Peace in the Sun

Sunday started off as a very foggy morning, something quite surprising considering there is not a drop of moisture in the forecast.  At first I wasn’t sure if I was looking at smoke or fog, one of the local dairies recently had a hay fire that created a lot of smoke and our fire risk right now is very high.  As I let the dogs out I realized that the air did not smell smoky and so thankfully fog it was. 

As we did morning chores we could see the alpacas fleeces were damp from the fog, with dirt clinging to them where they had had a good roll.  The fog soon lifted though and for the rest of the day we were treated to some beautiful sunshine.

The alpacas love the sun and it wasn’t long before many of them were stretching out in their basking poses, flat out on their sides, completely relaxed.  The horses too were indulging in some relaxation, Savannah our mare usually is out grazing for most of the day but took the time yesterday to lie down and enjoy the day.  During the heat of the summer the flies are always buzzing around and they love Savannah, so the poor girl is constantly swatting at them with her tail.  Yesterday there was no such problem and I am sure she enjoyed the chance to just sit and relax without being bitten by flies.

The nearby Air Force Base was quiet all day, no planes flying, no voices coming over loud speakers, no sirens, just quiet.  As the Air Force moves more troops back into the base over the next 18 months or so that will change, so for now we will enjoy the quiet days we have.

It was one of those days when doing chores provides you with a good excuse to be out enjoying the weather, it’s hard not to admire the deep blue skies offset with the vibrant green of the spring growth on the trees, to look down and see little green shoots trying to grow in our dry dusty soil, to look across the yard and see even the wild rabbits stretched out dozing in the sun.

During one of my trips outside the girls all moved over and stood by the gate as they do during the summer months when we let them out to graze.  They thought the day was nice enough for them to go out, but what little dry land wheat we have growing is not established enough to let the girls out on it yet.  It would only take them one day to eat those sweet shoots down to nothing!

By evening chores the whole herd was in a pretty relaxed mood.  They were ready for feed as usual, but whereas on cold or windy days there is plenty of shoving and pushing as I enter the pasture with their feed, today they were mellow, taking their time to come over to the gate and strolling to the hay feeders and feeding pens.  Only Theresa, who is due to have her cria in early May, took the time to utter a grumble at the other girls.

So I took my time feeding that evening, it was good to spend some time watching the herd, receiving the occasional alpaca kiss or an enquiring nose looking to see if I had any feed hidden on me.  Tomorrow the wind may be back or the temperature may drop and life is too short to rush through such a beautiful day.

Rosemary

Velvet Takes On A Challenge

I’m not sure what is on Velvet’s mind these days; since weaning she seems to be seeking attention from the other alpacas and not always in a good way.

Velvet does follow her dam Queen around sometimes during the day, but Queen is one of those alpaca dams who has no qualms about “cutting the apron strings”.  Once Queen is ready to wean her crias she does not want to have anything to do with them.  Bjorn on the other hand is quite happy to have her daughters by her side even when they have had crias of their own, and most of the other dams in the pasture have some bond with their adult offspring but not Queen.

So perhaps Velvet is feeling that severance from Queen, but what ever it is, she has decided that she will get attention one way or another. 

First she started by trying to wander round with some of the other dams in the herd but they were not interested in buddying up with her. Then having failed at finding a friend with the older dams Velvet decided to go for something bigger – a llama!

As I looked out across the girls pasture the other day there was Velvet with her head under Griffin, one of the llamas.  Velvet appeared to be trying to nurse from Griffin, and while Griffin tolerated it for a minute or two she then decided that she had enough of Velvets affections.  Turning around she nudged Velvet from under her and then placed her neck over Velvet’s, a dominant action in the body language of camelids.

Velvet didn’t take the hint from Griffin, instead deciding to provoke her more by taking Griffins leg in her mouth and pulling on it.  Now Griffin can be tolerant, but she is a very proud llama and so could not allow herself to be pulled around by an alpaca weanling.  Griffin retaliated by grabbing Velvet’s leg in her mouth and pulling on Velvet.

At that point I decided that it was time for me to intervene.  The horseplay was not yet rough, but having seen alpacas and llamas play I know that it can soon escalate to some heavy pushing and shoving.  As gentle as Griffin is, she is several times larger than Velvet and even in play she could inadvertently hurt Velvet.  So Velvet’s game was over at least for a while.

