Alpaca Tribe

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I am thinking about how funny alpacas can be and how they are a delight to be around. Remember to always laugh with them, not at them - that goes for those significant humans in your life too! Millie the matriarch and Megan and Alys all get a mention. What do you do with your alpacas for fun? Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we hear some sounds and reflect on what you think of when someone says "the sound of summer". We also have a valley update and yet more sounds we are hearing. Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it. You can contact me by email - steve@alpacatribe.com - or leave me a voicemail from your browser. Alpaca Tribe is hosted and produced...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I am thinking about the march of time and how it is marked by seasons and regular activities. I also share how I am particularly grateful for the benefits of alpaca pace to my life. What about you? Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it. You can contact me by email - steve@alpacatribe.com - or leave me a voicemail from your browse...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I am considering how to make sense of the things that happen. Sometimes they are random, sometimes they are the result of our actions and sometimes they mean something. But not always. For example, there is no connection between me planning to shear and it starting to rain - at least I don't think so! Make your plans, stay flexible and inc...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we will be thinking about what success means to us. It could be the first time you do something, the repeats that increase your skill, or it could be consistency over time. Success means different things to different people and also over time. The Carbon Almanac is going to be an amazing printed resource for people who care about the plane...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we are thinking about the future and change and how we can prepare, or at least ask the right kind of questions. When change happens slowly we may not notice it as much but we will still experience the impact at some point. Climate change, sourcing feed, delivery challenges, sustainability and regeneration. We have to take account of so mu...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we talk about finishing the shearing for the whole herd. So welcome! Learning as always - about the alpacas, individually and collectively. Learning about ourselves. Confidence and clarity. Preparation and mindset. It all works in together. What does success look like to you? Moving target, so take the small wins and let them build togethe...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we talk shearing and give a valley update. I had forgotten how physical shearing is and am now suitably tired and we are only partway through! Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it. You can contact me by email - steve@alpacatribe.com - or leave me a voicemail from your browser. Alpaca Tribe is hosted and produced by Steve Heather...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I explore some things I have found that surprise alpacas. Their curiosity normally intervenes but sometimes they do make a little jump first. It includes: sudden movements loud sounds unexpected objects things underfoot things being blown around Check out your local environment to reduce potential impact. What things have surprised your al...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I want to explore how we can talk with our alpacas. I am sure we talk to them but do you know when they talk back? Our aim is to better understand what our alpacas need. If we listen (including watching) they will talk to us. Three questions: What do you notice? What does it mean? What should I do about it (and when)? Not a magic wand, jus...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I explore change, considering how we approach it and the difference between things we have no control over and things we can affect. World scale changes will affect us, maybe not today or even tomorrow, but soon. As always, I encourage you to go spend some time with your alpacas and enjoy the moment. Let me know your thoughts. The podcasti...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I encourage us to be kind to ourselves and allow mistakes to be learning opportunities - but it is not easy. Listen in to a valley update and Amelia's latest strangeness. Planning for a mini-series on growing older - both our alpacas and us! Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it. You can contact me by email - steve@alpacatribe.co...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! I have learnt many things while keeping alpacas - obviously about them but also about me. In this episode, I share three of those life lessons that transfer to 'normal living' not just alpacas. Patience Attention Loss and love What have you learnt from alpacas? Thanks for listening, and I hope you enjoyed it. You can contact me by email - steve@alpacatribe...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I give a valley update, talk about what spooked the girls and what we can do about it and consider how we move forward in our experience of keeping alpacas by increasing traction and reducing friction. A CAMELIDynamics Virtual Conference - 2-day virtual conference with amazing guest speakers and camelid focussed knowledge. Thanks for liste...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I notice some things and invite you to become more aware of what you notice. Alpacas are great to be around when your head is spinning with problems and questions that don't have answers. It kind of puts things into perspective. So do yourself a favour and spend some time with an alpaca - or the next best thing, an episode of alpaca tribe!...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, I am in conversation with Lanette Frietag of FeltLOOM. Lanette has long-term experience of alpacas and other fibre animals, and even owned some of the early imports of alpacas to the US. Before that she had llamas. How do you scale up your use of fleece to make living, or at least cover the costs of feeding your alpacas? We all face that c...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we will be revisiting the first episode of the podcast - over three years ago - hardly seems possible. It was a good reminder to me of where we started and why - I would love to know what you think and what you would like more of - drop me an email to steve@alpacatribe.com. Can't wait to hear from you. Spring is my favourite time of year -...

Welcome to the podcast for alpaca people! In this episode, we are thinking about Spring. As we pass the spring equinox the sun gets stronger and warmer. Ideal alpaca sunbathing weather. Thoughts also turn towards... spring things. What is the word that comes after Spring? In the US it may well be... Break as in Spring Break. Here in the UK my thoughts turn to Spring Cleaning Listen in to find out...

We look at the alpaca dam and sire but may still not have a clue about the cria that will result. Join me as I muse on breeding decisions. The first consideration is the bloodlines and avoiding potential inbreeding. Next, we should be considering the desirable traits and how to increase the likelihood of adding to them in the next and following generations. At one level it seems simple but there a...

Change is the one constant. Join me on the alpaca feeding round on a wet late-winter afternoon. For basic equipment like troughs and buckets, investing in some long-lasting ones will serve you well. Take care of yourself. This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy

We are all creatures of habit but alpacas especially so. From feeding preferences and positions to grazing routes and times of the day. Millie and her daughters have particular behaviours that are noticeable but so do the others, even if they tend to hang back. Noticing the tendency to form habits, how do we make good use of it? Calling them, feeding them at the same time in the same place and kno...

Here in the UK, we survived the three named storms in five days, with some trees down in the valley but not any serious damage thankfully. The alpacas kept themselves indoors when the winds were strong and were producing driving rain. Millie was a little unwell with some diarrhoea but we were able to get her balanced up again pretty quickly. To give a little extra protection we added a waterproof...

Alpacas recognise each other - and us. From a distance and close up, they pick up on cues from all of their senses to know where they are and who they are with. What can we learn from them? The herd group dynamics of alpacas always amaze me with their complexity and detail. From who they will share a feeding trough with, to who they will sit down next to. From who they know to be part of their fam...

Listen in to find out about the fox drama followed by the lifebuoy drama. The things these alpacas get up to! I always loved the concept of managing by wandering around since I first came across it in a previous life (ie before alpacas). Who knew you could apply it to managing your alpacas? "What are you doing Steve?" "Oh, I am just managing the alpacas!" - no really! Some things to look out for w...

How do you make decisions? It's a process and the final decision starts with the first consideration of maybe. We build a series of choices and data gathering into our final decision of commitment. But it all begins with the first small decision to stop and take a look. If you are thinking of keeping alpacas, we owe it to ourselves to consider chasing and fulfilling our ambitions. At the same time...