The day began pretty much like every day...nothing too unusual although I did notice that Ishtar had been kind of agitated for the past several days....very noisy...unlike herself.
I had finally convinced Jay to help me move my compost pile and so he got his tractor and was scooping it up and turning it. How exciting! I'm composting my alpaca manure with worms and was very pleased with the results. My worms were multiplying like crazy and turning leaves and alpaca pellets into lovely rich humus!
He was going forward and back, scooping and dumping when all of a sudden he was looking back over his shoulder to see where he was going when I heard him yell "Julie! There's a head coming out of somebody!" (he still can't tel the animals apart!). Low and behold there was! It wasn't Ishtar though, it was Dovis, who we weren't expecting to give birth for a few more weeks! I ran in and grabbed my camera and the phone just in case we needed to call the vet, and sat back and watched the miracle!
Things went very smoothly and in about a half an hour, we had a beautiful white female cria on the ground. We were never lucky enough to be present for the whole birth because up until now I had found that the more I waited and watched, the more likely they were to be born as soon as I had to leave to do an errand or attend to something else! So it was truly a pleasure to see this fascinating event...the way the dam pushes, and then breaks...how the cria hangs out and the fluids drain from her lungs, until finally the final push and she falls to the ground in a mass of rubbery limbs breathing in the new air!
If you watch the above videos, you will hear the grunting and pushing of Mom Dovis....but the moaning is Ishtar!! And sure enough...she got caught up in the act too, and like yawning is contagious, she also went into labor! We saw her water break and she delivered a healthy male cria about a half hour later!
The two little ones are about 6 weeks old now and thriving! We named the female, LH Philippa and call her Pippa...now where did that inspiration come from?! The male we named LH Sigfried after the beloved vet Sigfried Farnon in the James Herriot books.
Our herd at Laurel Highlands Alpacas now numbers 9 and we are expecting one more cria very soon this summer!!
If you've been reading this blog then you may have noticed that the dates of my posts don;t match those of the actual dates posted! I've had a little difficulty with my website blog so I gave up...for too long! Now I'm back in the swing and intend to update everything that has happened between then and now and believe me there has been a LOT!! So stay tuned!
Tucker giving Hamilton "Rabbit Ears" and Tanner mugging for the camera!
June 12, 2009: Rain, Rain, Rain!!! I think we need to build an ark! I've been trying to finish painting our barn and the weather is not cooperating. Kevin came back and made some adjustments to the doors. We decided that Dutch doors would be more practical for ventilation and just because the alpacas like to look out! We also added rain barrels that I got for nothing at a local company and Kevin added spigots after he cut a hole in top after I spray painted them to match the barn.
Our biggest event though has been my new assistants! Our neighbors Tucker and Tanner love to help me with the alpacas. Tucker told me that they look to see if our garage door is open, then check for lights, then race down on their mini mopeds! I was always worried that I'd be collapse outside and no one would find me( just kidding!)..but not any more! They love to help me corral the animals and feed them and anything they can do. It's been great for the alpacas to get used to them so that my family are not the only people they see and interact with. One day, I went out to feed them and held out my hand full of food to Hamilton and instead of running the other way, he took it! From then on the others have been slowly getting used to us. Flo and Hammie will eat out of our hands and that gives Tucker and Tanner great delight!! Did I mention that they work for ice cream!! I make sure that I have some special treat for them because I really appreciate their help! The animals enjoy their company!
June 10,2009: So much has been happening I've found it hard to keep up my journal! After our clip, I sent our samples to Yokom-McColl Testing Lab and spent many, many hours skirting my fleeces. I was sure I needed some professional direction so I called Leslie from Autumn Mist Fiber Mill for advice since that was where I had decided to send it. I had purchased yarn from Aussie Hill Alpacas in New York to try and figure out what I wanted my yarn to be like and they were kind enough to share the name of the mill that had processed their fleece..from those skeins of yarn I was able to determine what type of animal I needed.
My buddy Tucker with Hamilton and Flo.
Leslie from Autumn Mist was very helpful and advised me to remove seed pods, briars, and of course, poop. So after many weeks and lots of interruptions, my fleece is on the way to be processed! The fiber histograms were back in less than a week and I was extremely pleased with the results! Hamilton's fleece is 15.6 microns and that is cashmere quality! Now to keep it that way! Firenze is not far behind with 19.6, Dovis is 23.9 and Ishtar is 26.1. I called my guru of all alpaca knowledge, Fred from Northwest Alpacas, to find out how to keep a low micron count and his answer was simply..genetics. Hmmm. Well, they've got that!