Yesterday though Velvet was back provoking Griffin again.  As I looked out to check on the girls there was Griffin with Velvet’s leg in her mouth and then Velvet was grabbing Griffin by the leg.  I intervened again and sent the two girls off in different directions, watching and waiting to make sure Velvet didn’t return to bother Griffin again.

Velvet has other alpacas close to her age in the pasture who she feeds with every day, and I am a little surprised that she doesn’t seek their attention over that of Griffin.  Blast is always happy to play with other alpacas and Athena has been around since Velvet was born and is quite happy to walk around the pasture with Velvet.   But for some reason Velvet seems to need more than the attention of her peers.  If we had forced weaning on Velvet I would be suspicious that she had not been fully ready for weaning, but it was Queen who started that process off and made it clear to Velvet that the milk bar was closed.  Then again perhaps it is something in the genes, Velvet’s half sister TeQueely used to challenge the llamas when she was about Velvet’s age, but she would never take them on physically, instead preferring to run up to them and posture at them trying to intimidate them as best she could.

So perhaps Queen’s crias have a dare devil streak in them.  Whatever it is Velvet had better be careful that she does not take on too much of a challenge, and I had better be keeping an eye on her to make sure she doesn’t get herself into a heap of trouble!

Rosemary

A More Comfortable Queen

I am happy to report that Queen is doing much better.  She had a more comfortable day yesterday with no need for any more shots or treatment.  I will probably give her another dose of MSE drench today just to be on the safe side.   MSE promotes healthy rumen function in alpacas and due to its vitamin and enzyme content it is good for alpacas who are under stress.  I usually give my pregnant girls some MSE during their last couple of weeks of pregnancy and immediately after birth; it seems to help them bounce back from the birthing process quicker.

I will also treat Queen to another photonic red light treatment, I am sure she will not be fully appreciative of the special care, Queen is not a hands on alpaca, but I want to make sure that she receives the best care we can give her.

Queen spent much of yesterday eating hay and ate her pellets as she normally does.  She is still lying around quite a bit, but considering how big her unborn cria seems to be that is hardly surprising.

On checking my records I can see that our computer program has based her due date on 359 days, which was the length of her previous pregnancy.  A typical alpaca pregnancy is 345 days so she could have the cria in early May.  As large as Queen is though, I would not be surprised if she ends up having the cria early so we will need to be prepared for that.  Queen’s last cria Velvet was 14 lbs at birth and Queen looked enormous when she was carrying Velvet too, but she did not show any discomfort during that pregnancy.  The cria Queen is carrying is the same breeding as Velvet (Queen and our herdsire Windrush Jennifer’s Zindel) and so far Zin’s crias have all been a nice size, ranging from 14 to 18 lbs.

Hopefully Queen will not have any more bad days between now and giving birth, and hopefully she will hang onto her cria until closer to her due date!

Rosemary

Concern for Queen

Late term pregnancy dams are always on my watch list, I want to keep close tabs on them to make sure that they are acting normally and not showing any changes in behavior that might indicate there is a problem with the pregnancy or the health of the dam.  I also like to watch for movement of the cria, which reassures me that the little one is alive (and usually kicking).

Our alpaca Queen is nine years old and an experienced dam.  She has not had any problems with her previous crias and is one of those great female alpacas who breeds one time, knows she is pregnant and makes it clear to you that she doesn’t need the services of a male again until after her cria is born.  With Queen once she is bred you will not even get her anywhere close to a male, as soon as she sees him she plants her feet in the ground and refuses to move closer to him. 

Queen is a short bodied alpaca and so her pregnancies show very easily.  Currently she has a huge bump and an active cria inside her.  I remember last year when she was expecting Velvet she was also huge and a few days before giving birth amazed me by jumping over one of the trough feeders.

At the weekend I noticed that Queen was sitting around a lot, sometimes with the herd and sometimes on her own.  Of course heavily pregnant dams do tend to sit around more than those that are not pregnant, but there was something about Queen’s behavior that caught my attention.

During our Open Farm Day I had to break away from our visitors when I noticed Queen stand up and hold her tail in an odd position.  I checked to make sure that she didn’t have a cria making it’s appearance under her tail but all looked good.

I call Queen’s tail the semaphore tail as toward the end of her pregnancy she carries it in some very strange positions.  I am sure there must be a meaning to each tail position but have not figured it out yet, and Queen does look quite odd at times with her tail in such positions.  Apparently the semaphore tail is a hereditary trait as Queen’s daughter TeQueely, who is expecting her first cria, has started the same sort of behavior with her tail.  Now there are two of them to drive me crazy with their odd tail positions!

