You should protect your alpacas against predators. The alpaca is a prey in the animal world. In Canada, his enemies are the coyotes, wolves and stray dogs and also domestic dogs. Somewhere in my lectures I heard that without the presence of their master, the domestic dogs can be a threat for alpacas. They dig a hole under the fence and go cut young alpaca’s throat. The ancestral instinct resurfaced when they are confronted with their natural prey. It is not any dog that go well with alpacas as shepherd.

It seems that only the Montagne des Pyrénées or the Maremmo are reliable on this matter. If you want  a shepherd dog for your alpacas, we strongly recommend that you do your own research first.

Some breeders use a llama to guard the alpaca herd. The llama is more aggressive than the alpaca and protect them. But some llamas can be difficult. I

If your fences around the perimeter are high and solid enough, you would not need any other measure to protect your alpacas. By the way if your alpacas are anxious about some animal nearby, one of them will shout an alarm cry: It sounds like a pulley that you forgot to grease in years!

The deer could also be a danger for alpacas. Evidently it is not a predator but his feces may contain infected larvae which snails loved and then alpacas ate infected snails, got the Lyme disease and die.There is two solutions to this problem: high enough fences so that deers cannot come into your pasture and a systematic maintenance of the immediate surrounds of your fences.

The surrounds must be clear so that snails would not like to go there because it is not humid.

FENCING

The nightmare of new breeders. Wath kind of fence do I need?

All depends on your environment. If you have deers or canines nearby, don’t hesitate to install an 8 feet fence (21/2 - 3 meters) for your perimeter (12 feet poles, 3 feet down in the ground).

It is better to avoid treated wood poles because alpacas will probably taste them and they contain contaminants for alpacas.

The link must be resistant with thight knots. The game fence 96 inches (8 feet or 2.5m) with thight knots will do fine. The meshes are finer at the base and larger at the top so that crias cannot have their little head stuck in the fence.

A 2inches by 4 inches mesh is also doing well.

It may be necessary to install outside your perimeter a two feet mesh on the ground (or 6 inches under) to prevent animals to dig a hole under your fence.

A 4 feet (1 ½ meter) fence is enough in the inside. And lots of doors!

DIVIDING THE SPACE - THE PENS

You have to know that alpacas like to see each other all the time. If you have a perfect pasture for your weaning crias and they can only see their mummies in a corner, they will be in that corner all the time. If you have the perfect shelter for your males but from there they cannot see the female’s shelter, they won’t go in there.

Here are some type of pens that you may need: a clean birthing pen for new mothers and crias, a quarantine or isolation pen, a newcomers pasture or/and pen, a 6 feet by 8 feet catch pen for the alpaca training, a special area for weaned crias, another for young males, another for adult males, etc.

Think about a trailer access for your alpacas transportation, some shelters in the pastures to protect your alpacas from the sun in summer and from the cold wind in winter.

In the barn, you have to have enough eaters so that all alpacas can have access (18-24 inches per alpaca) including the youngs and those inferiors in the herd’s hierarchy.

The shelter or the barn is useful to protect the crias and their mothers when it is really cold outside. The alpacas will use them in case of ice storm or strong cold winds in winter and to be protected from the sun in summer.

Alpacas must have access to fresh water all the time.

EQUIPMENT

The following is a list of the equipment and material that you will need if you want to breed alpacas:

Drinking stalls: the stalls provided with valves at the bottom, like those used for horses, do not work for alpacas because they do not push with their nostrils in order to drink. So choose stalls that have no valves at the bottom.

Feeders: Plan enough space for hay and for pellets; a space that is 18-24 inches wide is necessary for each alpaca.

Mineral tubs: a little tub that measures about 8 inches and that you can hang on a wall is sufficient.

Individual bowls: even if alpacas have no idea of what “individuality” means, individual bowls may be useful if you have to give one animal a special diet, or for any other reason.

Heating buckets: these buckets have an integrated electric wire at the bottom which prevents water from freezing. Plan to have one in each pasture. They are very useful in northern countries!

Halters: The Zephyr Alpaca halter for alpacas is very good because it is adjustable. You may need three sizes: small, medium and large.

