Shearing Day 2012

Shearing Day 2012 was a beautiful day!  I am so happy to be able to say this, because more often than not we shear on rainy days.  Our favorite shearer  was with us, Michael Banks from New Zealand.  He is is a fast and accurate shearer putting very little stress on our animals. We had a great crew of friends out to help and it was a busy day.  I was so proud of how well we had our cria fleeces blown out,  It was a lot of work but it did pay off.  I need to weigh the clip and then it will be time to dive into fiber.  I am still looking for a good mill if you have any suggestions.

The alpacas were treated to fresh , new, green pastures after shearing . . .I know they are happy!

Just before the Storm . . .

At least that is how it feels . . .the weather is so nice, the days are bright, warm and breezy, so a storm must not be too far behind.  I guess the harsh winter, last year has made me very cautious at this time of the year!  I know it cannot stay this nice forever, though I secretly hope so.  I really enjoyed the weekend with happy alpacas, my husband working in the garden and an un-planned hot dog cooked over the camp fire.  It grounds me to have  a weekend like that. 
I know I need to get organized for winter, yet I find myself putting off all I have to do.  I did get the rest of the windows in the cottage covered in plastic and I am really liking the results.  It is warmer, yet the light comes in and I am happy about that.  I need to get out there and finish my triangle loom shawl, that way if the plastic does not work on the windows, I will be able to easily bring the triangle loom into the house.   
The barn chores were easy this A.M. and my aching body was grateful.


I am off to mark some items that I want to take to Good Nature where they sell many of our farm items and to get ready for our Columbia Weavers and Spinners' Guild meeting tomorrow night.




           

Weaning, the slow process!

Weaning is such a slow process, ugh, just when you think you are getting ahead the dam is anxious to nurse, or the alpacas do not cooperate when they are being separated and you are in a hurry to get some place.  Many breeders just separate them and that is the end of it, but I believe it is critical to do it right and the process must be at the pace both the cria and dam can handle.  I nursed 4 babies and I can tell you that each of the babies had different needs.  In fact I had different needs with each of the babies.  So, it is my own experience I draw on when it comes to weaning.  I want my cria to grow up secure and confident.  I want the dams to feel it is the right time and be ready for the nursing to end.  It seems even more important when the dam is not re-bred shortly after delivery.
For now, J Arbuckle is with his dam from night feeding until morning feeding.  That way he is next to his dam in the dark.  I think a couple more days of this and we will not let them together at the evening feeding, but rather when I am just about ready to hit the sack myself.

Another Beautiful Day on the Farm

It is another beautiful day.  So nice to have the sunshine and temps I can work in.  Rich is doing the grocery shopping and I am checking on straw prices.  I am anxious to get out to the Fiber Cottage for some spinning and weaving.  It sure would be nice to get my shawl off the loom.
The alpacas love this weather  . . . they are grazing, playing and rolling in the dust.  They look happy and that puts a smile on my face.  I separated J. Arbuckle and Priscilla for the first time.  I want little Alexi to have time with another cria.  Since J. Arbuckle insists on making life miserable for Alexi I separated him into a pasture with older animals.  I wish I could make him understand that with a behavior change the three crias could be frolicking together.  Geez, I sound like I am talking about human kids. 
I need to price all of the things I have to sell and get them down to Good Nature.  Good Nature sells my things on consignment.  I just need some motivation . . . today I am turning over that new leaf and becoming more productive.

Cool and really crisp this evening.  Alpacas love this weather, me too.  Downside, my annuals have bit the dust.    

Observations

It was really chilly out this AM, but of course, in the dead of winter it would have seemed like a heat wave.  It is funny how things change our views.  The alpacas were more hungry than usual, I guess they felt the cold, as well.  Alexi is a fast little cria.  He knows how to hide among the other alpacas so I can't just grab him.  I hesitated to take off his coat, being so cold and all, but the low 40's really aren't that cold for an alpaca.  I know he will need that coat tonight when he will be out in his first freeze.  I put a little extra hay in the manger and began to mentally make a check list of things I need to do before winter.