While Queen seemed to be okay after Open Farm Day we have kept a close eye on her.  Her due date is not until May 19^th so she still has a little way to go before her cria is due. 

On Monday Queen did not come in for her evening “extras”.  She usually gets a few extra pellets in the evening due to her age and her stage of pregnancy.  Queen did come over to the pens but did not go in to eat her pellets, which for her is unusual.  Later that evening Ric noticed Queen sitting on her own, we went out and checked her and she seemed okay and by the next morning she was back to eating as normal.

Yesterday Queen again gave us cause for concern.  She was sitting a lot and just looked a little uncomfortable.  I watched her from the house and noticed that she went over to the poop pile but did not pass any poop.  This concerned me and so I went out to check on Queen and discovered that she was grunting every time she took a breath.  She was cushed by the time I got to her and was obviously a little uncomfortable.  It was time for us to take some action.

We enticed Queen into a pen with some hay (not an easy job as she is one shrewd alpaca and knows when we are trying to catch her.)  Once in the pen I took Queen’s temperature, which thankfully was normal.  I tried to listen to her lungs with my stethoscope but the wind was back to blowing hard making it difficult to hear anything.  I did a digital exam of Queen and discovered beans in her rectal tract not far from the rectal opening so all seemed well there, but as a precaution we gave Queen some MSE drench (a great probiotic drench with added enzymes).  To ease Queen’s discomfort I gave her 1.5 cc of banamine, pain management is important in alpacas and the banamine would help Queen relax, it would also help stop any contractions that might have started.  I also treated Queen with my photonic red light on both her standard points and those that affect the lungs and respiration (photonic red light treatment is based on acupressure points).

Apart from her slight discomfort and grunting Queen looked good.  Her eyes were bright and alert and she was certainly ready to get away from us.  As I examined Queen I could feel her cria moving, just from feeling the crias legs under my hand it felt big and that may be why Queen was so uncomfortable.

We kept a close eye on Queen for the rest of the day.  Her grunting stopped after about an hour, by the evening feeding time she was in her pen waiting for food and then had a good feed on the hay too.

Fingers crossed what we saw with Queen yesterday was just a case of late pregnancy discomfort.  When Queen cushes it looks as if her cria is about to pop out at any minute so I am sure a cria that big could be pushing on Queen’s organs and making it’s presence felt.

We will be keeping an even closer eye on Queen for the next few days and if she shows other signs of discomfort I think a visit from the vet will be in order.  As the old adage goes it’s better to be safe than sorry and I would rather have the vet out to tell me all is well than wait and have a major problem in a few days time.

Rosemary

Fiber Makes Your Garden Grow!

Well, you may not want to grow a container of cats like the one pictured above, but I couldn’t resist including that picture.  The two cats are Snuggler (our barn/house cat depending on his mood) and Kit Kat (a cat who was abandoned here, a sweet cat who would dearly love to come into the house but unfortunately likes to mark his territory so has to stay outside).

Last year for the first time I tried using alpaca fiber on my plants.  Ruth Elvestad who was the fleece judge for the TxOLAN Alpaca Spectacular both last year and this year had given me the tip.   During our lunch break at the fleece show the volunteers had been discussing various aspects of alpaca fiber and what to do with the fiber from the alpacas lower legs which is often coarser and full of vegetable matter.   Ruth then told us of how she uses alpaca fiber around her plants to help retain moisture in the soil and to provide a slow release protein feed to her plants. 

So last spring I decided to give the alpaca fiber idea a try.  I always plant geraniums in the two wooden barrels at the front of the house so they were the first plants to receive the treatment.  I filled the barrels about 2/3 full of potting soil, then laid out a ½ – 1” layer of alpaca fiber, leaving a clear area in the middle for the plants to root in.  I don’t know that the alpaca would impede the roots of the plants but decided to leave a clear area where the plants would sit just in case.  I watered the fiber and soil and then set the plants and surrounded them with more soil to stabilize them.  Some more water on the surface soil finished off the planting and then it was time to wait and see the results.

The geraniums did really well, so much so that when I came to plant some impatiens and some tomatoes I repeated the fiber experience and all of those plants thrived despite our summer heat.  Of course I was careful to keep the plants adequately watered but they seemed to do better and withstand the heat and dry air better than those without the alpaca fiber.

