Without a doubt Alpacas are lovely to look at, particularly before they have had their annual haircut – they look then like huge balls of fluff on four legs. But are they easy to keep?
Alpacas belong to the camelid family, and come in varying sizes and colours. Whilst there are six different kinds of camelids, the two we are used to seeing in Alpaca Farming are the Huacaya with its dense crimpy alpaca fleece, and the rarer Suri with its elegant, silky fleece.
Whilst some alpaca owners keep them purely as pets, they do make excellent guard animals for sheep and chickens as Mr. Fox will most certainly stay away whilst there is an alpaca in sight. However, most alpaca owners view their herd as an investment for their future and become alpaca breeders, have alpacas for sale, spin the fine alpaca fleece and either make luxurious clothing, or sell on the alpaca yarn.
Like all other animals, alpacas need food, shelter, fencing, worming, injections, and they also need annual shearing. The only difference in their requirements is of course that alpacas are much bigger than many other farm animals and it can often take two people simply to give an injection to one member of the herd.
Another thing to be aware of is that Alpacas have a communal toilet – that is one of the herd will decide on the place to be used and the others will follow. The chosen spot though will change throughout the day! This of course makes field cleaning very easy but it is also very necessary for alpaca waste is a very good source of fertiliser. The chosen areas very quickly become long, lush green grasses but the alpacas will not feed there. It is important that these areas have the grass cut in order that the alpacas may again feed in that area.
Alpacas will certainly give you many hours of pleasure. Like sheep, they will follow you for food and quickly become your friend. They are the most fascinating of all animals to watch and time can very quickly pass by without you noticing. They are pregnant for nearly a year, and their babies (crias) are delightful.
So are they difficult to keep? Their needs are the same as any other animal but be aware that you will probably need two people whenever you need to administer medicines, or undertake routine duties like cutting an overgrown fringe. And don’t forget the field cleaning and the grass cutting!
