Luna Rosa Ranch Suri Alpacas

WET. WINDY. COLD. Alpacas seem to be able to handle any one of these conditions OK. But any two or more can be trouble. Hypothermia can develop when the temperature is 50 degrees if it is rainy or windy. My rule of thumb is to check the alpacas and consider coating the young, weak, old or any cold animal if ANY TWO of these conditions prevail.

Any alpaca that is shivering is just a step away from hypothermia, which is life-threatening. Action is required at this phase to make the alpac... read full article

Robin’s 6 T’S for Desensitizing Your Cria

Each day when we weigh each cria we perform the following steps to help ensure our alpacas grow up to be easily handled and managed for routine care. Here's what we do and why.

TIPS of ears. Very often this is where fly strikes show up and many dark colored animals need to have ointment applied to ears. We rub and wiggle the ears. We also stroke the necks.

TEETH. All alpacas should have their bite and teeth inspected regularly. Boy ... read full article

Hands down, number one, is SHEAR. Every alpaca, suri or huacaya, needs to be shorn every year. If leg wool is left on one year, it should be completely shorn off the following year. Otherwise, the mats that develop contribute to holding heat in.

SHADE. All alpacas need access to shade at all times. This can be trees or bushes or man-made structures or “tarp tents”.

COOL drinking water. Alpacas will not drink warm water. A bucket of water can easily warm up to the temperature of hot ... read full article

Most alpacas sold in the United States are registered alpacas, meaning their parentage has been verified through DNA analysis or blood testing/typing and they are listed in a database of registered alpacas. Only alpaca offspring with two registered parents can now be registered, the registry is closed to further importation.

While there are several alpaca registries in the world, in the United States market, only alpacas registered with ARI (Alpaca Registry Inc) in Lincoln, Nebraska will be ... read full article