Leads: Plan on small leads (6-8 feet long) and longer ones (10-12 feet long). You will use them for training.

Scale: The digital scale is easier to use than the sling scale to weigh your crias. If you choose a digital scale, look for one that has a precise weighing measurement of .1 pound.

Clippers: we use the Heinnegger 220 Watts and combs that are made for sheep. Very satisfactory.

Wool shears and toenail clipper.

Shearing table: You can easily shear our alpacas on the ground if you have devices that will keep them still.

Sorting table: you can make it yourself, it’s easy. Buy metal legs that can fold, then make a wooden frame on which you will hook a pin that is resistant (with holes no larger than 1 cm) Then fix the metal legs to the two pieces of wood that you have put across the frame and voilà!

The alpaca is not an animal that needs much care. But you have to feed it twice a day (see section on Nutrition), you have to provide good hay and fresh water at all times and clean the pens and pastures daily. These tasks, to be done morning and evening, take only about half an hour to accomplish.

You will need a deworming program that is well adapted to your environment and to your alpacas. You will also need a larger health program to plan for annual shearing, trimming of toenails, vaccination, supply of vitamins for the crias, care for the female alpaca that just gave birth and for the newborn crias. In other words, a basic health care program that you will abide by.

The techniques used to insert microchips, to collect blood for DNA analysis (for registration) and to inject medication are taught by most of the breeders from whom you purchase your alpacas.

At Hemmingford Alpacas, we offer all new customers hands-on sessions on what you should know about raising and breeding alpacas so you can start off on the right track. You will learn shearing techniques and all those mentioned above directly on our farm and under our “kind” supervision!

You do not need to have extensive knowledge of agriculture or to know much about the health of animals to breed alpacas. No experience is even required. All you need is to care enough about alpacas to spend time on learning about their needs and then to abide by them.

BIO SECURITY

As a new alpaca breeder, you should establish a bio security program with the help of your veterinarian. You should discuss vaccination programs (Tasvax), prevention of parasites by deworming procedures (Ivomec, Panacur, Dectomax etc), quarantine procedures for newcomers, protection against BVD (Bovine Diarrhea Virus) . But before you do any of these things, we strongly recommend that you do research on these subjects. Most likely, your veterinarian is not familiar with alpacas.

Here are some important works that you can refer to and that you can buy on the Net :
The Complete Alpaca Book, Eric Hoffman et al.;
·      The Alpaca Field Manual, Dr Norman Evans;
·      The Lama and Alpaca Neonatal Care, Drs. Smith, Timm &     Long.

The many studies on camelids reported in these books will help your veterinarian choose the best products for your alpacas. These books also include lists of the main diseases that could affect alpacas and their appropriate treatment.

If you send your female to another farm to have her breed, do not be surprised if the breeder, like us at Hemmingford Alpacas, insists on having a BVD test done on buffy coat cells (PCR). This test proves that your alpaca is not a PI (“Permanently Infected”) alpaca capable of infecting your healthy alpacas with a deadly disease.

A breeder that follows a good bio security program will also insist on having a coprology test done (stools analysis) in order to make sure that your alpaca does not have parasites. The breeder should also inspect the alpaca’s fiber to make sure it is not infected with mites that are contagious.

These measures are very important and you should apply them on your own farm at all times. They aim at protecting all alpacas, your own and hose of your fellow breeders.
NUTRITION

Your animals are well protected, your fencing is adequate so now that your alpacas are coming, how to keep them in good health?

Nutrition is the first part of the equation, the part that you can control to have top shape alpacas. The other part is the immunity system that may vary from one alpaca to the other.

This section will give you some basic informations about nutrition and will be useful if you are a new breeder and not a veterinarian or an agronomist.

For a more exhaustive information we refer you to “The Complete Alpaca Book” from Eric Hoffman and al. so that you can learn how to balance nutritive elements contained in your hay and your pastures to the specific need of the alpaca.

Alpacas like Canada grass (or orchard grass or Kentucky grass). They also like alfalfa but this last plant should be given no more than 20% in hay or pasture because of his high protein contain.