If you are using alpaca fiber around your plants you will need to replace it every two years or so, try and make sure that the fiber you use isn’t bringing with it seeds from undesirable plants.  The most practical fiber to use is that which cannot be used for processing, that fiber will usually be very short in staple length and maybe very dusty or dirty but as it is being used for planting that is not really a factor.  There is no reason why you couldn’t use the better fiber but it just seems rather a waste to do that, and part of the appeal to me of using the less desirable fiber is that it provides a use for something that otherwise might be thrown away.

For those of you who try using alpaca fiber around your plants this year, drop me an email to let me know of your results.  I would be interested in hearing how your plants do and hopefully your efforts won’t produce a container of cats like the ones in my photo!

Rosemary  

Planting with Pacas

Gerri from Australia had posted a comment to the blog the other day expressing an interest in learning more about the use of alpaca poop as fertilizer and using alpaca fiber as mulch.  With spring here and the warm weather trying to make a return I thought it a good time to write a little about using alpaca by-products in the garden.

Alpaca poop can be used almost like a slow release fertilizer.  If the poop is not composted it takes a while to break down, but that can be used to your advantage if you are looking for a fertilizer that will release over time.  When using uncomposted alpaca poop we make sure that it is covered over by dirt so as not to attract flies.  We also try to get the poop that does not have too much vegetable matter in it so that we don’t inadvertently grow something undesirable such as burrs.

The composition of alpaca poop is usually similar to this:

Organic matter  70.8 %
Nitrogen 1.49 %
Phosphorus 0.23 %
Potassium 1.6 %
Calcium 0.91 %
Magnesium 0.45 %
Sodium 0.12 %
Total Salts 2.54 %

Of course this composition could vary, depending on what you feed your alpacas, but those figures will give you a basic idea of what alpaca poop can contribute to your garden.

I am told that alpaca poop does not burn the garden like horse manure and so far that has been my experience.  I have not had any problem with the plants where I have used alpaca poop as a fertilizer, although I must say by the time we clean up the poop in the morning most of the urine has dried off it.  If the poop you intend to use is heavily soaked in urine you might want to allow it to dry off for a little while as the urine could scald your plants.

Even better than straight alpaca poop is composted alpaca poop.  There are various ways to compost it ranging from a specifically designed compost barrel to digging trenches in the ground and putting your compost material in the trenches.  The trench method was explained to me by another alpaca breeder from California who has the same type of sandy soil that we have, and also a lack of moisture and high winds like ours.  By building your compost pile in a trench you can prevent the wind from sucking all the moisture out of the compost pile and also easily collect any moisture you do receive.  That same breeder also uses concrete horse troughs to create compost in.  She layers old straw and alpaca poop in the horse troughs and leaves it over winter, by spring it is ready to plant in and she reports she gets great results from it.  Now for any composting to happen there has to be some moisture involved so if you are going through a dry spell you will need to add water to your compost pile.  Don’t forget you can also add all sorts of other goodies to your compost pile to help it compost such as egg shells, shredded uncoated paper, dried bread, old fruit and vegetables, burn pile ashes, garden clippings, even dryer lint!  Remember too to turn your compost pile periodically.

I will readily admit that I am not the worlds authority on gardening, but when even I can successfully grow plants using alpaca poop and composted alpaca poop it has to say something for the great qualities of the alpaca poop.

Tomorrow I will write about using alpaca fiber as mulch, something I tried for the first time last year and which was so successful that I will be using more this year.

Rosemary

From Sun To Snow

Our Open Farm Day went well, with visitors coming and going throughout the day.  Some came to buy products, others came to see the alpacas and some people were interested in learning more about starting their own alpaca farm.

The alpacas all behaved well although the girls kept their distance from the fence line.  They seemed to know that it was in their best interests to stay away from the visitors this time and take things easy.   Asteroid was a star as usual and even tolerated being a participant in a toenail trimming display.  He was ready for a break by the end of the day but with Asteroid as long as he is getting kisses and attention he is quite happy to be touched and talked about.

The weather for Open Farm Day was perfect, in the low 70’s with blue skies and no wind!  We couldn’t have asked for a better day.  The girls did a fair bit of sunbathing, no doubt allowing their unborn crias the benefit of some warmth from the sun and perhaps even a little Vitamin D as the girls stretched out on their sides exposing their bellies – one of the few areas where their fiber coverage is less and perhaps might allow some vitamins to soak through.

Our last visitors left at about 4:15 p.m. giving Ric and I just enough time to draw breath before doing evening chores.