May 4, 2009: We did it! We had our first successful "clip"! We rented a cargo van and got all things ready..halters, bags, gloves, knee pads, people and animals in preparation for a 4:00 departure and a 5:30 shearing. At 3:20, we got a call from our host Betty that the shearers were ahead of schedule and would be there in about 40 minutes- about an hour and a half earlier than we expected! Since we had never loaded our animals, let alone walked them anywhere on a lead, a challenge lay ahead of us! Instead of the nice relaxed pace of leading them into the van, we needed to get them in and fast! First we had to call our neighbor Emily, who wanted to come along for the adventure and hope her parents could get her to our house so that we could leave in about 15 minutes. Luckily, they all hopped in the car and we actually had 2 extra helpers which we really needed.
I was able to halter Ishtar and lead her to the van and when she saw it, she cushed and wouldn't get up. We tried lifting her and nudging her and she finally rose. We needed a ramp for the van and luckily Jay had positioned a piece of plywood to act as a fence between the actual fence and the van (we haven't got lane ways YET). We took it and made it a ramp and Brenda and Joe filled in as human fencing. Ishtar got up the ramp with a little slippage and Emily got in and held her back while we tried to get the others, who had by this time wandered off to graze! After a little bit of herding. Jack grabbed Hamilton and carried him into the van and the rest followed! We were on our way and reached our destination at 10 past 4! Not bad for beginners!
Once at the Kresko's the fun began! As each animal was brought in it was weighed and readied for shearing. Once again the set up was for one alpaca to be restrained for toenail clipping and any needed shots and then shorn and another one poised and waiting, and we all had jobs. For each station people were needed to hold the animal while others fastened loops around each foot. The alpaca is gently lowered to the mat and the ropes pulled taut so that it can't kick anyone or hurt itself. Then someone swoops in and clips the nails and gives injections. Jamie and Matt begin shearing and first the blanket(prime) is removed collected all in one piece, then the neck (2nds) and then the legs (some not worth saving). Several times, the rope must be tightened or loosened to enable the shearer to turn the animal or get between the front legs. The object is for this all to be done like a fluid dance with all parties knowing their jobs and when to do them and most of all to stay out of the shearers way, but to be close enough to do the job! If this sounds like a tough thing to accomplish, keep in mind that it is all done in about 4 minutes per animal without any mishaps or injuries to anyone or any animal!!! Some cried and bawled (all of ours did!!) , but I think it was mostly due to the indignity and strangeness of it. I'm sorry that our video isn't longer because you would have seen Ishtar get up, and I swear if she could have, she would have smoothed her hair, brushed off her shoulders, given us all a cold glare, and walked off with a huff and as much dignity as she could muster!
In all of my reading, it is recommended that you begin with the lightest animals first and work up to the darkest to avoid mixing darker fibers with light. In reality,the order pretty much depends on who's set up and ready to go first. Since ours were the last to be shorn, I asked the shearers if they would mind doing all of mine on one mat to avoid being contaminated with all of the other colors. No matter how hard you try to clean the mat between each animal( and I was meticulous at my station!), some fleece seems to find it's way back and I figured that mine would only be contaminated with similar colors. So at the risk of behaving like a diva, I asked for special treatment! Not only that but I wanted a bigger fleece sample for the Ideal Alpaca Community and I wanted it from a specific place on the animal! Jamie and Matt were very happy to oblige, thank goodness! Our four went very smoothly despite a lot of strange noises!
Betty and Dan invited us to stay for a pot luck meal afterwards and we gladly accepted. There was ham barbecue, kolbassi and kraut, no bakes, dirt, and I brought my chocolate angel food cake (made from scratch no less!). I've noticed that many alpaca events wrap up with food and fellowship. We've met so many nice people in this alpaca adventure! Yesterday we added Betty, Dan, Lori, Derek, Barb, Carmen, a nice young marine, and so many others whose names I can't remember.