Clover should also be restricted for alpacas. Mine love white clover but we manage to cut them before the flower fully opens so that the alpacas do not eat an eventual microscopic fungus that the clover flower may contain.

The hay may be purchased in a producer near your place or you can go through a hay broker. To estimate your needs you have to know that an alpaca eats about 2 hay bales (40 pounds bale) per month. It is of the most importance to give your alpaca only a well dried hay that does not contains any mould nor mycotoxins.

A 10% protein hay is enough (if you give supplementation and minerals) but if your hay is at 14-15% protein you should adjust the rations consequently.

A hay analysis by a competent laboratory is a good idea: the results will show you the minerals, vitamins, proteins contain and you will be able to measure exactly your supplementation according to the various need of your different status alpacas (gestating females, lactating females, crias, males etc.).

A water analysis is also a good idea to know if the mineral contain is correct for alpacas.

There is different products on the market to supplement your alpacas. Dr Norman Evans in his book “Alpaca Field Manual” makes an evaluation of the different kinds of pellets that you can use.The food intakes writed on the bag are guide lines and are generally based on a 8-12% protein hay.

Besides the variation in function of your hay, you have to vary your alpacas’ food intake for each alpaca based on your periodical evaluation of his/her needs.

To measure the body score of an alpaca, you touch the vertebral spine: if there is a hollow the animal is thin, if there is a bump the animal is fat. Where an alpaca is of ideal body score, you will feel a 45 degrees angle with the spine.

The periodical weighing is also a good mean to keep the food intake of your alpacas in accordance to their nutritional needs.Nutrition is very important in the breeding of alpacas so we advise to read the more you can on that matter.

A last little tip: when you change food do it progressively so that you avoid health problems. When we travel with our females to another farm for breeding, we always take a hay ball to give to the other breeder so that the food change can be done progressively.

Other warning signs of the deficiency are: alpaca moves around less, walks slowly and/or with short choppy steps, sits around looking miserable, and feet begin to turn outward. Darker animals seem to be more at risk.

Prevention is simple: regular dosing with injectable, A ,D & E solutions (available from your vet). Over Autumn/Winter/Spring, your alpacas should be dosed every 3-4 months with 2 ml each of injectable A,D&E. This is particularly important for cria and pregnant females, but most breeders will dose all their stock at the same time. Stock should then be dosed again mid-summer. There are also dry forms available to add to feed, but of course then you may not know how much your alpacas are receiving. However, if you prefer this method of dosing, speak to your vet. Or buy a soluable product and drench your alpacas!

Another source of Vitamin D is lucerne hay, which can also be fed in the form of lucerne chaff. While this is undoubtedly a valuable addition to the diet, it is probably risky to rely on this source of Vitamin D only – play it safe, and inject regularly!

A word of warning: we know of one breeder who had a cria diagnosed with this deficiency despite regular dosing. It appears some animals may be more at risk than others, and require more frequent dosing than the standard 2 monthly injections. So keep an eye out for this syndrome even if you are dosing regularly.

Both vitamins A & E are essential in reproduction, and lack of these vitamins can lead to infertility, abortion, stillbirths and retained placentas. Vitamin E also aids the immune system and other body functions.

We have heard conflicting advice about lucerne and vitamin D: some authorities claim lucerne stores Vitamin D and is therefore a good natural feed additive, other sources state the opposite, that lucerne leaches Vitamin D from the animals cells! You might want to do further research on this.

Worming and Vaccination are two of these critical care issues – worming deals with internal parasites, while vaccination deals with the protection of animals against common diseases. It is unfortunate that at this point in time, there are no medicines, anthelmintics or vaccinations that have been developed specifically for alpacas, or even tested as suitable for them. Because of this, the efficacy of some drugs may not be as desirable as we might hope for. It is my personal belief that sheep vaccines probably don’t do a great deal for alpacas, however, given the value of the animals we are dealing with, some protection is better than none! Anthelmintics (worm drenches) can however be expected to be effective as in this case it is the parasite you are targeting, and not the alpaca!

