Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Breakfast time
Monday, February 22nd, 2010Wet Pet
Monday, February 15th, 2010who is this pet? say! he is wet. you never yet met a pet, i bet, as wet as they let this wet pet get. …
Cuddling Cria!!
Friday, February 12th, 2010I glanced over and saw Shasta & Proseco sitting together under the tent and out if the rain. I thought they looked so sweet- as if they were cuddling. 
Walking Prosecco
Saturday, February 6th, 2010Friday morning came and Gwendolyn decided to take Tiberius for another walk. They were both much more comfortable with each other. Gwendolyn was surprised at how much easier it was to manage him this time. I told her it was because they both had a better idea of what to expect!
She decided to give another cria some halter practice. Prosecco is the cute beige baby walking with Gwendolyn in the picture.
Time well spent
Friday, January 29th, 2010This morning, my eleven year old daughter, Gwendolyn, decided to come out and spend some time with Tiberius.
Here they are, getting used to each other… can you feel the love???
Wednesday rush
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010Wednesdays are busy at our house. Our homeschooling friends gather across town and there is the preparation for a day out with three kids. And the alpacas have grown accustomed to eating as well. . I prefer to take care of my farm chores soon after breakfast. On days when I have appointments at noon, breakfast and chores come earlier and are a little rushed. The alpacas don’t mind if I rush- as long as I fill those hay bins and freshen their water- they are happy! As far as they are concerned, pellets and poop removal are a bonus!
So today, like every Wefnesday, I approach the barn like a woman with a mission. I fill bins, buckets a wheelbarrows. I scoop, rake, dump all much faster than normal, which can be kind of stressful, but can also be really rewarding. It’s a great feeling of accomplishment to get all the necessary tasks done, and still have time for a little alpaca nose nuzzle*.
*That’s what I call it when little Peyton comes right up to see me- nose to nose…both of us humming
Just another day on the farm
Tuesday, January 19th, 2010I thought I would try something new here and go for a daily post- at least a Monday- Friday posting. I figured today was as good a place as any to start… here goes…
My week is beginning on a Tuesday this week because I was out for the count yesterday. I am feeling better today. I wish I could say the same for Missy. I never realized- or really thought about the possibility- that animals can get colds much like you and me. Thankfully, she won’t catch my cold and I’m safe from hers- but I have had my eyes on the herd. I’ve been told the sniffles can run through a herd just as fast as they do in preschool. I first noticed Missy’s snotty nose at the end of December. Tiberius, her seven month old cria, and his friend Mohogany Prince ate the only two who have shown signs of a cold. They both look fine now. I wonder if the youngsters heal faster of if the fact that they are both still nursing – though not much- adds to their immunity as it would to a human nurslings. Also, is Missy slower to get over thus due to her age and pregnant condition?
Aside from wiping noses, I had the tasks of feeding and cleaning. I filled all the hay bins, gave everyone clean water and dished out pellets. Then it was onto the task if scooping poop. I filled four wheelbarrows today and was ready to head in for a shower and some lunch.
That was about when Arnie came out, so I showed him some places where the tent was coming loose from the poles in the cria yard. The winds have been fierce lately, I have to remember to check those more often, as I was surprised they needed adjustment.
Now I was ready to head in- passed ready, really. That’s when I noticed some crusty toes on one of the little ones. drat my observant self. It’s called mange and it was on the right front and back feet of Sheeba, Oona’s cria. I’ll write more on mange another time, I hadn’t intended this post to be so long! I showed Arnie, and waited until Sandi came out. We treated the toes with Kopertox, which was recommended by our shearer last May. In the past we’ve used Blue-kote and something else that was similar to Decitin, the diaper rash cream. Sandi chose Kopertox as it seemed to work fast and stain less than Blue-kote. Sheeba will be entered in shows soon- so stains and mange are not good.
That was pretty much it for my day today.
I did take a few pictures- but those will have to wait for another day.
Spinning – a start!
Friday, November 27th, 2009This is my first attempt at spinning-
That is 100% handspun- by me- alpaca yarn– or at least the start of some yarn and the beginning of my journey as a yarn making chica!
Spinning
Sunday, October 11th, 2009I just got a drop spindle- an Ed Jenkins Turkish spindle– now I wanna spin- any tips on where to start?!! My ultimate goal is to be spinning the alpaca fleece we shear next spring— eventually I want a wheel and all that too- I have wanted to learn to spin since I was a little girl, on a field trip where I saw an old spinning wheel and some sheep. The idea that yarn came from sheep was inspiring- and that fabric came from weaving- it was mind boggling- I was young- it made an impression. Now I am finally ready to learn the how tos behind it all.
good job Mistique!
Sunday, August 30th, 2009Today I’m at the farm with our almost two year old son, Henri, and eleven year old Gigi. This morning, like most mornings, Henri wanted to go outside. I planned to check on the alpacas, make sure they had enough hay and water, feed them pellets… routine morning things. It’s Sunday and David and I thoroughly cleaned the fields yesterday… which of course means there is still a lot more poop to scoop today, but nothing that couldn’t wait until Monday. Still, food and water is a daily thing.
I was filling water buckets and hay bins when I hear Gigi calling, “Mommy! Mommy, I think someone is having a baby!”
Mistique is a first time mom. She had been experiencing some pain and heavy breathing earlier this month. Banamine had been given. The farm owner had been concerned of a possible torsion. She examined her last week. All seemed okay. The owners are out of town this week, so we were on our own. We had three pregnant dams that could go any day. Today was Mistique’s day.
Probably only ten minutes passed between the time Gigi hollered for me to when I shouted, “It’s a girl!”
The cria birth was actually really simple. Our neighbors came over to help. I had called, mainly because I was there alone with my tween and the tot. I thought a little back up might be helpful! =)
They say most alpaca births require two things. A rope and a chair. You sit in the chair and tie your hands with the rope. Or at least that was what they told me when I started in this business. I’ve since been told that about twenty percent of alpaca births require intervention.
Mistique birthed like a pro. I checked her cria for teeth (no teeth is a sign that the baby is premature.). I dipped her little ambilicas. I dried our beautiful newly birthed cria. I watched our tween keep our tot out I’d the way. I was amazed
I checked the dam for milk. We strip the teets which basically means you take a waxy plug out of them. It is not necessary, a nursling will do it when they nurse, but it allows us to check the mom for milk. Mistique had thick white milk already, a truly wonderful sign. Cria need to get that first milk, called colostrum, within the first hours of life to absorb the antibodies it contains. This is a make it or break it moment for alpacas. Thankfully, Mistique seems to be full of colostrum, and babe started suckling within the first one and a half hours.
Wow. What an experience! We did it alone! Henri learned a few new words… Including ‘birthing placenta’. When David came home he got an earful!
I’m working on a video of the birth as told by Henri.