Interesting Facts! |
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Alpacas are very hardy, healthy and extremely easy to care for! |
| Did you know, you can feed about 10 Alpacas on what one horse will eat! |
| Alpacas are used by sheep farmers to keep away foxes in the lambing season; by keeping two or more Alpacas in with their flock, the Alpacas will chase away foxes and keep the paddocks free from such predators. It is a known fact that farmers keeping Alpacas lose less lambs. |
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Alpaca Poo - now there's a subject. It
can be used directly onto any garden, no need to rot it down and it also
doesn't smell (for example, like horse manure does). Use it on
your vegetable plots and also around your flower borders instantly, as
it's the most versatile and incredible fertilizer.
Alpacas have communal Poo areas too, so its very easy to collect. |
| The Alpaca has a naturally attractive sweet smell. |
| Female Alpacas are induced ovulators and can be bred at any time of the year! |
| Alpaca fine woven garments in a remarkably good condition have been discovered in Peruvian ruins dating back 2500 years, almost indestructible! |
| Alpaca's manure is very rich in nutrients and can be used for field and garden fertilizer immediately. |
| The gestation period or term of the female is 11 months 2 weeks and two weeks after giving birth, the female can be re-bred. |
| The word Cria (Cree-a) which is a baby Alpaca is derived from the Spanish terms for creation and nursing. |
| There are four types of Camelid in South America. The largest being the domesticated llama and its smaller ancestor its wild cousin the Guanaco. The llama being largest of the four cousins, then the guanaco, then the domesticated Alpaca with its smaller cousin the wild vicuna. |
| The Alpaca is the most colour diverse, fibre producing animal in the World! |
| Alpacas are trouble free, easy to raise and maintain. |
| One acre of land can easily accommodate 5 to 10 animals depending on the pasture. |
| Alpacas give birth during daylight hours up to early afternoon. |
| An Alpaca is sheared once, annually before the hot weather. |
| The herd utilises one or two spots in their paddocks as their communal 'pooh' area. |
| Alpacas may spit at one another in defense of their cria and over food. They spit at the advances of a breeding male when already pregnant (this is called a spit-off). They rarely spit a humans. |
| Alpacas do not challenge fences and normal stock fencing is sufficient, without barbed wire. |
| Alpacas will 'see off' foxes and farmers have found that by having two or more grazing with their sheep keeps their newly born lambs safe from these predators. |
| Alpacas are herd animals and should never be on their own without another Alpaca for company. |
| Alpaca mums are extremely protective, devoted and caring. |
| A simple three sided field shelter is adequate protection and help maintain them in comfort in harsh weather conditions. |
| Alpacas cost less per month to feed than a dog. |
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