What is an alpaca?
Alpacas are camelids-cousins to camels, llamas, guanacos, and vicunas. They are smaller than llamas and guanacos, but larger than vicunas. Alpacas are about half the size of llamas and have proportionally smaller ears than their llama cousins. There are two different kinds of alpacas. The suri alpaca is the very rare alpaca and has very long, fine, dreadlock-type fiber. The huacaya alpaca is the second type of alpaca and is the more common of the two. The huacaya alpaca has thick, dense, crimpy fiber and resembles a teddy bear when in full coat.
Breeders say an alpaca is: 1. The cutest tax shelter ever. 2. The most expensive hobby farm ever. 3. An alternative to stress. 4. The sweetest little eyes you will ever see. 5. A beautiful face. 6. A curious and intelligent bundle of fiber. 7. A live teddy bear you can cuddle and love. 8. The greatest animal in the world. 9. A healer of the soul. 10. Calm in the storm of modern life Alpaca Facts Alpacas in America The first alpacas were imported into America in 1984. There are over 50,000 alpacas now in the United States. They can be found in every state with the greatest concentration in Ohio, Washington, Oregon, Colorado and California. The average life span is 15-20 years. Females mature around 18 months to 2 years. They have single births, beginning around three years of age. The gestation period is 11 months. Males mature at 2 3 years of age. Newborn alpacas are called Crias (pronounced cree as). At birth they weigh 12 to 18 pounds.
black alpacaAlpacas are a domesticated member of the camelid family related to the llama and camel. They’re about one-third to one-half the size of llamas and can easily be trained and handled, even by children. They typically weigh between 120 to 170lbs and stand 30 to 40 inches at the withers. Alpacas come in many colors. Twenty-two are currently recognized by the alpaca fiber industry, but there are more. Their feet are padded, similar to a dogs which makes them easy on the land. They do not have upper teeth but instead have a hard upper pallet which is used to grind grass and hay. Instead of ripping the grass out by the roots, alpacas “clip” the grass leaving the roots unharmed which makes pasture maintenance much easier than owning any other livestock. There are two types off alpacas. Huacaya’s (pronounced Wa-Ky-yuhs) which are the fuzzy type, and the Suri alpaca. From a distance, the suri appears to have dread locks but up close you see the soft, twisting strands of fiber which d
” You may have seen them yourself and have mistaken them for their cousin the llama, which are very similar in their make-up. Here I hope to share with you information about the alpaca, to equip you with the knowledge you may need in the future when you may run across these gorgeous animals and their caretakers.