We thanked our hosts and all who helped us and returned home where we found it was much easier to unload alpacas who are glad to be in a familiar place! They leapt from the van and ran up to the barn!! We all laughed at how easy it was and what we had accomplished today!
They are no longer fluffy and huggable..they look like E.T. with their long skinny necks and huge eyes! They are so thin without fleece!! I gave them extra food last night and this morning. Unfortunately it is raining like mad and the temperature has dropped a bit but I have seen them go into the barn and huddle together for warmth!
I can't wait to get the results of our fleece samples to figure out what characteristics we have in our herd and what we may need to add with our next breeding. For now, anyway, their work is finished and the alpacas can relax, graze and work on growing their fleece for next year and their crias! I'll be busy getting our fleece ready for processing!
May 3, 2009: I decided to put the herd in the barn to be safe so that they would be dry for the shearing. Good thing, too, because it started raining very early this morning and hasn't stopped yet! We had a little bit of cleanup but not much and I guess that's what a barn is for! All in all, they look pretty clean except for Pigpen..oops I mean Hamilton! He gets in to everything and has junk everywhere, but especially in the crook of his neck! Oh well, little boys!
We picked up the van and have it all positioned for loading.
Hopefully the rain will let up in time for the shearing. We are really looking forward to it!
May 2, 2009: This past week was a very busy week. Since the rain seemed to stop for several days in a row, we thought it would be a good time to try to get the barn painted before all of the untreated wood began to rot! So with both Jay and I working on it, we only got about 2/3 of it finished before the rain returned! The good news is that I really like the color (it's called Black Aspen by Sherwin Williams) because t looks like the color of the tree trunks right after the rain. Friday I had the pleasure of participating in an all day shearing at the farm of Diane and Mike Beaver. They set their farm up very efficiently so that the animal was led in, shorn, and led out- all in about 5 minutes per alpaca. It was quite an experience! The shearers, Jamie and Matt, sheared one animal, while the other was led in, restrained, toe nails clipped and bags for fleece readied. I was on the bag marking fleece collection crew. As I learned, there is a proper way to collect the blanket. It should be kind of scooped in to a center piece and held closely so that it can be placed in the bag all in one piece. The shearer then does the neck, legs and belly, which is also collected and bagged. A sample is taken from the blanket for testing and the blanket and legs and neck are weighed separately.
I think I heard the final count was something around 122 at the Beaver's, and then we moved on to the farm of Joette and Jim who own 39 alpacas. Once again, we all took our places and the fun began! There was only one really aggravated alpaca who spat constantly and I think her head was spinning around like the girl in the Exorcist! They just put a towel over her head!! The day ended with a llama being shorn. Joette said that he was her guard llama but that he was afraid of everything!! Seeing the llama next to the alpacas made me realize how different they are. The llama fleece feels much rougher than the alpaca fleece, they are much bigger and the ears are definitely banana shaped compared to the spear shaped alpaca ear.
We are having ours shorn tomorrow and we now have an idea of what to expect! We had to rent a cargo van to move them. Today my job is to keep them dry and try to get all of the dirt and VM (vegetable matter) out of the fleece. I've checked the long range forecast and it says that there is only a 20% chance of rain..I hope that's right because I don't want to close them into the barn for a day. I'm going to try shop vaccing them. One person recommended withholding hay for a day and just feeding grain until they are shorn to keep the VM to a minimum. I'll have my bags all labeled in advance. Wish us luck!!!
April 23, 2009: Let's see..it's been pretty quiet the last week. It's been raining almost every day at least for a little while which makes everything muddy and the alpacas a mess!! The weather is supposed to improve a bit this weekend!
Oh, I just remembered..we had a little situation with the electric fence. I went to turn it off to go in to the pasture first thing in the morning and notice that the power lights were indicating very low power. We were going to a funeral that morning so I really couldn't stay and try to figure out what was going on with it, so I left them for the day reluctantly and when I came back, I called our fence man. He walked me through some possible scenarios...branch on the wires, wires touching..and after several times around the perimeter we figured out that it was the hot wire touching the mesh wire and it was about the size of a pin head, but it was just enough to overload the whole thing and short out. Well, we fixed it temporarily until he can come back and tighten it properly.