Worming:

Alpacas have been found to be somewhat resistant to internal parasites. However, common NZ farming practice is likely to mean your alpacas will become infested. The life cycle of most internal parasites is : eggs hatch into lavae, which climb grass stems to be ingested (eaten) by stock, and develop into adults within the gut. The adults attach themselves to the lining of the intestinal tract to obtain nutrients from the host animal, and in time, produce eggs which pass out of the animal in its dung, from where the eggs hatch and the cycle begins again. It is important to realise that in egg form, parasites of any type are nearly indestructible, often being resistant to being boiled or frozen, and certainly impervious to absorption. You cannot treat your pasture for worms, the only feasible option is to drench the affected animals and kill most of its worm burden in the gut. Anthelmintics are a poison, the idea being to poison the worms without harming the host, so dose rates are important.

It is probable that some worms will survive the dosing process, and in any case, your alpaca will continue to pick new larvae from grazing, so expect that you will need to drench your alpacas from time to time. We use an injectable drench – dectomax, as this treats both external (mites) and intestinal (worms) parasites, and doesn’t sting like other injectables. Alpacas can tolerate a degree of infestation, however if your alpaca is under stress, this burden can increase to intolerable, and their is one particular intestinal worm, known as Barbers Pole, which can be fatal.

Stocking density of alpacas in New Zealand is far higher than that in their native South America. The more animals you have per hectare, the higher the rate of parasitic burden that is likely to be found. Also, the habit of many lifestyler farmers of keeping animals in one pasture for extended periods of time (or of having only a few paddocks to rotate), means the animals are kept grazing over areas that are likely to have high infestation rates. Cross grazing with other livestock (sheep, cattle, deer, horses) is also likely to increase the infestation rates as these animals have a lower natural resistance, and their habit of dunging indiscriminately spreads eggs all round the pasture.
Although alpacas have communal dung piles, which helps to limit the spread of worm eggs, overstocking may cause these piles to spread, creating further problems.

Drench Resistant Worms

Many species of worms are becoming resistant to drenches – this is a farming problem that is NZ, and world wide. For this reason it is often now not recommended that you routinely worm your animals on a calendar basis, but rather determine whether your animals require drenching before doing so. If your alpacas becomes sick, or is not thriving (and you have elimated phosphorus deficiency as a cause), or develops a pot belly, ask your vet to do a faecal egg count to determine if your alpaca will benefit from dosing.

The Camelid Stomach

Alpacas and llamas have three stomachs. The first stomach is a big “fermentation vat” for all the hay and grass that they eat. The second and third stomachs extract the nutritional components from their food intake. So to keep your alpacas and llamas healthy, you must keep the first stomach, the fermentation vat, in a good, steady, working state.

Pasture Grass and Hay

Your pasture grass or hay should be about twelve percent (12%) protein. You can contact your county agriculture extension office for information on how and where to test your pasture grass. Typically a grass or hay analysis will cost about $15 to $20 US. If you are buying hay, get “horse quality” hay. You’ll need about one square 70 lb bale per animal per week, plus another ten percent (10%) hay for contingency. For example, if some females come to your ranch for breeding. If you need to feed hay to 6 adult alpacas for 16 weeks, your would buy (6*16) = 96 plus 0.10 * 96 = 9.6, or 106 bales.

The hay that you buy should not be moldy. Do not let the hay deliverer unload any hay from his truck until you have done a “smell test” on several bales. It should have a sweet grass smell. If it smells moldy, it is moldy. So don’t buy bad grass.

Regular Meal Schedule

It doesn’t matter what time of the day you feed your alpacas supplemental pellets, provided that you feed them at a regular time each day. This helps to keep their first stomach in good working order.

The alpaca stomach generates a lot of heat. So you can change the feeding schedule to be best timed with the year’s season. For example, if you live in a very hot summer climate, you might feed them in the evening, rather than the day, to avoid generating unnecessary body heat during the hot part of the afternoon.

Feeding Supplemental Pellets

Many alpaca owners are feeding far too many supplemental pellets. Their is a relationship between how much an alpacas eats and the production of fine or coarse fiber. Overfeeding alpacas and produces coarse fiber! While we don’t want to starve our animals to produce fine fiber, the goal is to feed then efficiently.

