The following attributes make alpacas easy to manage:

• The alpaca's feet are padded and they leave even the most delicate terrain undamaged as they browse on native grasses.

• Alpacas don't have incisors, horns, hooves or claws.

• They require minimal fencing and can be pastured at 5 to 10 per acre.

• The alpaca does not usually eat or destroy trees, preferring tender grasses, which it does not pull up by the roots.

• The alpaca is a modified ruminant with a three-compartment stomach. It converts grass and hay to energy very efficiently, eating less than other farm animals.

• They get most of their nutrients from the grass and require minimal supplements.

• Its camelid ancestry allows the alpaca to thrive without consuming very much water, although an abundant, fresh water supply is necessary.

• A herd of alpacas consolidates its feces in one or two spots in the pasture, thereby controlling the spread of parasites, and making it easy to collect and compost for fertilizer.

• Gardeners find the alpaca's rich fertilizer perfect for growing fruits and vegetables.

• They are sheared only once per year, and produce a very fine fleece.

• Alpacas are gentle toward humans and are safe around children.

• They do not challenge or test fences.

• Breeding is fairly easy, and can be done any time of the year. The female will tell you quickly if she is pregnant by spitting at the male.

• Females generally give birth in the daytime, and usually in the morning.

Other Information Pages

Document Library