The forecast for Easter Sunday was for snow, and as the temperature was still relatively warm by 9 p.m. we couldn’t imagine that there was the slightest possibility that the weatherman’s prediction could be correct.  We should know better by now, New Mexico Spring weather can quickly swing from one end of the spectrum to the other and by 11 p.m. the winds were howling.  I checked on the alpacas and could see that they had all gathered either in or in front of their shelters for the night.

By Easter morning the snow prediction had come true, the snow was unable to accumulate as the ground was too warm, and the snowflakes that fell were tiny ones, but fall they did.  The temperature hovered just above freezing, not too bad for us to do chores in, but once again the poor alpacas systems were challenged with a 30 –40 degree temperature change. 

The moisture from the snow was most welcome and as the snow fell slowly but constantly throughout the day the moisture was able to soak into the ground. 

This spring is definitely cooler, by this time last year I had been wearing shorts for a least a couple of weeks, but also by this time last year our town had been hit by a tornado.  Easter Sunday (March 23) was the first anniversary of the tornado that hit just a few miles away from our farm.  We were very lucky to be spared any damage or devastation, but other families were not so lucky.  

Our temperature change between Saturday and Sunday was extreme, but I will take that and a little moisture over a tornado any time.  It’s anyone’s guess at the moment what weather we will experience for the rest of Spring and Summer but I am hoping that it will involve at least a little rain and no tornados.

Rosemary 

Yarn Glorious Yarn

I have received another shipment of yarn from the North American Fiber Producers (NAAFP) Co-op, just in time for Open Farm Day.  This time the yarn was some lopi yarn, a single strand yarn that has a looser twist to it and is a blend of alpaca and wool.  I have two white skeins, one grey skein and one rose grey skein.  All of them are beautiful and have more of a handspun character to them than the other woolen and worsted yarns I have received so far.  I didn’t have time to snap a picture or two of the lopi yarn but will post some pictures to the blog when I get a chance.  The lopi yarn will be priced at $5.oo an ounce and we expect it to sell well.

So far all the product that I have received back from the NAAFP has been of an excellent standard.   The Certified Sorting process that is being used on the alpaca fleece prior to processing is making a marked difference in the end product.  I have spoken to other NAAFP Co-op members who have received other products from the Co-op such as throws and duvets and they too are thrilled with the end result.  Looks like we are onto a winner!

The previous shipment of yarn I received contained some Superfine Luxury Alpaca Blend which is made of 90% Huacaya Alpaca, 6 % Suri Alpaca and 4% Angora.  It has a lovely loft and a dreamy soft hand.  Also in that shipment were some skeins that were more of a worsted yarn and I must admit they have been my favorites so far.  The white worsted skein has 90% Huacaya Alpaca and 10% Suri Alpaca, the fawn skeins have 66% Huacaya Alpaca, 26% Suri Alpaca and 8% Tencel and the Rose Gray skein has 65% Huacaya Alpaca, 17% Suri Alpaca and 24% Tencel.  The skeins are large 7 oz skeins and the blends used create a lovely silky hand and soft shimmer to the yarn.  These truly are luxury yarns which will be appreciated by those who love fiber arts and fashion.

The trouble with being a fiber producer and someone who enjoys using fiber is that when you receive your shipments of yarn and they contain something special you have to force yourself to put them out on the For Sale rack!  Really you want to keep them all for your own personal stash of yarn, but I suppose if that happened every time I would have more yarn than I would have time to work with (ask Ric and he probably would tell you that is the case already).

The good part of being a fiber producer is that there is always more fleece being sent in for processing and before long another box of glorious yarn will be delivered.  The boxes don’t get to sit here long before they are opened and admired.  It would be a shame not to let others have the joy of working with this wonderful yarn, so out onto display the yarn goes and if it hasn’t sold by the time I come to do my next project (which is unlikely) I can always steal it back – can’t I?

Rosemary

Spring Farm Day

We are busy preparing for our Spring Open Farm Day this Saturday.  With the recent winds and dust blowing everywhere the studio, which we open to the public, needs a good cleaning. 

Today we will clean the studio and then arrange everything in readiness to display our alpaca products and informational handouts.  We have a group of ladies from a garden club coming to the Open Farm Day and so I want to make sure we have information available to them as to how beneficial alpaca poop is to the garden, how well it composts and how to use alpaca fiber to provide nourishment and help retain water around your plants.