• Put up wind shields around the corral areas.  It sure would have helped last year.
• Move as much of the poop pile to the garden area as we can.  This will help in two ways.  It will help the gardens and it will get the poop pile down so it can take the winter additions.  There is a lot of good soil under there.
• Now that it has rained, perhaps we can repair some fencing.  I think this is the least favorite job on most any farm.  It is heavy and and intense work.
• Arrange for some independent grain and hay in the boy's shed.
• Get out the heated water buckets.  I hate these buckets, they are so much harder to clean, but so nice for our animals.
• I need to try to insulate the cottage windows so I can use the cottage for more of the winter. 
• Make room in the garage for the car.
• caulk

I think that is enough list for now. I don't believe in too long of lists and this one is plenty long.

Back to observations, I really like to take the time to watch the herd and all the interactions they have.  Eddie is the only light colored animal on the girl's side besides the new cria.  One thing about the herd, they all basically get along , but they do segregate themselves by color when they are grazing and kushing.  Alexi often gravitates toward Eddie and Eddie tries to shed himself of the tiny Alexi. (They are both very light colors.)  I think Eddie is afraid Alexi will try to nurse off him.  Eddie is such a big gelding and Alexi is such a little wisp of a cria.

    Lady's girls try to stay on the same side of the fence with her.  Frederika even tries to nurse when she has been separated from her dam.  Frederika is almost 3!!!  Pippi hums to be on the same side of the fence with Lady.  Bess is anxious to be separated from her large cria, J. Arbuckle.  She has gotten so run down from the nursing demand he puts on her.  She is happy to be put in with him at night.

Our kitty, Cricket, is at the vet being spayed.  It is really silly, but I miss seeing her playing on the deck.  I will be happy when she returns and is chasing  anything that moves.

I better get back to work, thanks for stopping by the blog . . .

Bess

When we put Arbuckle back in with his dam, Bess, she let him nurse briefly then started  kicking him.  she knows this big baby needs to be weaned!  Her weight is way down and he is a  big boy.  We will continue to separate them in the day time and put them back together at night for a while.  But soon we will separate him from her.  It is hard for me to watch, but I know it has to be done.  I think it will really be hard for him when he has to separate from Priscilla.  Being only two days apart they have never been separated and are best friends.  Priscilla is not ready to be weaned.    We will have to watch that Arbuckle does not start nursing off of Freja.  I have seen him do that several times and she has not seemed to noticed.She too is very thin and nursing an additional cria would not be good for her health.


We got some rain later in the day.  The rain is not much, but we are so dry, anything helps.  I worked in the fiber cottage for a good part of the day.  I have a shawl on the 7 foot triangle loom and I am spinning up the fiber I dyed with pokeberrys.  The pokeberries sure made colorful fiber that is making a slubby yarn.

Males Jumping Fences

Wow, nothing gets the adrenaline pumping harder than seeing the wrong alpaca in the young male pasture.  It seems Fionn and Maverick jumped the fence to the front pasture.  Maverick was interested in the greener grass and Fionn wanted to put the youngest male in his place.  This is  done by chasing, neck wrestling and mounting the youngster.  Fionn is a very big male and he does know that.  Rich and I quickly got the two larger ones back where  they belonged only to find Maverick was back over and the rest of the mature males were scanning the fence line to find a weak point where they too could cross.  Rich repaired the fence and we are set for another day.  We know we need to replace some fencing . . . soon.  We are just pleased that we do not have any fencing that is common for the males and females.  That can give a very different ending to the story!

I took Illapa on a walk.  He hasn't been haltered for a while, so it was nice to see he handle so well.  I like to take them out of the pastures and out among the gardens and pines for their walks.  Delilah and Alexi seem to have a stronger bond and she has become a very attentive mother.  I think she knows she feels better when he nurses.

Catching You Up

It has a been a busy time on the farm since I last posted.  Weather has been changing, cria born and an unexpected death Sigmund.  The weather could not be nicer and I feel a real rush to do all the the things I have put  off.  It is almost overwhelming.  


