Starting an alpaca farm is easier than you think, and can be very profitable if done correctly. There are close to 2000 Americans today that operate alpaca farms. The start-up is costly, as a good female breeding alpaca runs around $20,000, but her offspring could easily sell for $10,000, so it pays off fairly quickly. [...]

If you are someone who enjoys knitting and are interested using alpaca fiber for your projects, you will need to learn all you can about alpaca fibers, as they are very different from sheep’s wool. There are two different types that have certain qualities, and it is all measured a certain way. Alpaca fiber is [...]

If you have an alpaca farm and want to learn about alpaca shearing, it’s important to learn as much about it as you can before attempting it yourself. If you do not shear an alpaca properly, you risk damaging the fleece, which greatly lowers its overall quality, and stressing out your alpaca, which will make [...]

With greater environmental safety measures impacting on various industries, it may be good news to know that an alpaca farm is greener than most. Since their footpads leave only light imprints on the ground, alpacas effect less erosion on their pastures than either horses or cows would. Although much is made of the modest dietary [...]

For at least three thousand years, this camelid species has been bred for the quality of alpaca fiber. In ancient times, the Incas referred to it as ‘Fiber of the Gods’. Alpaca cloth was even used as a currency by the Incas. In Peru, where alpaca farms contribute significantly towards the gross national product, over [...]

There was a time when alpaca farming was largely restricted to the heights of South America. Nowadays, however, alpaca breeding has migrated to the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia New Zeeland and China. Alpacas are reared in several South American countries, among them Chile, Argentina and Bolivia, but the center of the alpaca world lies [...]

The color of your alpacas can be quite an important consideration when setting up an alpaca farm. There are 22 distinct colors of alpaca fleece, although at agricultural shows, judging occurs in 16 color categories. White is obviously one of the most sought after colors, as it is easiest to dye. It occurs most frequently [...]