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Friday, February 28, 2014
Wow, time has really flown by! What did we do in the time frame since we last posted??
We attended the Great Western Alpaca Show in May, sheared over 70 alpacas at end of May, fretted over our pregnant dams and welcomed many fantastic crias, made a round trip to Oregon to retrieve our dams out for 'dates', got hay, dyed alpacas rovings and made drop spindles for the upcoming show and orders, attended the ABR Fall Festival and accepted two more crystal boot awards, met a TON of people again read more...
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Wednesday, April 10, 2013
That's the title (paraphrased) of a blurb about a blog that caught my eye in a recent marketing newsletter I receiving. Well, who could resist a tagline like that?? I clicked and found myself at an online 'popular news' site that talked about a man in South America who bought two ferrets that had been given steroids and groomed to be passed off as toy poodles. Yes, sadly this is real; you can search the web for "giant ferret toy poodle" and the story pops up.
Besides the novelty of this a read more...
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Thursday, March 7, 2013
We just received the best compliments from a customer and a fellow farm breeder!
At a seminar held by fellow alpaca breeder, our recent customer told them and the other participants of their great experience with us during their visit to OUR farm and subsequent purchase. Our farm friends were kind enough to send us an email letting us know of these compliments, as well as adding their own kind words!
"...[our customer] was very impressed with you guys read more...
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Thursday, February 21, 2013
The key to experiencing a good 'Sell' -- one where both you and your customer walk away satisfied and happy -- is the simplest concept but often the hardest thing to do. In fact, we even find it hard to do in our discussions with our families/friends and in everyday life experiences. What is it?? LISTEN.
I don't mean to just listen to what I am saying, I mean to LISTEN in general. When we listen, we gather new data, we evaluate this data against what we already know, and we figure out what read more...
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Tuesday, February 19, 2013
It's good to have support...
Friends, Family, Colleagues, etc.
This is the part of the 'alpaca community' that is so appealing. You can find farms that will always give you a helping hand, a piece of advice, and collaboration.
But don't stop there! Are you just learning about fiber? Been a crafter or artisan for a while but still learning? Familiar with wool but not alpaca fiber or vice versus? Then, join a support group!
Check in your city's craft shops, online classified ads, read more...
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Friday, February 8, 2013
What?? I AM on duty!
Yep, a lot of our working dogs' time is spent lounging around (if not eating!), but that's okay since they are still 'on duty'. They sleep lightly and wake at the unusual sound or alarm call, day or night, ready to fly to the fence in all their barking fierceness. And, when you have seen your guardian dog respond with emphasis to a neighbor's dog at the fenceline, then you know what I mean about their impressive ferocity and full throttle 'go away' snarls and barks.
It was long road for us read more...
...taking a break in the mid-day sun.
Time for a treat! Alpacas and dogs getting along fine.
Our dogs, the first winter here.
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Monday, January 28, 2013
As a family, we were able to go to the NWSS in Denver, Colorado this last weekend. It was great fun to see the various different breeds of 'other livestock' during the course of our wanderings through the buildings.
CATTLE
We managed to view some of the cattle showing in the arena, observing how fast the judging went in comparison to alpaca showing. After the exhibitors entered the ring en masse, the judge walked down the front and the back of the row. The read more...
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Tuesday, January 15, 2013
My thoughts are revolving around some things I saw this last weekend, relating to the National Western Stock Show and Baxter Black, the cowboy poet.
We attended the National Western Stock Show as alpaca exhibitors for the first time this year. Having just come away from the experience last weekend, the images are fresh in my mind. We have been in the alpaca industry for several years now, have been to many shows, and as Coloradans are not unfamiliar with the 'Western culture'. read more...
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Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Among the few business e-newsletters that we subscribe to is SmartBrief, with its quick digest information and links to longer articles in the author blog sites.
I often find something interesting, useful, and insightful. But rarely does a headline hit like shock of water on the face. It was in fact, a biting statement - cool and detached and maybe a bit aggressive.
The subject line read: "Why You Shouldn't Keep Working With A Nightmare Client"
Ouch! We know they exist and there i read more...
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