Alpaca Farming | Homesteading

Alpaca farming information for the novice on raising alpacas, looking at what alpacas eat, general care, housing, and health problems.

OVERVIEW:

Raising alpacas used to be seen as a sure investment for homesteading today and farming. High returns were promised with alpaca investment in raising and keeping alpacas, and many believed that they would make a lot of money in the process, without doing a proper alpaca business plan and thorough investigation.

Unfortunately, those who went ahead with alpaca investment, outlaying thousands for top breeders in the hope that they would get rich quick have found that this has not been so, and the price of alpacas has become far more affordable for those who just want to keep alpacas as pets.

Alpaca Farming - Huacayas and Suri

The alpacas come from the camelid family but they are not nearly as bad tempered and smelly as their relative the camel, and are closer to llamas. There are 2 types of alpacas; Huacayas, which make up about 80 % of the US market and Suri. The difference is in their fleece structure. Where the huacayas have dense, short fleece, the Suri's fleece is a lot longer and silkier.

The Suri will produce about 2.5 kg of fleece after being shorn, and the Huacayas will produce about 2-3.5 kg of fleece.

Alpaca Farming or Keeping Alpacas as Pets?

Alpacas are ideal animals for the small homestead. They are hardy, generally disease-resistant and they thrive in every weather condition imaginable. They are good with children and therefore alpacas make excellent pets. They almost always give birth during daylight hours,

Because alpacas are such a gentle farm animal they are the ideal homestead animal to keep as a pet and the nice thing is that they last a lot longer than your budgie or hamster will - they live 15-25 years.

Alpaca Farming and Breeding

Although a female alpaca can be bred after a year old, it is better to wait until it is 2-3 years old. It is fine to keep both males and females together.

The alpaca is not bound by a breeding season like sheep, and so therefore they will mate at any time and drop their cria (baby) after a gestation period of about 11-12 months. Many alpaca births occur during the rainy season. They usually only have single births, which makes them more valuable and sought after and their pregancies and deliveries are usually without complications. The adults grow to a height of 5 feet.

If something happens to the mother, or she is unable to suckle her young, other female alpacas who have recently given birth will take on the cria and nurse it without complications. They are therefore excellent surrogate mothers.

Advantages of Alpaca Farming

Alpaca Farming does have other advantages, mainly of course the alpaca wool that they produce. Their lovely fibre is light-weight, less greasy than sheep's wool, and is know for its softness, lustre and warmth. In fact, the alpaca's wool is seven times warmer than sheep's wool and softer than cashmere. Alpacas come in a range of colours which is ideal for those who want to use fibre that is natural and free from chemical dyes. In addition, they are eco-friendly with soft padded feet, not hooves, which has a low impact on the landscape.

For those of you who are wanting to keep alpacas for the above reasons then it is useful to think of having 2-3 castrated males. As alpacas are herd animals they need to have the company of other alpacas. Buying whethers is a cheaper option than buying breeding quality alpacas. In addition they can be shorn twice a year, and their fleece can be used for home spinning, felting or weaving.

Because of their excellent range of vision they make excellent 'guard dogs' and will keep predators away from your sheep and are good at protecting their own young. Not only will alpacas protect your sheep, but they will also protect your chickens and ducks from foxes and wolves.

The best thing for the organic alpaca farmer and homesteader is the alpaca manure and their toilet habits. Alpacas are very obliging in that they choose one place to relieve themselves and soon you have a manure heap of good, non-smelling, slow-releasing manure which is ideal for your vegetables, orchards and flower gardens.

Alpaca Farming - What to Feed Alpacas

Alpacas are cud-chewers, therefore they need pasture and hay. An acre of pasture will support 5-10 animals. They are both browers and grazers so will also nibble on shrubs and bushes. Because they are economical in what they eat, they actually don't cost anymore to feed than your average farm dog.

There are a number of commercial alpaca mixes available, but these are best thought of as supplying vitamins and minerals rather than the bulk feed which is obtained through grazing.

One important rule to remember is to introduce any changes to the diet gradually over a period of a couple of weeks. This way the microbes in the gut have time to adjust to any feed changes.

Alpaca Farming and General Care

Alpaca farming means that alpacas are very easy animals to keep, and really don't need much maintenance. They have a low-protein diet of grasses and pasture plants. Because they have a clean breech they do not suffer from pests like fly-strike.

They do, however, need a lot of water, particularly in the summer, where they can drink up to 4 liters of water a day. They will need some shelter, usually a 3-sided structure is sufficient so that they can get out of the wind, sun and rain when required. However, make sure too that their field has a fence of at least 4 feet to keep stray dogs and coyotes out.

Always make sure that your alpacas have shade and water at all times. Shade created by trees, shade cloth or better still, a tall barn that will give shelter and ventilation. Having fans fitted is also a solution in areas of high heat and humidity.

Plenty of water should be made available, and it should be kept out of the sun in a shady spot.

Shearing alpacas when it is hot is another way of reducing the possibility of heat stress. A full shear is better, although barrel cuts are acceptable.

Make sure that your animals are well fed, but not overfed, as overweight animals suffer more from the heat than those that aren't obese. Proper nutrition of the animals is also important. In particular, providing adequate selenium, vitamin E, copper, zinc, and B vitamins such as thiamine can increase the tolerance of environmental extremes.

Alpaca Farming and Health Problems

The alpaca is not used to high temperatures and humidity. As a result, if they can suffer from heat stress, which can lead to illness and ultimately death if not caught in time.

Commonly used is the heat index, which is simply a formula to estimate the risk of heat stress. The Heat Index can be estimated by adding the temperature (F) and percent humidity (%). Typically, a heat index of less than 120 is safe, 120 to one 180 creates possible problems, and greater than 180 is the range where animals are in the most danger.

When alpaca farming keep a close eye on your animals during the hot summer months and look for the signs of heat stress. Nasal flaring, open-mouthed breathing, increased breathing rate and effort, drooling, depression or dullness, not eating feed, scrotal swelling in intact males, weakness, trembling, a rectal temperature greater than 104 degrees F, a heart rate over 90 beats per minute, or a respiratory rate over 40 breaths per minute are all signs that things are not well.

Move the animal into a shaded area of your homestead and hose the animal down with cool water, making sure that the animal is thoroughly soaked and not just wet on the surface, as the fibres can trap the heat and make things worse. Try and get the animal to drink some water, and call your vet immediately.

Alpaca Farming and Other Health Problems:

An alpaca can suffer from:

* mange, tick paralysis and ring worm

* foot and mouth disease

* rabies which they can pick up from dogs and foxes

* Hydatid disease

index

sitemap

advanced

site search by freefind

You can Add your own Comments, Tips and Ideas on Alpaca Farming Here!

We have lots of pages where you can contribute to throughout this homesteading website. We love hearing from our readers, and hope you will be one of those we hear from too. Look around our homesteading website. If you have some comments, tips and ideas about alpaca farming of your own, please submit them. All you need to do is type and submit. We will do the rest!

Do you have anything that you would like to add after reading this page? We would love to hear your thoughts. If you can add additional information to what has been written here you will be adding value to the website! No need to have any special skills - just type and submit. We will do the rest!

Give your Comment a Title

Click here to see the rest of the form and complete your submission.

Our Free Monthly Homesteading Newsletter

Please check back from time to time for new updates to our homesteading website or get our latest news via our free monthly homesteading newsletter. Sign up below. There is always new information being added, almost on a daily basis, just for you! We hope to see you again!

If you can't find what you are looking for, use the search engine bottom right, or click on our pictures that will link you to other sections of Countryfarm Lifestyles.