Alpacas as Lifestyle Animals

Introduction

In New Zealand, the number of people moving onto 'lifestyle' properties has increased markedly over the last 20 years. Some are wanting a radical lifestyle or career change, others want to work remotely whilst living away from the city but in common is that all of these properties are set on large sections, usually at least one hectare and frequently much larger. Uses for the land are equally as varied and range from market gardening to bee-keeping to keeping animals. In this last group there are many choices and apart from the usual cattle, sheep and poultry, some have opted for goats, miniture breeds of cattle and ponies or alpacas. Each of these animals have their own needs with some being more demanding than others.
The purpose of this page is not to discuss or compare the virtues of each animal species but to explain the reasons why you may or may not want to have alpacas on a lifestyle property.

Although alpacas have been kept in New Zealand zoos for many years, they were only reclassified as farm animals in 1986. Until some 20 years ago and with limited numbers in the country, alpacas were still a novelty and thus attracted very high prices from breeders. Since then, alpaca numbers have steadily grown although the current New Zealand population is little more than guesswork. Almost certain is that the number of unregistered animals now exceeds those registered in the AANZ database. As a result, prices have dropped markedly from their highs and made alpacas a viable consideration for lifestyle blocks.

So why do people keep them and are they suitable for everyone?

There are many different motivations for keeping them which fall into three main groups:

Owners of small herds

This category of owners often has a group of males or wethers but occasionally non-breeding females and they keep them as pets for pleasure. Given that only about 5% of all males bred are judged suitable to be future studs, there is a seasonal wave of males available for sale, usually halter trained and relatively inexpensive to buy. Most people want these alpacas as attractive backyard nibblers and the characteristics given in the panel make them very suitable. If the owners are interested in the fibre for crafts, the alpacas will also provide fleeces for hand spinning, felting or other uses.
Better quality animals are becoming ever available from AANZ registered breeders and these should provide finer superior fibre. Some owners are not interested in the fleece so it may be sent and sold to a fibre broker, sold privately, taken away by the shearer or even used as mulch in the garden.

Commercial breeding

Alpaca breeders may show, sell and perhaps export animals on a commercial basis. Alpacas produce one of the most luxurious fibres available and commercial operations in New Zealand are now breeding animals with exceptional fleeces - crimped, lustrous and soft handling. As a result, alpaca farms with up to 1000 animals are now operating with some of these breeders being involved in animal exports to the U.K., mainland Europe and eastern Asia. These markets are subject to changing import/export and health regulations and at one point was hindered by transport disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The export business has now returned to normal. Larger alpaca farms frequently have particular outlets for their fibre.

Most breeders are however smaller businesses with between 20 and 100 animals and aim to breed alpacas with improved fleece characteristics. They will sell animals to other breeders and into the local market and frequently use their own fibre for niche markets, for example making knitted products for sale.

Agritourism

Agritourism involves providing additional activities at an alpaca farm for the enjoyment of visitors and this is proving popular in New Zealand. For the farm owner, these activities create extra income for the farm and may develop into a year-round main business. Such activities may include farm tours, alpaca encounters, overnight (or longer) farm stays, holiday units, farm shops selling alpaca and other products, on-farm activities, educational programmes, etc, and farm visitors may use their stay as a base for other activities, adding to the local economy. These business activities may be combined with either of the other two groups. Alpaca agritourism will raise awareness about alpacas and show that they have a role in sustainable farming.
Alpaca agritourism offers visitors a chance to experience farm life and learn about sustainable farming practices, alpaca fibre and animal care. It provides farmers with an opportunity to diversify their income, educate tourists and the general public, and build stronger connections with the local community.

Further Aspects

Income

The New Zealand Inland Revenue Department considers alpaca farming as an economically viable activity on small lifestyle blocks and therefore it qualifies as a farming business. Alpacas are a niche market animal that enable owners with small acreages to earn income. Obviously, there are economies of scale with increasing farm/herd size and owners are subject to animal and fleece value swings in the market. For NZ taxation purposes, any business losses incurred may be offset against other income. Discussions with your accountant are advised if you wish to operate on this type of basis.

