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An alpaca is a kind of animal that belongs to the camelid family. Camelids are known to have originated from central plains of North America. They migrated to South America and later became extinct in North America. The modern day wild vicuna and guanaco developed from ancestral camelids. People started to domesticate vicunas about 5000-6000 years ago for their fiber. Vicunas later became alpacas. When in need of alpacas Nashville is the right place to visit.
The fiber produced by an alpaca is fine, soft and dense. The fiber can be medullated or hollow and has excellent insulative properties. There are about twenty natural colors of the fiber produced from these animals. The natural color eliminates the need for dyeing. The animal is very gentle, which makes shearing very easy. Alpacas found in the United States are registered and blood typed.
Fiber ranges from non-fading black to white in color. Some major color shades that can be observed are fawns, roans, pintos, charcoal grays, reds, browns, and rose grays. Annually, an alpaca can give four pounds of fiber. How frequently the animals needs to be sheared depends a lot on the climate.
The average life span of an alpaca is twenty years. Fully grown ones have their heads rising to 4.5 feet high while the shoulders reach 3 feet. Comparatively, females are usually smaller and lighter than males. Average weight for an adult is 150 to 185 pounds. Babies weight 20 pound on average at birth. Females gestate for 11 months.
No human assistance is usually needed for the animals to give birth. Most of them give birth in the light of day. Although it is very rare for them to give birth to twins, twinning has been observed in some cases. Newborns are known as crias. It takes about ninety minutes for crias to be up and running, ready to nurse. Crias need six months to wean. Sexual readiness is reached in females at the age of 14-18 months. These animals are induced ovulators, which implies that they can bred at any time of the year.
Like other members of the camelid family, alpacas are very hardy, easy-care, and generally healthy. In most cases, they only need the attention of a veterinarian two times in a year to administer regular shots and other maintenance procedures. The health of the animals is also highly dependent on the area the animal is located. It is good to ask the vet in order to know what to expect.
Besides production of fiber, an alpaca can also be used for production of meat. Their meat is highly valued on the world market, especially in the United States. They are also used for pets, therapy, breeding stock, and light pack animals. The animals were not bred to serve as animals of burden. Hence, they should not be used for carrying heavy loads.
The trainability level of this animal is very high. They only need between 4 to 5 repetitions of a routine for them to master it. They can be taught basic skills such as loading in and out of vehicles, being led, and accepting a halter.
The fiber produced by an alpaca is fine, soft and dense. The fiber can be medullated or hollow and has excellent insulative properties. There are about twenty natural colors of the fiber produced from these animals. The natural color eliminates the need for dyeing. The animal is very gentle, which makes shearing very easy. Alpacas found in the United States are registered and blood typed.
Fiber ranges from non-fading black to white in color. Some major color shades that can be observed are fawns, roans, pintos, charcoal grays, reds, browns, and rose grays. Annually, an alpaca can give four pounds of fiber. How frequently the animals needs to be sheared depends a lot on the climate.
The average life span of an alpaca is twenty years. Fully grown ones have their heads rising to 4.5 feet high while the shoulders reach 3 feet. Comparatively, females are usually smaller and lighter than males. Average weight for an adult is 150 to 185 pounds. Babies weight 20 pound on average at birth. Females gestate for 11 months.
No human assistance is usually needed for the animals to give birth. Most of them give birth in the light of day. Although it is very rare for them to give birth to twins, twinning has been observed in some cases. Newborns are known as crias. It takes about ninety minutes for crias to be up and running, ready to nurse. Crias need six months to wean. Sexual readiness is reached in females at the age of 14-18 months. These animals are induced ovulators, which implies that they can bred at any time of the year.
Like other members of the camelid family, alpacas are very hardy, easy-care, and generally healthy. In most cases, they only need the attention of a veterinarian two times in a year to administer regular shots and other maintenance procedures. The health of the animals is also highly dependent on the area the animal is located. It is good to ask the vet in order to know what to expect.
Besides production of fiber, an alpaca can also be used for production of meat. Their meat is highly valued on the world market, especially in the United States. They are also used for pets, therapy, breeding stock, and light pack animals. The animals were not bred to serve as animals of burden. Hence, they should not be used for carrying heavy loads.
The trainability level of this animal is very high. They only need between 4 to 5 repetitions of a routine for them to master it. They can be taught basic skills such as loading in and out of vehicles, being led, and accepting a halter.
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