[AlpacaTalk] Re: Supplies to keep on hand/shearing
Hi Janice, In one of the posts I think I put links to the heaters( $150)
we use, and for the blankets,they have buckles around the chest and a
belly band that attaches with velcro. Look at them.It is important to
not put a blanket on a alpaca that has never had one on in a large
space. I like to put them in a catch pen when I blanket, this way if
they do start to panic we may have alittle more control of the
situation, in fact catch pens are a very important part of alpaca
handling.Much better than chasing them around.
Shearing, well I think you found out what happens when you don't shear.
Problems and more money being spent than you would pay for them to get
shorn. Yes mid-June in GA is very late. Mid-June in Ohio is very late.
You must either find another shearer or learn yourself, if in a bind you
can always hand shear, you can contact me at fox.maryjane@
we can talk more about that, the equipment alone is going to run you
upwards of $500. Old is relative I guess when it comes to any living
thing, but when deciding whether or not to shear your older animals, I
judge the amount of fleece the animal grew the year before if they are
growing only 1/2" to 1" per year it may not be necessary to shear every
year. Some of the girls that are 10 and above and still having babies
aren't growing much fleece. I think since these animals are living
longer with the care we provide ,that we need to adjust our care
accordingly to the new horizons.
Do you wait for a shearing crew that does alpacas to come thru your area
there has got to be someone coming thru earlier than that in GA. Try the
alpacashearers yahoo groups ask if anyone gets to your area, or try to
find a sheep shearer in your area it may not be pretty but they will
survive. There is alot of shearing info on the web now especially if
someone already knows the machine they just need to learn the techniques
for shearing alpacas. Do a google search on alpaca shearing to see if
there is anyone else who can help you. I start shearing in Ohio at the
end of March so I am wondering why you wait so long into the spring to
shear? I have the majority of my shearing done by Memorial day.
When hosing off alpacas do not hose above the belly, legs, neck, under
belly , between hind legs are all spots that regulate heat, if you hose
off the blanket area, soaking it, you can actually cause a alpaca to
overheat more because you stop the flow of air thru the fleece.
Glad to help you out.
Mary Jane Fox
Up-Close-and-
Kirtland, OH
216-272-8887
--- In AlpacaTalk@yahoogro
>
> <<<<Yogurt can be administered for a upset
> belly just like probias which is another product you can keep on hand,
> but remember to give these only if your vet says it is ok.
> Hope these ideas help.
>
> Mary Jane Fox>>>>
>
>
> Thanks Mary Jane for all your input. My problem is no vet to ask.
The
> one vet that would help me last summer with my girl's severe eye
injury
> made it very clear that she has all the horse business she can handle
> and is not at all interested in "learning a new species". The old cow
> vet I used to use was willing, but made so many mistakes and I lost so
> many I just stopped calling him and he has retired now (and I think
> moved to WY) anyway. The 2 other horse/cow vets (they are the only
ones
> that do farm calls) I have spoken to around here in the past several
> years are also not interested in working with alpacas. I had one tell
> me that he just didn't work with llama folks (there are no other
alpcas
> around here that I know of) because they "always expect me to come
right
> away and are just unreasonable in their expectation"
>
> But as a people nutritionist I cannot imagine why giving yogurt or
> probiotics could be a problem or a question for a vet? My qustion
> rather would be how do we know it is getting to the areas where it is
> needed? I don't know a thing about the physiology of the gut in
> ruminants (heck I'm still wondering just how many stomachs do they
> have?). I know in humans the trick to supplementing with probiotics
is
> to get the live little critters to survive the stomach acid and get to
> the intestines where they are needed.
>
> I'd like to discuss shearing with you and anyone else that has done
> their own. For one, I simply can no longer afford to pay the shearer!
> I skipped year before last for that reason and it was a miserable hot
> summer that found me out 2x every single day soaking them down with
the
> hose and buying a $300 fan for them (I could have had them sheared for
> that amt of $$, but by then it was too late).
> And still I had one to lay down and die after giving birth - don't
know
> if it was heat stress but that is what I suspect. So I bit the bullet
> last year and had them sheared. I couldn't afford it then; even less
so
> this year. They don't have much of a coat now, but by summer they
will.
> We still have chilly nights up thru May, tho it can get quite hot
> during the day. So I usually have him come close to the end of May;
> last year it was mid-June and vrey very hot before he could get to me.
>
>
> <<<<I do some shearing here and have started to on the older girls
that do
> not grow fleece, some farms have me leave 1/2 inch on them so I just
tip>>>>
>
> How old? My oldest girl is about 10. What is considered old for an
> alpaca? When is she too old to safely reproduce? What is the average
> expected life span? My dd asked me just last night and I didn't have
a
> clue as to their aging process or their life span. Are you tipping
with
> electric shears?
>
>
> <<<<I use
> the dog blankets to put on the animals if they are having difficulty
> keeping themselves warm. Takes alittle bit of time for some animals
that
> have never had one on to get use to them. But they cover the chest and
> back areas great.>>>>
>
> Do you tie them somehow to keep them on? I can't quite picture an
> alpaca walking around with a blanket draped over it without shaking it
off.
>
>
> Sorry for all the questions. I am on a mission to get this right once
> and for all so I can move on to other things that need my attention as
well.
>
> Thanks! Janice
>
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posted by Chaddo at 4:25 PM
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