By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent SHANDON, Ohio — Alpacas make you happy: That’s the opinion of John, Sally and Mary Francis, and that’s what’s printed on the sign at their farm, Alpaca Corner.
John saw a pen of alpacas at The Ohio State University Farm Science Review 10 years ago. He told his daughters, Sally and Mary, about them. The family began to visit alpaca farms and in 2003, they bought two bred females.
“Then we bought a couple of males and started having our own babies (called crias),” John said. “We have 11 now. They each have their own personality.
“We’re into it for the breeding aspect. Fiber is a secondary at the moment, anyway ... I’d like to be able to sell two good animals a year, so we might need 30 to 35 alpacas. Gestation is 11 to 11.5 months; it takes a long time to build a herd.”
Alpacas, members of the camel family, stand about 36 inches at the withers and weigh between 100-200 pounds. They are mild-tempered, gregarious and intelligent. They are forage animals; six to eight can graze on one acre, John said. They thrive on low protein grass hay. Their padded feet are gentle on the land.
“They don’t eat much,” he said. “A good forage mixture is orchard grass and bluegrass. They require about a quarter- to half-pound of supplemented feed a day depending on their body weight, free choice mineral and good clean water, like any animal.”
The Francises’ alpacas are rotated between five pastures; they plan eventually to have seven pastures.
The animals are sheared yearly. The “blanket” is sheared off in one piece and yields about five to 10 pounds. The family sends the fiber off to be made into yarn, but first it may be entered into competition (there are show ring competitions for alpacas and fleece-judging contests). Mary and Sally sell the yarn at “Periwinkle House,” their gift shop in Shandon.
Sally and Mary both enjoy the animals’ quiet personality. “They’re gentle, easy to care for,” said Mary. “They’re a good project for families and children.”
Added Sally: “They’re very curious animals. They’re sort of like people. There are leaders and followers. Bella leads the herd. Where she goes, they all follow. If it is time to go out, she leads them out. If another alpaca wants to go out and it’s not time yet, they don’t go.”
The Francis family has huacaya alpacas; their fleece is noted for its waviness or crimp, giving the animals a fluffy appearance. The other breed type is called suri alpacas. Their fiber has no crimp; it clings to itself, forming “pencil locks” which hang from their body in cascades.
Alpacas are indigenous to South America, specifically Bolivia, Chili and Peru, John said. They were first imported to this country around 1984. Some of those first importers were from Ohio and that state has more alpaca farms than any other. Importation from other countries is now closed.
Alpaca people like to help one another, John said. They can do that through several organizations: the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Assoc. at www.alpacaowners.com or the Ohio Alpaca Breeders Assoc. at www.alpacas-alpacas.org
The newest organization is the Southwestern Ohio Alpaca Breeders Assoc., of which John is president, online at www.alpacaswohio.com
The farm will be a stop on the Butler County Farm City Tour, Oct. 4-5. For information on that tour, call OSU extension in Butler County at 513-887-3722.
Visitors are welcome at Alpaca Corner, but must call first to make an appointment. Write the Francises at 4403 Cincinnati Brookville Road, Shandon, OH 45063, call 513-738-1395 or 513-706-0171 or e-mail alpacacorner@ juno.com |