On Wednesday I went out to the barn, a bit late because a had a call from one of my kids that needed my attention.  I could see Delilah  in the back corral where all of them were waiting for me to feed them.  I really didn't think anything about it, so I started cleaning up the poop piles in the barn and in the corral on the east to of the barn.  I was getting ready to get the grain to feed them when I heard a little noise, certainly not a hum.  I went to the barn door expecting to find a mouse or bird being tortured by Critter our kitten.  To my surprise there was a small dusty cria stuck in the corner of the fencing.  Oh, what a surprise, as I really expected this one, at the earliest, next week.  At first I thought he was a dusty white, but I soon found him to be a beautiful beige.  Yea, a new color on the farm and one I can dye!  He has now been named Alexi Laiho by our son Isaac.  Pippi is a bit confused by it all as she recently lost a cria.  I think she will be Alexi's second mother.  Alexi only weighed in at 13#, the next day he was down to 12.6#.  That is normal for a cria to lose up to a half pound on his second day.  I am anxious to weigh him tonight.

The Hay is done!

Richard got the rest of the hay into the barn.  Our grand kids were here so I spent a lot of time with them while he stacked the last of the hay.  The barn sure smells good.

It sure does not look like much in this picture.  This is about 2/3 of the hay we put up.

Our granddaughter helped with the barn chores.  It is nice to have her down at the barn with us.  After the chores were finished they had a good time playing out on the rock pile.  The shadows were long and they had a lot of fun playing with their shadows.

Please give me Warmth!

It is looking pretty out, but the thermometer just is not reaching for the warmer temps.  This wet, cool weather is really hard on people with Fibromyalgia.  I hate it when I whine.  I really am screaming for a nice, beautiful spring day when I have the time to be out working in it.  I have the Fiber Cottage looking good and ready for me to use, a major feat.  I just need a warm day to work in the gardens.  
Mother's Day is this weekend and I think about the woman I have become because of my incredible Mother. If she hadn't taken to me to the woods and taught me about nature, hadn't taken in those orphan rabbits, allowed the numerous gerbils and hamster, I am sure I would never have been the alpaca breeder I have become.  If Mom had not taught me to knit, sew, embroidery and so many other hand crafts I know I would not be a textile artist.  Most of all, Mom taught me to to mess and be alright with it.  Thank you Mom.
But, I am still looking for sunshine and warmth.

Spring, Spring, Where are you?

Where is spring?  After the hardest winter in my history, I impatiently awaited spring.  Now I am so disappointed that it has not really surfaced.  When we do get a rare warm day my "To Do" list is so long I have little time to really enjoy the day.  My husband had back surgery this winter and though he is back doing many things, his stamina is just not back fully.  That just adds to the list, I am so proud of his progress and both of us look forward to him being back 100% percent.
The vet students were out to the farm yesterday.  I love the students working out here, as it gives me teaching time.  They worked with several of the alpacas.  Today,  I am headed out to  the Fiber Cottage.  A 4-H knitting group is out tomorrow . . .ah what fun to introduce them to the beauty of alpaca fiber.
Winter was so hard, I really didn't have much energy after coming in from the barn.  One would think I would have really been productive, but I was tired after caring for the animals and I had little energy to put into creative projects.
If SPRING ever happens . . . I am so ready to start being creative.


PS - We are on cria watch! 

Major Winter Storm

I went to the barn and slipped all over the place.  We had barely had any ice, but just enough to make it difficult to walk in the corrals.  I think I have everything ready for the storm, but maybe I have forgotten something.  they are forecasting a blizzard and up to 21" of snow.  Winds up to 40 mph will cause major drifts and serious wind chills.  I have hay in the barn, straw and grain in the barn.  I wonder if the faucets will freeze up in those temps making it difficult to water the animals.  I worry about my fingers freezing . . . it is so different when you are the sole person to care for this wonderful herd.  Some how, I will do it, but I know I will have little energy for anything else.  I will keep you posted.Publish Post

Blogging, Once Again

There is a major winter storm headed are way.  This is the third or fourth major store in a row and this farmer is ready for spring.  It would be wonderful to go outside in shirt sleeves and feel the sun beating down . . .oh well.  This storm has it all, freezing rain, snow and snow thunder.  We are expecting an accumulation of 12" to 18" which is too much.  I have hay in the barn, feed in the barn, heated water buckets, straw and plenty of clean buckets to scoop soiled straw into.  Now we just wait.


It has been especially hard with my husband unable to help as he is having back problems.  He is improving slowly.
Time to hit the sack . . . it is nice to be back.


Alpaca Lady

Fabric with an alpaca design you can order!

Here is a link to Alpaca fabric designs that you can order.  I designed these because I can never find fabric with alpacas on it.  Enjoy, if you  to order some go through Spoonflower.
Alpaca Lady

Buster before and after shearing!

