2024 will bring changes to Alpacas from MaRS!
Let me say a huge thank you to all the wonderful people that have visited and supported Alpacas from MaRS over the past 24 years! You have helped us continue to live our lives alongside of the ever-enchanting alpaca, dive into all things fleece related, and share our farm experiences.
Unfortunately, we have never completely recovered from the effects of the pandemic, so we are shifting gears a bit. Supply chain issues have made it difficult to keep products in our farm store, some staple items haven’t been available on a regular basis since 2019. Socks and yarn being top on the list! Going forward, we will be focusing more on having our own yarn made. It will still mean low inventory to begin with, but we can at least feel like we have more control over the situation. More of our raw fleeces will be available for sale, and there will be more time at the carder and spinning wheel for me!
Anyone that has been to Alpacas from MaRS knows that sharing the alpaca experience is of great importance to me! I love introducing people to alpacas, their fleece, and the alpaca way of life. The next change to come to MaRS is probably the hardest for me. The last 3 years have been a struggle for tours, but I understand that I’m not alone when my business was hit with restrictions due to Covid. I had strong hope that by 2023 things would be back on track, but it just didn’t happen. Tour numbers are at an all-time low, while the costs of providing amenities have risen. Simple math is staring me in the face and I have come to the disheartening decision that I need to scale back and even eliminate some of my favorite things to offer.
Group tours are being eliminated due to the high cost of providing needed amenities to host those groups. The same goes for birthday parties.
Farm tours for individuals and families will continue but at a much-reduced availability. We will be going from 16 days to only 3 days a month. If additional dates are needed due to demand, we will gladly add dates to the calendar.
Small workshops will continue to be offered as supplies become available. Currently all workshops requiring yarn are on hold. Felting workshops can be scheduled. And if you have a group that wants to explore felting, I can come to you!
You can still find me actively working with the Alpaca/Llama program for Snohomish Co 4H, can’t keep me from sharing alpacas with kids!
Our breeding program continues, and we are proud of what we have been able to achieve with our goals to improve fleece quality and raise healthy, happy alpacas. We are now at 8 generations of improved breeding stock! Once again, we will be out in the show rings at regional halter shows, and participating in fleece shows across the country. It’s so gratifying to earn ribbons with a small herd when you’re shoulder to shoulder with the big breeders!
Small businesses, and small farms in particular, have been hard hit since 2020. Feed costs are through the roof, and the high costs of doing business are just a fact of life at this point. Many businesses have closed their doors, here’s hoping we can keep our doors open!