Ruth Hussey's Date.....

Ruth Hussey had her date with Wira Cocha yesterday which lasted 54 minutes. She eclipsed Trellianna's previous record of 44 minutes. I feel confident that the breeding was successful and puts her on target for a November 24, 2009 cria which is close to next Thanksgiving. It will be something to feel thankful for next year, that's for sure.

While these breedings take place some of the alpacas like to observe what's going on, especially the females who are open and the little crias. Well, I happened to look over in the second stall and Aurora was in a kushed position. Thor was watching what his sire Wira Cocha was doing and he thought he'd give it a try. He would attempt to mount Aurora and each time he kept falling off which was hilarious. He was trying from behind, from the side, he just couldn't quite grasp it. After several failed attempts he gave it one last try and luckily I was able to capture it on my camera phone video. Here is a short clip of Trellianna's boy (Thor) trying to breed Aurora. Keep in mind he is one month old.

Thorello - The 'Young Bull'

The little ones are so much fun to watch. They are so curious and you never know what they’ll do next as they explore new things.

It will be interesting to see if Thorello follows in his fathers’ footsteps and becomes a magnificent herdsire in his own right. After all, his name means 'young bull'! Only time will tell.

Last week my buddy Jim and I installed the two automatic waterers on the boys side so now they'll have a continuous supply of fresh water with no chance of freezing as they are heated and on a thermostat.

Makes my life easier too!

Let it Snow

We had our 1st snowfall of the year this morning. We have had just brutal weather for the last three weeks. It has been blistering cold and it appears as though we skipped over fall and went directly to winter.


In other farm news, Trellianna was re-bred to Wira Cocha last Tuesday 11/25/08 and if all goes well that puts her on schedule for an 11/11/09 cria. The breeding lasted 44 minutes and went well so, I am pretty confident that Anna is pregnant. I will field test her in a couple of weeks to make sure.

The diarrhea problem has been cleared up as both Rocco and Thor are pooping beans and all is well at this point. I gave the two little guys 2cc's of Albon orally for 5 days and that worked like a charm. They are both gaining weight and getting bigger every day.

The girls were out in the field but, when the snow came down harder they all retreated to the comfort of the barn, with the exception of our LGD Lucia. She is laying down in the middle of the field enjoying the cold weather and snow.


We ordered an additional two Frank automatic water fountains for the boy's side and I will install them on Wednesday as the weather is expected to be sunny and close to 60 degrees. They will come in handy this winter as the units have a heating element with a fixed thermostat so there is no chance of freezing. This ensures that there will always be a fresh supply of water for the animals.