The Bright Side
It's not all tears around here, although they do beckon every time I look at the pasture. I'm not giving up the fiber side of the alpaca business. Although it hasn't happened yet, my plan is to devote some of my increased free time to working with fiber.
One of the real constraints involved in raising alpacas is that as the herd grows, the time spent caring for the herd increases, and the time available for fiber decreases. When we first got alpacas – three girls – I could complete chores in under 30 minutes per day and do a really good job in well under an hour. By the time the girls left, absolute minimum chore time was 45 minutes and that meant no pellets. Average chore time was over an hour per day and doing a good job meant closer to two hours. Routine care like training, trimming toenails, worming, and all the other little things that are easy and quick with three animals become time-consuming chores as the herd increases.
Now that my beautiful girls have a new home in Tennessee, I have more time in my life for fiber. I plan to take advantage of it.
One of the real constraints involved in raising alpacas is that as the herd grows, the time spent caring for the herd increases, and the time available for fiber decreases. When we first got alpacas – three girls – I could complete chores in under 30 minutes per day and do a really good job in well under an hour. By the time the girls left, absolute minimum chore time was 45 minutes and that meant no pellets. Average chore time was over an hour per day and doing a good job meant closer to two hours. Routine care like training, trimming toenails, worming, and all the other little things that are easy and quick with three animals become time-consuming chores as the herd increases.
Now that my beautiful girls have a new home in Tennessee, I have more time in my life for fiber. I plan to take advantage of it.
posted by Upper Alpacas | 11:00 AM
3 Comments:
When I was talking to a friend about getting a drum carder, she told me that she had recently sold hers. When I asked her why, she said that while she liked fiber preparation it cut into the time she spent spinning and knitting -- the things she really loved.
Sounds like you made a good decision for both you and your girls. Hopefully someone at their new home has a good camera so you can see how the young ones grow.
Will you be getting some of Cailin's fiber to spin in the future?
show us your latest fiber adventure? :)
Thanks for sharing the tears and the bright side.
My herd recently exploded with the purchase of an awesome package, but, I know that some will have to be sold. Thanks for letting me know I can survive the ordeal. *hug*.
Susan Mackey
Pritanio Alpacas & Llamas.
susan@pritanio.ca
Galiano Island, BC,
Canada
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