There are different brands of quality alpaca pellets, which usually come in 40 to 50 lb. bags. A pellet with about fifteen percent (15%) protein is recommended. Each bag has an end label that gives the nutritional values, amount of pellets for males, non-pregnant females, pregnant and lactating females, and crias (babies). Typically, pregnant and lactating females should get 1 lb of pellets per day. Males and non-pregnant females should get 1/2 lb a day, and crias should get 1/4 to 1/3 lb of pellets per day.

In winter, when no pasture grass is available and the alpacas are eating hay, I increase the amount of daily pellets by about fifteen percent. In Summer in my area (East Texas), I cut way back on daily pellets because the animals have access to an abundance of pasture grass. Moreover it is so hot that the animals don’t go in the hot sun to eat. Rather they sit before fans all day. So they are not moving around very much, and therefore not burning as many calories. They need less food in Summer.

Alfalfa

I also mix alfalfa with my pellets for certain animals, at certain times. However, you want to be careful with overfeeding alfalfa. Too much alfalfa interferes with balance of available calcium and potassium in an animal’s system. I typically feed 5 parts pellets to 1 part alfalfa for my pregnant females. Males only get alfalfa in the winter.

Other Supplements

Other food supplements include minerals and probiotics. Alpacas and llamas need selenium and other minerals that are not available in some North American soils. Minerals come in the form of loose granules and as compressed blocks. I have found that mineral blocks are significantly less expensive than loose granules. When you buy mineral block, do not buy salt blocks. You probably will not find mineral blocks that are made specifically for alpacas and llamas. So buy either the equine or goat mineral blocks.

Probiotics are another important food supplement. Probiotics have micro-organisms that help the alpaca’s first stomach break down the tough cellulose in hay and grass. There are two categories of probiotics: those based on lactobacillus, and those based on brewers years. Both are excellent. If you see that an alpaca has diarrhea, probiotics help get its digestive system back to normal. You can sprinkle about one teaspoon of probiotics over the daily pellets for several days. I always offer probiotics to my alpacas and llamas after administering oral worming medication..

Human medicine attributes this vulnerability, known as immune senescence,  to changes in the traditional immune system (immunoglobulins). However, because stress is involved, we need to look at the gut microflora, which are the front lines of the immune system. Nutritional factors can cause these beneficial microorganisms to be weaker than normal, thus allowing potentially fatal infections to get to major organs.

Many of the infections that kill older animals can be shaken off by healthy animals of younger age.

Nutritional factors to be aware of are:

• Condition of the teeth – can the animal effectively grind the roughage, which should dominate the diet at this age?
• Accessibility to feed – are the older animals penned with younger, more aggressive alpacas? These latter animals may prevent adequate feed intake and cause stress.
• Proper nutrition for a nonproductive animal – nonreproductively active alpacas have different energy, protein, and vitamin and mineral needs. Make sure oldsters have access to good grass hay and a vitamin/mineral mix. A;so, control parasites, which can rob them of valuable nutrients.
• Causes of stress – while this is always a good idea in all alpacas, it should be a priority in maintaining geriatric animals. Stress can come from abrupt changes in weather, extremes of temperature, inadequate shelter, access to food, the loss of a pen mate or care giver (this is especially true when older animals are sold as pets, Well-meaning new owners can accidentally kill their geriatric pet.), even routine handling for shearing and toe trimming.

Prevention is the key

As with alpacas of all ages that experience stress, the regular use of a daily probiotic such as MSE granulated, and drench or paste after stressful events can maintain your elderly animals as long as biologically possible. Because stress is a major culprit, and probiotics help strengthen and repair the gut microflora, probiotics like MSE can help avoid immune senescence. This disorder is not inevitable and there s indications that it can be reversed.

• You need to keep “as-fed” and “dry matter” intake straight. What I mean is, know what you are working with and make sure you are feeding the “as-fed” amount. We’ll show you this below.
• Bunk management is a tell-tale of what is going on with your animal. Just because you have figured out what the pen should be fe, doesn’t mean they are going to eat it. Watch your feed funk…you’ll get a feel for what they are eating and it will change with environmental and other factors.

Comparing pasture dry matter and hay dry matter demonstrates the application of dry matter and how it is used to compare “apples to apples”.