Yesterday we had a little bit of a tussle between Ishtar and Dovis. After they finished eating and were just walking around, all of a sudden I saw them with their necks wrapped around each other and pushing. Then Ishtar body slammed Dovis, knocked her down, sat on her then quickly got up. Poor Dovis just looked at me. I swear she was embarrassed! Maybe it was the Heimlich maneuver alpaca style..Dovis had a little drool coming out of her mouth. Other than that, it's been just wonderful getting to know them. Our son's friends came over the other night and helped me herd them into the barn. They enjoyed getting to see the animals up close and being able to touch them. I think Hamilton likes the attention and surprisingly I think Dovis does too!
I finally bought a scale because the time is coming when I'll have to give them their Dectomax again and I'll have a more accurate weight for them.
I also got Dr. Evan's Field Manual, 3rd edition. What a great source for everything you need to know...and it's all in one place!
Now our next thing will be to figure out how to get them shorn. Seems the shearers don't come for so few animals and we don't have a carrier because as I've said before, I didn't think I'd be taking them anywhere! I'm looking into U-haul for the day to take them to another farm! Stay tuned!
April 14, 2009: Well, I've done what I didn't want to do...let my journal lapse. I've been so busy with volunteer activities and Easter preparations and the flu that it just got away from me! Well, now we'll get caught up.
We finally got our alpaca pellets and they love them! I had Kevin build long narrow feeders for them and they are pefect for the pellets and minerals. I had not put rocks into them as I have read numerous times to do. Well, I was sorry I hadn't yesterday. As I said, I had the flu and have been very tired, so I didn't go out to feed them as early as I usually do. I sprinkled the pellets into the feeder, and Flo wolfed them down and started choking. She coughed and barked and drooled until finally she was able to swallow. After that, I put rocks in the feeders. Apparantly, the animal has to pick around the rocks and eats more slowly. VERY scary!
The alpacas and I have been slowly getting acquainted. Ishtar, unfortunately is the leader and she has been very unsociable. The rest have been reluctantly following her lead. When I've entered the area, they've exited. When they've even heard me approaching the pasture they've become very alert and have gone to the far side! Hamilton, Flo and Dovis look like thay would like to approach and Hamilton especially is fascinated by our dogs!
Yesterday we had a breakthrough!! I called our new vet, Dr. Dan, to make an appointment, and as luck would have it, he was in the area. Another stroke of luck was that Jack was off school and had a group of his buddies here (including Ian, who helped us the day they arrived!) which came in handy because we had to herd the alpacas into the barn for the first time and close them into one of the stalls for their check up. I wasn't sure how that would go because they don't seem to like going into a place where they can't see the way out. With the boys assisting me, we managed to get them into the barn in about 5 minutes amazingly! They took to their stall quite well, and all fit without being cramped. Our convertable stalls just passed their first test!
When Dr. Dan arrived, he spent time just letting the alpacas get used to his voice by answering some of our questions and concerns before he even approached them.
Then the fun began! I needed to learn how to administer the deworming medicine(dectomax) by subcutaneous injection. He showed me how to hold the animal next to me and to reach down and feel the hairless part right around what I guess could be called the armpit. Then he showed me how to pull up the skin away from the muscle and inject the medicine. The first one was really easy because it was Dovis and he did it while I held! My turn came and yes, I got to do Ishtar! I'm going to give her a little slack because she IS pregnant and due at the end of June. She must be hormonal! Yesterday I caught her blocking everyone else from the hay and spitting at all of them when they approached her!! I remember being like that when was pregnant and going through the McDonald's drive thru! So it was my turn and I was very nervous. I didn't want to hurt her and it is pretty hard to see, so you just have to feel. Jay dispensed the medicine for us (1 cc per 70 # of body weight).
Dr. Dan held her and she promply cushed (that's alpaca lingo for laid down) and wouldn't stand up for anything! She made noises I had never heard before! I got down on my hands and knees, found that spot and got her!
Aha!! Next was Flo and I did unfortunately stick her and get a little blood. Hamilton went very smoothly. I feel confident that I could do it again next month! Dr. Dan is a patient teacher and he'll be back when our cria's arrive if not before. He has a real fondness for alpacas and told us about working with them and unconciously humming along with them.
As a bonus, he showed me how to express the anal glands of our pug, Minnie! Have you ever seen that commercial with the dog dragging his butt on the carpet? Minnie goes in circles! Now I know how to help her, thanks to latex gloves and a little lubricant! She now has a skip in her step!! What will we be doing next!!
