if she is teething. Sometimes alpacas do odd behaviors like this when they are losing teeth and getting new ones in. I’m not sure, but this was hilarious to watch. (I’m easily amused.)

I went and re-filled her water bucket just to see her do it again. I went and grabbed the camera, hoping she wouldn’t stop just because now I could capture it for the rest of the world.

Foxy was oblivious to my attentions. She kept drinking in the way that was normal for her. My daughter came out to the barn during all of this. I motioned her over quietly and said, “Look. This alpaca has a drinking problem.”

Foxy looked up at me, stared me down as if to say, “Drinking problem? I don’t have a drinking problem.”

How do I love this alpaca? Let me count the ways. I acquired her about a year ago from a farm in Colorado because she was the cutest thing I’d ever seen, and her fiber was to die for. Once we got her to our farm she did not disappoint. She is a small little girl but that doesn’t bother me. I have had small females before who were awesome producers. I’m growing fiber here not giant alpacas.

Foxy's Baby Picture

Now that I am getting to know her enchanting personality I’m tempted to pull her off my sales list. It is tempting.

It has been a rough summer full of challenges on the farm and in my personal life. But seeing Foxy, with her quirky drinking made me fall in love with alpacas all over again, reaffirming my life’s work with these wonderful animals. And that’s a good day when that happens.

Thanks, girl. You are one Foxy Lady.

And thank you to Valerie at The Blais Alpaca Co. for naming her that outrageous name and selling her to me!

Roo and Katy

A couple of months ago I had the pleasure of meeting a fiber diva, Roo of Moonwood Farm whom I had long admired – in the flesh! I had heard about this incredible lady and I had almost gotten the chance to meet her at SAFF. But every time I had gone past her booth, she was mobbed with admirers. It’s true. She is so charismatic, and her fiber is to die for. When I heard she was coming to my farm, I knew I was in for a real treat!

My dear friend Pam Pullins, of Sweet Home ALApaca was bringing some alpaca girls down for breeding, and she was bringing Roo with her. Roo is someone who is well-known in the fiber world, to which I am a novice. And Roo is newer to the alpaca animal world, to which I am not. So this was a joy for us both.

It was so much fun getting together! We talked alpacas, fiber, and girl stuff. We got to giggling so much that Pam and I couldn’t stop.

I was doubled over laughing, we had so much fun. I wish they lived closer so that we could get together more often!

Pam and I really couldn’t get our serious face on for the camera, oh well.

Roo and I had a lot of fun getting to know each other and talking alpacas, fleece, and drum carders. I’m hoping to get a chance to learn from her in the future. She is an awesome talent. You can see some of her fiber art in her Etsy shop.

Moonbeams

Above are strips of fiber from Roo’s Moonbeam Club – 4 months subscription – long ago sold out, of course. Color me gorgeous, aren’t they to die for? Now do you see why I just had to meet this woman! She is an Alabama treasure. (Oh, yes, she is in Alabama!)

And, for an added bonus, how sweet is this, it was Roo, who went home with the sleepy Loretta from the How To Put Your Alpaca To Sleep Post. What a fun day we had. Makes me motivated to start playing more with fiber!