Cute Furry Smiling Alpaca Camelids

By Chris Dunmire

National Alpaca Farm Days took place this weekend (September 27 & 28, 2008) — an event I immediately put on my calendar earlier this month after seeing a TV commercial (and the official Web site) promoting the event with these smiling animals. I've never seen alpacas up close and personal before!

What is National Alpaca Farm Days? It's an annual event where alpaca farms across the United States open their gates to the public to get a close-up experience of this fascinating creature. We had at least a half dozen alpaca farms within easy driving distance from our home (find a list of farms near you) and so chose one nearby to explore on Sunday.

Some people confuse alpacas with llamas which is easy to do because they come from the same family, the camelids (or camel). Alpacas closely resemble camels, but without the humps! At first I thought they reminded me of the Ton-Ton from The Empire Strikes Back (Star Wars), but then realized Ton-Ton looks more like a goat/kangaroo than an alpaca standing on its hind legs. Too bad, because my next great joke could have been: "May the fleece be with you!"

Why do people raise alpacas? For their soft fleece, which is shorn once a year like sheep. The fleece is prepared and spun into yarn for knitting and crocheting or used to make felt for cloth, hats, and moccasins. The alpaca owner I met this weekend said they have this annual event to raise awareness for the animal's fleece, hoping to grow and expand the alpaca population and industry.

The photos I took on this page are of the two different breed types of alpacas (huacaya and suri) taken at True Colors Alpaca Farm in Caledonia, Illinois. The difference between the breeds is in their fleece. Huacaya fleece is more fluffy and makes alpacas look like cute fuzzy teddy-bears, whereas the fleece on the suri is more like dread locks ("pencil locks"). Yes, I just wanted to give those teddy-bears a big squeeze!

The alpaca above is very pregnant and will give birth soon. I learned that alpacas carry their babies for 11 months before giving birth to the calves (one at a time). I also learned that alpacas are pretty tidy and all poop in the same place in the pen. How's that for housekeeping!

After taking over a dozen pictures, I suddenly noticed the video function on my digital camera and attempted my first amateur video shorts featuring these fuzzy furries. Still photos are nice, but video gives you a better sense of this animal's true nature. I've uploaded three short videos to my YouTube page which you can see here:

1. Friendly Huacaya Alpacas Grazing
   (also embedded below)


2. Pregnant Huacaya & Suri Alpacas
   Pregnant alpaca is brown and to the far left. You can hear our tour guide in the background talking about the heard.


3. Baby Huacaya Alpacas
   And my emphatic "sound test."

There's so much more you can to learn about these gentle creatures on the Alpaca site linked above and others there. If you have the opportunity to see them in person, I highly recommend it. One came close enough to me to pet gently on the head. They make a high-pitched "humming" noise, which I didn't capture on video. However, as I touched the surfer dude mop top of the alpaca who came within arm's reach, I couldn't help but think of the trees in Dr. Seuss' The Lorax and Seuss characters in general. Mops on tops! •

© 2008 Chris Dunmire www.chrisdunmire.com. All rights reserved.