New Sign on our Farm!

We finally got our new sign up, and I must say it looks very nice!

So what do you think?

NASTY Weather

It is NASTY outside!  I think we must have had at least 5 inches of snow, but it was just above freezing so it is drippie, wet, cold and tiring.  I thought the alpacas had stayed in the barn all day.  Although the beans let me know that they had spent a lot of time in the barn, their fleece was sopping wet, so I know they spent some time outside.  That is not a problem for the older animals, as their fleece is long and the wetness does not reach down to the skin.  It is little Frederica and Hippolytte that Imost worry about.  The cria fleec is not as dense and not as long as the the rest of them.  I took a towel and tried to dry their fleece.  I am not sure it helped much, but it made me feel good.

Frederica

I walked down the long drive to get the mail.  It had been in the box for several hours.  A  small hole in the seam of the box had let the moisture in  the box, ugh.  I was thankful the newspaper was in a plastic sleeve.  Now I am warm and cozy in front of a fire, the alpacas are in a clean shed or barn with fresh hay and buckets of heated water.  It continues to look like a blizzard outside and I am so happy I have already been to the barn.

Time to relax,

Alpaca Lady

Another Snowy Day

The snow is falling and it very pretty, but I am tiring of winter.  I must admit snow beats just gray, dreary days, but I am longing to find the bulbs blooming and warm sunshine for my alpacas to sun bath in. 
My son, home from school because of the bad roads, helped me out in the barn.  I had expected mile high piles of beans, but instead just found a couple of small piles.  A blessing on a snowy day.  Perhaps the alpacas will realize the snow is just fluffy and will meander out of the barn so tonight will be a repeat of this morning.  I am not holding my breath on that one!
     Taking  a good look at the herd, I noticed we have some very long nails.  As soon as the weather improves and Richard is home to help me I will be trimming nails.  If you have never trimmed nails, you really don't realize how some alpacas are very compliant, but there a a few alpacas that are a real challenge.  Trimming nails has to be done to keep the herd healthy.
     The middle of winter is a great time to start making serious lists, so when better weather arrieves you have a game plan.  We planned our vegtable gardens a couple years ago.  Last night Richard and I planned for our new blueberries and rasberries.  This will be exciting to get some more fresh berries on the farm.  We have strawberries and wild blackberries already growing on Sycamore Creek Farm.  My daughter, for Christmas,  gave me some seeds from Thomas Jefferson's home.  so we will be planting nutmeg, artichokes, alpine strawberries  for the first time this year.
Time to get to work,
Alpaca Lady

Yet, Another Dreary Day on the Farm

It is a dreary day and you can tell the alpacas are affected by the light.  They long for sunshine as much as humans do.  I did an extra speacial cleaning of their barn, in hopes that may lift their spirits.  Besides, we are suposed to have snow moving in tonight.  I am sure they have a better sense of the forth coming weather than our weather people and all their sophisticated equipment.  If there is wind with the snow the alpacas will park themselves inside, but near a door where they can see out.
Today they stayed in the barn after they ate.  I took my daily walk down to the creek, which is behind the pastures, and no alpacas came to greet me.  On a sunny day they would beat me down there.  Everyone is looking very scruffy and I am beginning to think about shearing.  Shearing is such a busy time, but so much fun.  It is the one time of the year that I am actually organized!
Here are some pictures I have taken recently for you to enjoy.

These three beautiful males are our herdsires.  Fionn Mac Cumhaill, Dancing Paws and Maverick ( full of dust in this pic).

Got to get to work, I am knitting
Alpaca Lady

Busy and Sunny

What a nice sunny day we have today. Dancing Paws is doing fine, we are just finishing the atibiotics. Today one of the male shoked, it does not happen often, but when it does it always worries me. He is fine now, but he managed to get stomach fluid on two of the males blankets. Since it is warm and sunny, I threw some water on them. That really startled them! Their fleece is so thick, the water just rolled off. Everyone is doing well, mow.

We are shearing on Monday. I love all the new fresh fiber, but it does mean a lot of work for me. I will skirt it, sort it and divie it up to go different place. Tha alpacas will be chilled if this weaqther does not warm up. I think it will, they fixed my fireplace today!