My first blog post!

We've been raising alpacas since 2001 and it's been both fun and frustrating at times. We started with four alpacas and now have grown our herd to 14! Prior to raising alpacas, we had been raising llamas for a few years. We have 7 llamas now and don't plan to breed any more since they are so much larger and a little more difficult for us to handle when shearing, toenail trimming or providing other care. Our alpacas are much easier to handle.

My goal for this blog is to educate and maybe entertain a little. Since we all have full-time jobs, farming is done after work and on weekends. As our herd size grows, so does the work load but it is also very rewarding to see all the smiling faces in the barn every day and hear them greet us with their cute humming sounds! I hope to post at least one blog each week and maybe several a week depending on how much time I have or if we have any news at the farm. We are expecting 4 crias (baby alpacas) this summer so I'll share the news here. Keep checking in because we are on cria watch with one of our girls expecting within the next week or two...