Alpaca seasons....

Moonshadow's Monique

What do we do in the Pacific NW in the winter with alpacas?  It is February, it is still winter, somewhere in the beginning of raising alpacas I thought this would be down time without much alpaca business to do.  I'm not sure why I still think this?  If I went back and checked any web traffic stats I can validate this seems to be when alpaca folks really start getting into gear.  By now most of the spring shows have their registration open.   Final decisions must be made on who will be our 2012 show string?  For the juveniles (cria born last year), we always have that initial "wow" or "opinion" the day they are born if we are really pleased with the results.  Then there is cria tip shearing where we get another look at whether they are "show quality" or not.  Then there is weaning, which some definitely take better than others.  There is a period of time we call the "doldrums" where we look at the fleece and wonder what were we thinking when we looked at it last time?  Then there is last year's show string to reassess whether they should go back for their 2nd year and any older ones that might be worth taking back into the show ring.

2011 cria, to show or not~

Lots of things go into deciding whether to show an alpaca or not.  Obviously, are they conformationally correct and do they have consistent high quality fiber are the main ingredients.  Beyond that we also look for temperament, since shows can be extremely stressful on some alpacas more then others.  We look at what do we gain by showing that particular alpaca.  Is it for sale?  Will it promote the Herdsire it is out of?  Is it a great reflection of our breeding program?  Is it old enough and mature enough to handle the show?  When we look at the juveniles, we know we will not wean them, halter train them and whisk them off to a show within days or weeks of being weaned.  This is a lot to ask and is a good way to end up with an extremely stressed, sickly young alpaca.  The judge will not see the same animal you looked at on the ranch, since the health and mood of an alpaca will show in how their fleece looks and feels, plus how the alpaca carries itself into the show ring. 

Earlier in February we weaned our first group of cria from June's Six Pack, we have 4 of this 6 still with us.  Three of these will go to the shows with us.  The fall cria we had haven't been weaned yet, we are choosing to not show any of these this spring because they would fall into that group of being weaned, halter trained and whisked off in a trailer in way too short of a period of time.

Moonshadow's Victory's Spirit

Moonshadow's Golden Treasure

We are keeping our show string small this spring.  These 3 juveniles, 1 yearling from last year's show string and our newest Herdsire since he is still somewhat young at 2 1/2 years old and hasn't started breeding yet.  Some people with a very mellow male might continue showing once they've started breeding, but we never have.  Surrounding a male with open females everywhere just seems a little unfair and asking a lot if we want him to behave like a gentleman.  For those we don't take to the halter show and they have beautiful fleece, we will do fleece shows and enter their shorn blanket fleece.

Also this month, we did a Valentine's day meet and greet Herdsire review at the Enumclaw Expo Center.  This was a really fun day getting to see other breeders we sometimes only see at shows.  There are some really nice Herdsires in our area so it was nice to have them all in one place and have the time set aside to talk to owners about them and their progeny.  We already have 8 breedings lined up for our new guy this summer as a result.  Pictures and stats can never replace actually getting your hands on an alpaca and seeing it in person.
 

Snowmass Golden Victory and Snowmass Matrix Principe
our featured Herdsires~

February was here and gone in a blur.  Lots of plans and commitments so now we need to get into action to make it all happen.  With the crazy weather we've had this year, we haven't begun to halter train.  Our first show will be Alpacapalooza on March 30th-April 1st.  We better get moving, winter is almost over, there is tons more to do in the spring!

Where a decade can take you....

Moonshadow Alpaca Ranch from our first 5 in 2002 to
a herd of 45 in 2012~

In February 2002 we were on vacation in the San Juan Islands and talking about our future, where we were going, what did we want to do, what would we change in what we were doing then?  As we were touring the island we saw these beautiful green rolling pastures, with white split rail fences and the coolest looking animals I had ever seen!  This was my first look at an alpaca or having even heard the word alpaca.  Deb, being much better read then I, said "I think those are alpacas".  The timing of cruising past this beautiful ranch, and having the conversation we were having at the time, set a ball in motion that I could have never imagined that day. 



Part of our herd of breeding females in 2012



It did not take us long to make the leap into raising alpacas.  It was really an exciting time in those first few years.  So many new people getting into the business, sale prices and auctions were breaking records, shows were growing in size and competition.  In the meantime, Moonshadow Alpaca Ranch was growing, showing, selling and evolving.  It truly has been a whirlwind now looking back at how much time has passed and all we've done.   At a largest our herd grew to 50+ alpacas, we generally maintain our numbers in the low 40's just due to space limitations.

Snowmass Matrix Principe

It seems now is the time to be looking forward to the next 10 years and refine our business plans and goals for the future.  It was very exciting to start off the new year with our newest Herdsire, Snowmass Matrix Principe.  Principe adds a whole new level in elite fiber quality to make significant improvement on the great quality fleeces we are already producing.  So our breeding program is on track, we are just limited in room to do all we want to do where we are currently located.  I always love how things can unfold when you really identify what you want to do and keep your mind open for those opportunities to make it happen.  Timing is everything sometimes and now we have the chance to move our operation to the Hahnel family farm in Bellingham, WA.  The foothills of Mt. Baker along the Canadian border, gorgeous country and scenery surrounding 49 acres to work with!  It really is like a dream coming true for Deb who has always wanted to get back to the family farm she grew up visiting.

The thought of rebuilding the ranch always scared me in the past.  Especially when it seemed like the projects building it never ended!  Now, we look ahead with great excitement at all the possibilities this move opens up in creating the fully sustainable ranch we have been working towards.  We will be working over the next 6 months to set up the new farm for alpacas and prepare for the move.  Will keep our progress posted here on the blog.



Hahnel family farm, established 1932



I have to say I am more excited now looking ahead to the next 10 years then I was 10 years ago when we bought our first 5 pregnant females.  That initial wonder and excitement of stepping into the alpaca world has developed into a sustainable plan based on the evolution of the industry and all those wonderful lessons learned...the good, the bad and the ugly!  The best part always in being part of the alpaca industry is the wonderful people you meet, network with, get to work with, support and learn from each other.  It is truly a community that spreads beyond local geographic boundaries!