Alpaca Tribe

The winter continues - join me on the feeding round and reminiscing about what our original expectations were when we first started with 5 pregnant females. You can start with some ideas of your own but your alpacas are likely to teach you they know best. Plenty of time to stand and stare will help you progress towards those original intentions and expectations. This podcast uses the following thi...

Spring creeps slowly forward but is on its way. Listen for a valley recording wandering about and talking alpacas. ~If you are interested in podcasting yourself, check out The Podcasting Workshop by Akimbo led by Seth Godin and Alex DiPalma. The latest workshop is just starting and enrollment closes very soon - and I am the Head Coach. ~You might also want to check out a podcast with a smile from...

The cold weather turned to snow Listen to some recordings made in the valley and in the stable with the alpacas. Coats and feeding continued to be a challenge. It takes longer but you can cover their needs during this time with additional feeding and attention to their condition. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

At this time of year in the UK the vegetation has died back enough to see the fences and be able to see where weeds are growing and need to be removed. This episode gives suggestions on the repair and maintenance work we can do to take advantage of the winter low tide. This is followed by an audio diary of a wander in the beautiful day just before all of the heavy rain returned! Welsh Wales - it i...

Welcome to the New Year! Hermione has needed a bit of extra support and so has been wearing a coat - and her cria too. She gets really suspicious of me and repositioning the coat when it rides up a bit is a challenge. To our usual dry food, we have added some sugarbeet with molasses and chopped alfalfa with molasses - quick energy for keeping warm. Plus the died peas for extra protein for the preg...

Happy holidays to all listeners of the Alpaca Tribe podcast - see you again soon. Peace to you and yours. Happy Christmas! And as we say in Wales - Nadolig Llawen! This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

2020 has been an interesting year but probably one most of us would like to move on from or even forget. In this final episode of the year, Steve and Sue Heatherington reflect on some of the things of note from this year with their herd of alpacas. From births to shearing, the weather and the freedom to roam, there have been things that have stood out and we can learn from. Thank you for sharing y...

Alpacas know what you are saying by the way that you say it. They may not understand your language but they can pick up on intent. Learn to talk to your alpacas nicely. In this episode, Steve talks with his wife Sue about their experience of talking to alpacas. Using the right words for the context means you will convey the emotional intent of calming and reassuring your alpacas that you are a saf...

Any subject 101 is a topic for beginners. And since we are at episode 101 (for those that are counting) thought we should have a quick alpaca 101 episode! What is an alpaca and where do they come from? Why do you want to keep alpacas? How many should you have? What might be limiting factors? Where will you get them? Before they arrive Storage Handling Husbandry Growing old together It is going to...

So here we are at episode 100 on a journey of almost two years. It has been a great journey and I am delighted you have been with me for some or all of it. Thank you. I am also very grateful for the many guests we have had during that time, who have added their voices to the varied subjects we have covered. Join me in this special episode as I select some great contributions and share them with yo...

Grass is green but lots of different shades. Can you remember why grass is green? - well it is all to do with the red and blue parts of the light spectrum being absorbed by the grass and green being reflected. And what does grass do with the absorbed light - well that’s also a bit complex and gets us into the chemistry of photosynthesis and porphyrin rings and the like - I loved learning all about...

Kris Cody sees things and makes connections. On a trip to Peru, he discovered alpacas and the Peruvian people. An idea took root and in time a business was born creating innovative fabrics and products that are made in Peru. Working in collaboration with the earth and people Paka Apparel make products that help people live lighter. In his words - "The products we build, the experiences we create,...

Inspiration for this episode came from a blog post by Sue, my wife, - Quiet Disruptors - Yes, we’ve heard of ‘be more pirate’, and some of us have encountered ‘be more camel’. But what about being more alpaca? On a day when the final outcome of collective decisions that will affect the whole world is probably not yet clear, I thought a light-hearted invitation to be more alpaca might be rather att...

Many people say they find alpacas calming to be around - I agree! So why is that? They are inquisitive, seem to like being around safe people and know how to watch you while looking like they are ignoring you. Having eyes on the side of their heads helps but in the end I think they are just magical creatures to be around and transfer their calmness to people in their vicinity. Listen to today's ep...

Alpaca activity - theirs and your husbandry work - changes with the season. At this time in the UK it is usually slowing down as we go into Autumn and on to Winter. The grass slows down too, which means more hay. Find a good supply of leafy soft hay and store it well so you have supplies as you need them. Listen in for an update on how the cria are getting on. This is episode 95 which means we are...

Katie Lorenz of Campo Alpaca has made many connections in Peru with producers of alpaca based products. This collaboration helps women and collectives in Peru generate income to support families and communities there. It also means Campo Alpaca can share wonderful products with customers around the world. The emphasis is on creating unique alpaca clothing & accessories, ethically made in Peru...

When you introduce yourself, how long does it take before you mention alpacas? Are they part of who you are? They are for me and I am guessing you too. Taking time to be aware of how we talk about alpacas and improving this is likely to be helpful. When you next get the chance, listen to a good judge sum up the finer points of the winners - note the language. In this episode, I give a quick update...

Seasons come and go - the sign of growing older is said to be that everything speeds up. Maybe, but 2020 has been an unusual slow-fast year, very variable. I finished off the pen-matings for this year and this episode is an update and reflection on the process. Did you know that alpacas have a reverse gear? And that they are star-gazers by nature. At least this has been my experience. This podcast...

Having covered alpaca behaviour last time with Marty McGee Bennet of Camelidynamics, we should know everything about 'our' alpacas and understand them perfectly. But they still bring some surprises to our everyday living with alpacas. I have been supervising some matings here on the farm and it is a complex set of behaviours to fully understand. On this occasion, we had some 'run-off' tests as wel...

In part two of my conversation with Marty Mcgee Bennett, we continue exploring how Marty built her knowledge and experience and how she has been teaching camelid owners in clinics and through books and videos. Marty is to be found on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pintrest but you will find all of the information, links and the way to purchase resources on her website at camelidynamics.c...

I am delighted to bring you an interview with a special guest for this episode of Alpaca Tribe. I first met Marty McGee Bennett on one of her four-day intensive CamelDynamics Courses back in 2009. The impact remains to this day. Marty describes Camelidynamics as having five pillars: "I want to do things that feel safe. I want to be kind. I want to be respectful. I want to have fun. And I want all...

In this episode I catch up with my friend Tanya Russell - we talk about how much we have to learn, about being prepared and coping with the unexpected. Also the importance of knowing where to find help and finally the frustration she feels at having not been able to create a sculpture of her alpacas yet. If anyone wanted to commission one... do contact her. https://tanyarussell.com/ https://www.fa...

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

If you only produce a little fleece from your alpacas, it can be more difficult to do something meaningful with it. In this podcast episode, we discuss some ideas and thoughts that might relieve the guilt and bring some definite benefit.   This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

SHOW NOTES That Alpaca Question lurks and troubles us - it is different for each of us but we need to find our answer to it.     This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy