Alpacas Afield Online

Shearing day came and went with great success! Now to head out and finish up some little ones that I decided to shear myself. Today looks like an excellent day as it is sandwiched between rainy days (and I want to visit the Nationals tomorrow!)! Pictures to follow...

I shear mine every year between the 7 and 15th of May.  It stays pretty cold here in Ohio til then.
I do my own shearing and that of two other farms in my area.  This year I only did about 28 but last year was 39 I believe.  I lost count.  After being a dog groomer for over thirty years I do the alpacas with my Oster A-5s or my Andis clippers and a 7f blade.  I like using them because I can sculpt the legs so they look like pantaloons.   As you can see in the flash ad on the main page of this site, on the animal called Evil.  He belongs to a friend, but was born here.  I guess I may never get away from the old ways of my dog show days.  I like them to look fancy.
Would the Sport weight be a good weight for a light weight afgan?
Janice K Johnson
AlpacaTyme
Alpacas Afield Online

Hi All from the coast of NC! Time to be thinking of fiber harvest again, we just got word we're on the shearing schedule for April 8th! Earlier and earlier every year, never fails, as soon as they're shorn, we get the windiest, coldest, wettest nor'easter for several days. To answer a question regarding weight of yarn if you're just starting out. I was advised by a mill owner to spin skeins of sportweight, tripleply. We did and they are beautiful. We actually took dk brown and spun with firestar, a metallic thread that throws reds and golds in the light. Our attitude is that in our area, beachy, that vacationing knitters are more interested in producing something they can wear here while on vacation. We went with something more splashy, coastal wear if you will. Our fawn fiber will be spun with amber silk fiber and our browns will be spun with red bamboos.  I actually was able to put  my hands on fiber spun this way, it was incredibley soft while very strong with great springback. So we're still providing a pretty organic product with a little splash and twinkle. Firestar is manmade BTW. Its gotten pretty cold here now, we're really starting to see the new growth fill out. Leslie Watson Leake
AlpacaNaca Farm ON THE WAY TO THE OUTER BANKS
Home to Peruvian/Allianza ION!

Well I only have 3 of my own Alpacas at this point so I've decided to have last years clip spun.  I'm just not certain what yet to have it spun into.  ie. weight etc.  Anyone out there have a good idea what is the best weight to have done as far as what is the most useful?  I have a few people who are knitters in the family, maybe I should ask them what they use, but really wanted to give it to them as a gift.  Ideas would be appreciated.
Janice K  Johnson
AlpacaTyme
Ashtabula, Ohio

Well, here we go.  I've signed up and I'm interested in where this blog may go.  Anyone out there who wants to talk about alpaca fiber?  And what you are doing with your fiber?

Hello and Welcome to the AlpacaBlog. 

First let me say that this website is a work in progress and will be expanding greatly.

I thought I'd start the AlpacaBlog site off with my first experience in Alpacas just a few short years ago.  I came from a successful 30 +  year background in the Dog Show world and went looking for a new show arena as I felt it was unethical for me to show dogs myself any longer now that I am an AKC Judge [I have handler show them now, besides I'm getting to old to run around a ring anymore].

As I went on my quest I visited several farms and then visited again.  I found while I was extremely impressed with the Peruvians overall looks I felt they lacked the bone and substance that I was looking for [I always demanded good bone in my English Springer Spaniels] and many of the Chileans I found I wasn't pleased with their coarse head pieces.   I know, I know believe me it was difficult to speak in dog terms to Alpaca people.  I'm certain every time I left a farm they all chuckled about the crazy dog lady.  But I wanted, in my livestock, what I have in my show dogs, Type, Style, Proper shoulder layback, good head pieces,  fluid and correct movement and great coats [oops Fiber].  I guess it still remains to be seen if you can teach an Old Dog new tricks.   

Anyway on with my quest.  I finally found a white Chilean proven female, while she was not the perfect specimen herself, she carried the substance and soundness and yes the fiber I felt I was looking to begin with.  The cincher on this purchase was that I fell in love with her son, a glorious white male with incredibly dense fleece and beautiful bone and a true show attitude and his mother was already bred to the same Peruvian male that had produced this lovely animal.  I was hooked.  I felt the style of the flashy Peruvian sire and the soundness of the substantial Chilean female would give me what I was looking for.  AHH but then comes the part where nothing is ever what it seems.  This female had been bred, February 1st., 2006 and they had the ultra sounds to confirm the pregnancy and she was due to deliver her Cria in January of 2007.  I had purchased her in October of 2006 and visited her every other day as I had not had my barn built yet and it would be Spring before it could go up.  I had the selling farms Veterinarian out on a monthly basis to keep a check on her.  January came and went, no Cria.   Went to having the Vet out every two weeks, with untold ultra sounds.  I was convinced the Vets were thrilled to death with the extra income from the paranoid dog lady.  Winter in Northeastern Ohio is always brutal so I'm now in panic mode, having the sellers insulate an area in the barn and place heat lamps in her stall.  Come on after all we use heat lights when whelping puppies and I was convinced the baby would come out a popsicle.   It's now Spring and still no Cria, Vet bills are coming fast and furious and the crazy dog lady needs psychotherapy.   

My barn is finished and I finally bring my forever pregnant mom home along with a couple of loaner females from the sellers farm for company.   Summer comes, still no Cria, but found a new Vet, it was time to share the wealth.  More ultra sounds for sanity check and Cria is fine, Vet says any day.  Fall comes, [give me a break].   One Vet tells me to drive her to Cornell University in upstate N.Y. because he feels I have a mummified fetus.  Fired him as I could watch the baby roll.  Called Ohio State where they tell me that if she goes two years call them.  WHAT!!  Time for a new Vet, who says the first sensible thing to me, and she decides that my female obviously slipped her pregnancy and was rebred by an escapee male.  Dr. Pam confirms all is well and that this is not going to be the forever pregnant Alpaca.   Finally October 1st., 2007, 19 months after she was originally bred we had a beautiful baby girl who was well worth the wait.  By the way the Cria was sired by the Macho male that she was originally bred to so I did get a lovely female that was a repeat breeding of the boy I fell in love with.

You know it was so much easier in dogs.  You do a breeding and wait 59 to 63 DAYS and you have several to choose from for your next show animal.  My first experience in Alpacas was to wait 19 months and consider myself lucky to have one baby and thank the gods that it's a girl.  My heart may not be able to run around the dog show ring anymore, but I don't think my nerves could take another pregnancy like that one.

Janice K. Johnson, Alpacas Afield Online & AlpacaTyme Farm