During the recent arts and craft show that we participated in there was a lot of interest in the Open Farm Day so we are expecting a good crowd.  If the weather is warm and not windy (dare we hope for that!) I am sure many people will want to come and see the alpacas.  At the moment the forecast is for a slight chance of rain showers.  If we do get showers I doubt that anyone from the local area will be complaining, as we are so desperate for rain.

With so many of the girls being close to having their crias we will not be taking visiting groups into the girls pen.  They will be able to visit with the girls over the fence if the girls wish to do so, but we do not want to force excessive attention on the girls at this stage of their pregnancy.  By the next Open Farm Day the crias will have been born and are sure to be an attraction.

The boys will be available for visits and I am sure Asteroid our people friendly alpaca will be getting more than his share of kisses and attention.  Asteroid really is a crowd pleaser and loves to interact with visitors.

Today we are forecast for 40 mph winds all day, so we won’t be spending much time sweeping up the patios and carports, the dust will be back as fast as we sweep it away.  We will just have to leave that chore until Friday when things are supposed to be a little calmer.

If you are in the Clovis area on Saturday (March 22) then come on out and join us.  The farm will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and we would love to meet you!

Rosemary

Blast Gives Me A Fright

As the warmer weather arrives it is not unusual to look across the pasture and see the alpacas all stretched out in the sun.  Alpacas love to sunbathe, lounging lazily on the ground with the only movement being a twitch of an ear or the flick of a tail.  What a life! 

As herd animals though, when something happens that causes an alarm call or for one of the alpacas to be on alert the vibrations of what is happening easily travel through the herd and they gather together to check out what is causing the consternation. 

In the middle of yesterday afternoon, I went outside to take some pictures of the alpacas.  It was a beautiful day even though the wind was still blowing, as it seems to have done for months on end now.  The alpacas were in a good mood to be photographed, Cinnamon posed for me, Anya checked out the camera to see if she could eat it and Blast came up to give me ‘paca kisses as he sometimes does. 

I went back into the house to look at the pictures I had taken (ah the joys of digital photography) and in a short while heard an alarm call.  Looking out of the kitchen window I could see the boys looking at something.  I checked the girls pasture and they too were looking in the same direction. Outside I discovered what was causing the alarm, three dogs were wandering through our back pasture checking out the compost pile and looking for rabbits.  I recognized two of the dogs a belonging to a neighbor, the third dog was new to me.  I headed out to the back pasture and chased the dogs away; they soon scurried off toward the house where two of the dogs live. 

As I walked back to the house I could see that all of the girls were gathered at the gate watching my activities – except one.  On the other side of the pasture lying on his side was little Blast.  He was very still and I could see his neck was arched back, not usually a good sign.  I hurried over and watched him from across the fence but could not see him breathing.  Even more concerning was the reaction of the rest of the herd who were standing at a distance, ears forward in curiosity as to what was the problem with Blast.

I couldn’t believe something could have happened to Blast so quickly, it was only moments since I had taken his picture, but several years ago I had an experience when a young cria was up nursing from his dam one moment and dead the next, so deep down I knew it was possible something had happened. 

Rushing through the gate I called Blast’s name, there was no sign of a reaction, not a twitch from him.  By now the rest of the herd were edging closer to Blast and Ma Cushla who is always the auntie to all of the crias was at the head of the group, her neck stretched forward as she tried to get a look at Blast.  Then as I got within inches of Blast he slowly opened one eye but still maintained his position with his neck arched back – maybe he was injured?  But no, he was not injured for within seconds he straightened out his neck, gave himself a shake and stood up – he had been in a very deep sleep!

Alpacas are deep sleepers, Blast’s grand dam Jenny would go into such a deep sleep that you could stand right next to her and shout her name and she wouldn’t move a muscle, eventually she would wake up and give a filthy look as if to say “what’s your problem” – it seems as if Blast has inherited that trait from her. 

I must admit that ever since he was a little cria Blast has liked to sleep on his side laying next to his dam Clarissa.  He always seems very comfortable and relaxed and yesterday’s experience shows just how relaxed he is at our farm.  It does concern me a little though that despite the herd giving alarm calls he didn’t awake from his slumber – even Jenny would have woken up for an alarm call, and for Blast to be able to sleep through that makes him vulnerable.

Perhaps as he grows he will learn to respond more to the alarm calls of the herd. Naturally I am pleased that Blast is safe and well, maybe next time he pulls that trick on me I will be able to be less anxious.  Little Blast definitely gave me a fright and I don’t really want to go through that feeling again.

 Rosemary