Alpaca Farms Maine

• Many alpaca infertility problems are cured when the humans are removed from the equation. a concept adopted from LaRue Johnson DVM
• Keep your pastures and shelters safe-free of unnecessary clutter. Think about alpaca-proofing your facility the same way you would puppy-proof or baby proof a room.
• Double check all gates and latches one last time before leaving the barn.
• Invest in a digital scale.
• Alpacas do get sick and it is never at a convenient time!
• Give your alpacas time to study and digest something new before man-handling them. More often than not if they understand what you want them to do, they are quite willing to do it. The key is making them understand what you want them to do.

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• Try to remain calm when working around your alpacas. They can sense your nervousness and it is contagious.
• Occasionally an alpaca that is registered for a show will develop diarrhea, a skin issue or some other transient ailment a few days before the show. This is very unfortunate but none the less it occasionally happens. Consider the health and wellbeing of the other animals attending the show and leave that alpaca home.
• Alpacas will only grow through the experiences you offer them.
• Vaccination schedules are constantly changing as they incorporate the results of new studies. Keep up to date through your veterinarian's suggestions and continuing education.

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• After hooking up the trailer, check your trailer lights and brakes.
• Intact males (and geldings) tend to wrestle with each other; this is normal behavior. Although occasionally it can become rather aggressive, generally speaking it should not be of concern. Note: It is imperative that fighting teeth are monitored and cut as necessary in adult intact males. (click on picture to enlarge to see fighting teeth erupting)
• Expose yourself to the training methods of John Mallon and/or a Marty McGee Bennet Although each training technique is unique, both offer a great deal of insight to how an alpaca instinctively thinks, acts, reacts and perceives humans. This is valuable information for everyday use.

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• Wipe out your water buckets often; rinsing them is not enough.
• Run fecals (stool sample tests) often.
• When handling alpacas, often less is more!..less force, less manhandling, less muscle.
• A proper fitting halter is extremely important. Take the time to learn what proper halter fit is. Marty McGee has written an excellent article on this topic HERE
• Think in terms of prevention rather than repair in all aspects of farm management; parasite/disease control, heat stress, fencing, biosecurity etc.
• Treat your veterinarian(s) well.
• Feeding larger amounts of poor quality hay does not compensate for the lack of nutrients. Think of a child eating junk food before dinner. They are not meeting their nutritional needs but they feel full. Feeding poor quality hay to your alpacas is much the same.
• Resist the urge to hand feed alpacas. This often leads to poor mannered alpacas. Read and article by John Mallon that explains why:
• Many excellent veterinarians are inexperienced with camelids. However if they are interested and willing to learn about them, be willing to support their learning endeavors any way possible.
• If you don't have specific goals, how will you know you have achieved them?
• Isn't it funny how barns seem to shrink the longer you use them regardless of the dimensions!
• "Invest" in educating yourself about alpacas.
• Everybody is entitled to their own opinion.
• Hold high standards for breeding males.
• Think ahead to avoid becoming bloodline locked within your breeding program.
• When designing and building your breeding program, think about where you would like to be in 3-5+ years.
• Strange but true: a freshly cleaned dung pile is often a magnet for new deposits.
• Alpacas look smashing in orange during Maine hunting season. We use knit caps and cut the tops out to make "neck-ups". The neck-ups are stretchable should they get caught on something (or someone), washable, and cheap!
• Be aware of Aberrant Behavior Syndrome ("ABS") or Berserk Syndrome. This is a human-induced problem seen in llamas and alpacas. John Mallon has written an excellent article on ABS
• He/She who speaks the loudest is not necessarily the most knowledgeable.