• Pasture grass is usually around 30 to 35% dry matter. Hay is ussually 88 to 93% dry matter.
• The recommended daily dry matter intake (DMI) for an adult alpaca is between 1.5 and 2.0% of body weight.
• So, for a 150 pound alpaca the DMI is 2.3 to 3.0 pounds per day.
• Lets use the value 3.0 for DMI, 35% for DM pasture gras and 90% for hay. The as-fed required for pasture grass is 3.0/0.35= 8.6 pounds of pasture grass per day.
• The required hay would be 3.0/0.90 = 3.3 pounds per day as-fed.

Now lets say we are looking at a group of 2 year old females that weigh 120 pounds…What would the DMI be for them at 2.0% BW? What would the “as-fed” amount be if the hay is 92.3% DM?

• First we convert the BW to kilograms: 120/2.2 = 54.5 kg
• Now we can take the 65.9 and determine the DMI by 54.5 X 0.02 = 1.09 kg DMI
• We now convert the DMI to “as-fed” by taking 1.09/0.923 = 1.18 kg/d or 2.60 pounds/d.

Their physical needs are simple and “user friendly” for the new owner as well as the experienced alpaca farmer:

Shelter

Since alpacas have survived several millennia in the harsh cold of the high Andes, they have developed a remarkable ability to be comfortable during the worst of our winters (if only the same could be said of their human caretakers). A three-sided shelter with the open side facing east-southeast is usually adequate. The maximum number of animals you plan for that area should determine the size of shelter.

In warm weather, alpacas need shade and airflow. Make sure your shelter and/or barn has adequate ventilation and be prepared to use fans in these areas on warm, muggy days.

Clean, fresh water should also be available in or near the shelter. Alpacas do not consume much water, but they will resist drinking stale or dirty water.

Diet

The efficiency of the alpaca is especially noticeable when you consider that they are highly developed ruminants and require much less food intake than most animals their size.

If your pastures have adequate natural, non-fertilized grass, they will content themselves to simply graze there. Alternating them between pasture areas allows the grass to re-grow and fecal parasites to die before reusing the areas. Ideally, rotation schedules at least two weeks long will allow these desirable events to occur.

You can supplement grass intake with a low-protein grass hay. A little alfalfa is okay, but you need to watch protein levels. Remember, your alpacas are designed to utilize their food in a very efficient manner. Put their hay in an area where it can stay dry and in a container that minimizes waste.

Finally, most alpaca owners will add a small amount of commercial grain prepared for alpacas to their animals’ daily diet. The important value of this is to provide selenium and other necessary vitamins, which cannot be obtained from grass and hay in the United States.

Acreage

The general rule is that five to ten alpacas can be easily and efficiently maintained on one acre of usable land. This will vary depending on your farm layout, the nature of your land, and other factors. Obviously, if your pasture has a little grass and a lot of alpacas, you will need to provide additional high-quality grass hay for your herd.

Fencing

Alpacas are non-aggressive animals that do not “challenge” fences like other types of livestock. Indeed, your fencing should be designed more toward keeping predators out than keeping your alpacas in. This suggests a height of at least five feet and mesh openings no more than four inches wide.

Veterinary Care

Under normal circumstances, your medical expenses for your alpacas will be minimal. These are essentially hardy and healthy animals, toughened by 5000 years of life in the hostile environment of the high Andes, and protected by stringent import guidelines maintained by the US government and AOBA.

The standard regimen of care for the alpaca includes annual inoculations and monthly worming. Toenails need to be trimmed every six months. As you become more experienced, you may want to handle most of these procedures and utilize your veterinarian only on an as-needed and consultative basis.

One of your first tasks in researching your alpaca options should be to locate a qualified veterinarian near you who has specialized experience in treating camelids, preferably alpacas. Your state veterinary association will be able to assist you in this search.

Remember the alpaca industry is maturing and changing quickly. For the last decade we have relied on “venerable ancestors” to breed to our females. If we are truly progressing we need to be using the (best) offspring of these forefathers. In a successful breeding programme, the son will supplant his sire in 3 – 4 years.