When I went out this morning, I found my alpacas waiting for me at the gate and when I approached, they slowly moved, but not far. They actually hung around while I did my duties. This afternoon, they stayed in the barn with me and ate. We are making progress! Lots of great photos!
March 25, 2009: All seems to be going well at Laurel Highlands Alpacas! The alpacas have settled in and are getting acquainted with their new home. As has been the rumor, they are very easy to care for. I go out in the morning and in about 10 minutes have scooped poop, replenished hay and refilled water (and the past 2 mornings chopped a little ice in the water). They are very curious and watch everything we do. They especially like to stand at the fence and watch if a car is going up or down the driveway! I hope they aren't wishing that Mike would come back and take them home!
I've been busy during the day, but when I return, I repeat my duties and spend a little time with them. I've been reading The Camelid Companion by Marty McGee Bennett and have been practicing some of the techniques she describes. Yesterday with the help of my friend Janet, I was able to finally coral baby Flo and baby Hamilton and get my hands on their fleece! I was anxious to see what color they really were! Because our grass is just coming in, rolling in the dirt is their main activity besides eating and they've all turned a nice color of dusty dirt! Flo is indeed a light fawn and Hamilton is even lighter. The Mom's are a little more wily and elusive. I'll have to read further and get one more gate before I can single them out, I'm afraid. Janet survived the experience and has volunteered to "alpaca sit" if we need her!
Next up, I wanted to introduce our dogs because, after all, we will all live here together! Who knew that pugs were herding dogs? Our Minnie took right after them and got them running in circles and then separated them into two groups and got them all to stand still while Zeus just stayed out of the way! Then she got tired and sat down! I think she just had to let them know that she was here first and is still the top dog. I have a new partner in alpaca handling!
It is interesting that they like to sleep outside every night. I'll be interested to see if they go inside the barn when it rains. My guess is that they won't.
March 23, 2009: This was the first full day with them. Jack and I went to check on them, give them hay and check their water before I took him to school. They ate lots of hay, drank some water (the temp went down to 17* last night so there was a thin layer of ice on top). they looked pretty cozy though all together! They move in unison. They turn their heads together in the same direction. If one walks, they all walk. What they say about them all doing their business in one spot is true! I cleaned up one area of alpaca poop! Amazing!
March 22, 2009: They have arrived! At about 6:30 this evening, Mike Cates of Rocking Box Alpacas pulled up in the longest trailer I've ever seen (26' he told me) attached to a Dodge Ram pickup. When I saw it, I had serious doubts as to whether he would be able to get through our serpentine maze of a driveway to our designated pasture. The previous owner loved trees so much that she had the driveway built around the trees and at times, it makes getting in and out a challenge especially for excavating equipment, topsoil delivery, fence builders and their equipment and now alpaca transporters! Mike got out of his truck, walked the intended route, got back in his truck and drove through like he was driving a tiny sports car! At one point, his front tire was actually off the side of the drive and I was just waiting for the whole thing to roll down the hill sideways! Because of his expertise, that of course did not happen! He wasn't one bit worried!
One hurdle under our belts! Next up, getting the herd into our pasture..of course the upper pasture. Now we aren't talking about a huge area here but it's amazing how fast alpacas are! Mike knew I was a novice because I didn't have any halters or leads (I'm not planning to take them anywhere, I reasoned, why would I need them?) Well, I found out! Thank goodness my son and his buddies Ian, A.J., and Luke were here because they were able to form a human fence to help herd the alpacas into the pasture. I had to record the whole escapade! And thank goodness Mike is such an experienced handler! First Dovis made her appearance and of course wanted to go a different direction than where we wanted her to go. Mike figured that if he got one going in the right direction the rest would follow and that is exactly what happened. Once we got them safely inside the bottom pasture, we needed to get them into the upper pasture.
Jay with his herding wands and the boys with their human fence tried to get those critters where they were supposed to go...but...the alpacas had other ideas and boy, can they run!! Finally after a sufficient game of alpaca tag, Mike got close enough to catch the cria, scooped him up and whisked him with the rest in hot pursuit into the upper pasture- all I might add without breaking a sweat or losing his patience with us beginners! Then the alpacas got comfortable and started to roll around on the ground. Mike said that was a good sign..that they must be relaxing. Good!