BUY IN OR CONTRACT IN ?

Whether to buy a stud or contract in stud services is a decision all breeders get to eventually as their female numbers mount and consequently stud fees add up.

The move from stud services to stud ownership should be phased in, with three steps, as the herd grows.

1. Buying in stud services
2. Buying in stud services, negotiating for discounted fees or free matings as part of a package purchase
3. Purchasing a stud, or a share in a stud.

Less expensive than buying, is breeding your own. To do this you have to own a very high quality female, buy in top stud services for her, and hope for the birth of a male at the top end of the potential genetic spectrum of both parents. Genetic statistics indicate that occurrence of such an event is rare.

There are pro’s and con’s to the buy/contract decision:

BUYING:

You save stud fees, but it is expensive to get a good proven quality stud

Tendency to go for cheaper unproven males, giving fertility, pre-potency and progeny risk, and management problems in the bring-in phase

Physical management of a stud on the farm can be a hassle, especially if the male is not getting constant work

Getting a young male “settling” his first female (getting her pregnant) can at times be difficult

Need to get into “a whole new business line” offering stud services to offset the cost of the purchase (requiring capital costs of stud transport, time, and stud master knowledge)

Still need outside stud fees for your stud’s offspring and for your best female(s) to improve your herd

Re-sale values of stud males tend to plummet with age

In all but the exceptional circumstance the reward of owning your own stud is not great. In USA I asked the owner of the male winning its colour age class in AOBA, and the Reserve Colour Champion, how many outside matings (at US$3,000) he, as a small breeder, had achieved. The answer was 4 this year, 3 last year.

CONTRACTING:

• Proven stud arrives for a fortnightly visit – or your girl goes to him
• Stud management, bring-on risk and additional business hassle left to the professional
• There is an ability to switch stud should the progeny from the combination of genetics not be what you expected
• Using different stud males ensures wide genetics and avoids line breeding within your herd
• Regular payments are required for stud service fees – although overall “value” should be given through the offspring and return service guarantees

I know one breeder who “finances” the year’s stud fees through the sale of one female, but the fees of course produce several females each year to replace her.

We are finding that purchasing “part” of a higher quality stud male gives smaller breeders the ability to achieve a higher genetic level, for a lower price long term, and with more flexibility, than the full own stud ownership option.

Pedigree: Check the registry for the pedigree of the stud and your female for common ancestors, especially with Australasia’s small genetic base.  Line breeding is, in my opinion, an absolute no-no in these animals at this stage of genetic knowledge.

Colour:  Always expect a few exceptions here, but (for example) if you are breeding for whites it is best to breed to a white that is homozygous white, not heterozygous, especially if some of your females display brown spots or fawn glazing.  Breeding for black is genetically the easiest.  Breeding for greys, the hardest. (see our article on this)

Conformation.  All alpacas should have perfect conformation.  But if your female has, for example, slightly sickle hocks do not mate her to a male with a similar trait. If you have a preference for nose shapes, select that way, similarly with body size.

Presence and temperament are at least in part genetic.  If these things are important for you, select for them in your purchase and stud decisions.

Fibre traits are many, and very few stud males are strong in all aspects.  Micron and shearweight are generally seen to be the most important in huacaya, lustre in suri.

But micron and shearweight are contra-indicative – lower micron and higher shearweight do not easily go hand-in-hand.

Remember Don Julio Barreda’s long given advice to fix density in your herd before attempting to improve fineness.

Also consider lustre and fleece character (crimp or style).

Crimp style is becoming a more important breeding selection criteria.

The importance of crimp is still debated. But recent  research (is making things a lot clearer.

In alpaca there is a close correlation between fineness, curvature and crimps per inch (cpi). Higher curvature figures correlate positively to a higher number of crimps per inch, and negatively with fibre diameter (i.e. high curve, and high cpi mean finer fibre.)

Consider uniformity (the percentage of the total fleece that is usable in top grade production). Uniformity changes considerably with age.

Also consider uniformity across your herd. When mixing fleece to make a product, the constituent fleeces should be similar (uniform). Look at your herd statistics, not just individual alpacas, and see how you can select and use studs to minimise your within herd divergence.