After Mike got us settled, he drove his big rig down our steep and windy front drive with nary a care! The alpacas stood along the fence and looked longingly after him....
We got them settled with hay and water and let them get acquainted with their new digs. It must have felt good to be on the ground and to stretch their legs a bit. They had been in their luxury trailer for 6 days. Mike let us look inside where he had several other alpacas to be delivered. It was pretty comfy in there! Clean as a whistle! Smelled better than some teenagers' rooms!
Our alpacas are here and our adventure is just beginning!!
The fence is finished! Dan and Mark finished hanging the final 3 gates this afternoon and gave us a little lesson on the electric fence. 9000 volts sounds like a lot to me but I guess since we have bear and coyote we need all the protection we can get for our alpacas. It looks wonderful..they did a fabulous job and at a very fair price.
March 14, 2009: The fence has been progressing very quickly thanks in part to the weather cooperating! We are getting it finished in the nick of time! Our transporter, Mike Cates tells me that our animals will be loading from Oregon on the 17th..I guess he's picking up others before he gets them. He has many stops along the way. I guess despite this crazy economy the alpaca business is still a good place to be. I tell my husband that I will be able to see my investment when I look out of our window!
Yesterday we picked up hay from Alpaca Ventures in Sidman. What better place to get just the right hay than from another alpaca farm? She has 12% protein hay and says her alpacas love it. Her farm hand Wayne told us how they had planted an African grass called Teff because it was recommended to them and the animals didn't like it so they now use it for bedding because it is soft and doesn't get stuck in the fleece.. My niece Skye had been in Ethiopia with Habitat for Humanity International several years ago and she old us about the bread they ate..coincidentally made of Teff...I thought it sounded familiar!
We did decide though that even though we will be using a relatively small amount of hay that it would be more time effective to have it delivered! It took us 2 trips and 4 hours (partly because we were so busy gabbing in the car that we forgot where we were going on the second trip and had to turn around and go back!). It was time well spent together!
Our fence should be finished on Monday. Dan and his crew Mark and Bruce just have to hang the gates, build a buck board and hook up the electric fence. I think we picked the right fence builders! Dan took my very rough outline of fenced in area and made it look very elegant and natural. He suggested that we add a small holding pen off to the side of the barn to facilitate animal movement and herding. I guess it helps that he has livestock himself.
This weekend we are doing small things like removing leaves, moving some last minute bushes that are toxic to alpacas ( rhododendron and laurel) and picking up rocks from the pasture.
Unfortunately with all of the building, our little pasture has been pretty much decimated. I'm sure that the forage will come back though and we have ordered more of the special pasture mix to spread as soon as we can.
March 8, 2009: The day is approaching!! Our alpaca herd will leave Hillsboro Oregon on March 16 and arrive in Pennsylvania 6 days later! It's like getting the nursery ready for a new baby! I'm nervous and excited at the same time. I've been reading everything about alpacas that I can get my hands on. I've been to seminars, webinars, talked to other breeders, gone to workshops, learned to spin the fiber, been knitting like there is no tomorrow, but will soon learn that there is nothing like hands on experience with your own alpacas!
I go to pick up our hay this week and it will be nice and fresh. The food is being ordered so that too will be fresh. The vet is lined up. I still have to get a few items to 'stock the nursery" so to speak, but all in all I think we're as ready as we'll ever be.
The biggest news, and my biggest worry, has been the fence- or lack thereof. Dan, from Carney Cattle and Livestock Fencing knew how anxious I was..could have been my bugging him with phone calls and e-mails...but he rearranged his schedule to get our fence started last week. He and his crew worked tirelessly and we were very lucky to get a beautiful sunny 60* day. They accomplished quite a bit despite the fact that we are in an extremely rocky area. He told me that he's been able to get through just about anything anywhere else except here! Fortunately he's also exceptionally persistant and I think if he's have had dynamite he would have used it. His determination paid off and he was able to get in almost all of the intended posts. The alternative would have been to use our trees as fence posts. Not the optimal situation, but he told me he'd get our fence in and he's doing just that.
I started this journal to keep you (and me) up to date on the progress of our little farm and alpaca business. I plan to chronicle all of our experiences-good and bad. This is really going to be a learning experience for me!