Showing

Post Covid-19, most alpaca breeders have enthusiastically returned to these shows. Showing alpacas in halter classes has always been popular in New Zealand and are as much social occasions for the geographically scattered breeders as they are competitions. Whilst it is gratifying to be awarded a ribbon for an animal, many enter alpacas for the judges comments which are very useful in future breeding decisions. Given the requirement for a whole-herd TB certificate at A&P shows, showing only the fleeces has grown in popularity. The freshly sheared blanket is carefully skirted and cleaned and sent to the show for judging. The judges score the fleece for the required attributes thus providing valuable information (or verification) of a breeding program. Fleece-only entries at shows allow the alpacas to remain on the farm but if the owners still wish to travel, it allows them the social and networking elements.

Fibre

With the gradual move away from the plastic fibres used for clothing there will be a growing demand for natural types and alpaca fibre is part of this change-over, if currently constrained by price and available supply. As a fibre it has a softness, tensile strength and an impressive variety of natural colours. There are 22 internationally recognised alpaca fibre colours although just sixteen are recognised by the AANZ. Like all protein-based fibres, fleece may be dyed to any colour though buyers of alpaca products frequently want natural colours. Alpaca garments are lightweight and very warm.
Unless you are having alpacas simply as pets, the main focus should always be on the fibre end product. A few pet boys or girls can provide fibre for craft activities such as hand spinning, felting, natural dyeing and weaving. Larger volumes of fibre can be processed by the breeder or sold on to other processors.

Matings

For owners of small alpaca herds on smaller sections, owning a stud male is not likely to be a good option. To avoid disruption, such males need separate paddocks preferably away from the females, which necessitates having two males. Should an owner wish to breed, a good start would be to discuss options with a local AANZ member as they are frequently stud male owners. They will be able to provide good advice and suggest suitable males that would fit with your breeding aims and budget. The cost of a mating varies considerably but the stud owner should guarantee a pregnancy.

Reasons for Caution

Longevity

Many potential owners of animals will consider the life span of the animal when deciding to purchase. In the case of alpacas, a lifespan of around 20 years is quite realistic. Obviously, the older the animals bought, the more health issues are likely to be encountered over time and unless the previous owners have kept good health records and can provide them, the animals may already come with health liabilities. Purchasing animals from AANZ member farms reduces this risk two-fold:

• as members must conform to the MPI code of Welfare for llamas and alpacas which sets a minimum standard for the health and welfare of alpacas, many AANZ members exceed this. These members will also have the experience to ensure the good health of their alpacas.
• Telling the age of an alpaca beyond 5 years old is very difficult. However, registered alpacas will have a brass ear tag, conventionally in the left ear for males and right ear for females. Each tag carries the registration number of the animal which can be looked up in the Pedigree register to verify the animal's age and genetic background.

Facial eczema (FE)

Facial Eczema is a very serious disease that affects alpacas even worse than sheep, especially on the North Island. You are strongly encouraged to read about this; the cause and prevention are covered in detail in this Facial Eczema page and a less detailed version is provided in this AANZ Newsletter. Alpacas are at high risk from the disease and unless the methods described in these articles are used each year, the animals will accumulate damage to their livers until there is complete failure. Protecting the alpacas is an essential daily task during the post-Christmas FE season and is not difficult. Responsible owners and AANZ breeders will take these measures but unfortunately there are less reputable breeders who may cut corners or simply be oblivious to the disease.

The need for two alpacas at minimum, ideally three.

Most are aware that as herbivores and prey animals, alpacas instinctively need to be part of a herd. When there are multiple animals, a heiarchy is established, the correct behaviours can be seen and the herd functions normally. Alpacas should never be alone for any extended period as a single animal needs to always be on its guard and can never relax. This leads to pathological stress and in extreme cases, death. A minimum herd size of three is strongly recommended which of course means that the land area needed to keep the herd is slightly larger. Three alpacas can be comfortably kept on one acre of grazing.

Other stock

It doesn't take much imagination to realise that larger stock animals such as cattle, donkeys and horses could be a danger to alpacas. One kick might easily be lethal. However, even smaller stock such as sheep and goats are a risk as they ram opponents with their heads, particularly true of the males. Non-equine livestock also carry the same varieties of parasitic gut worms as alpacas and since they poo all over paddocks, it ensures that the alpacas will be constantly reinfected with these worms. Pigs are totally unsuitable as paddock companions and are particularly dangerous to crias. There are also a number of zoonotic diseases affecting the usual livestock that can jump to alpacas.
Essentially, alpacas should be kept in their own paddocks to remain healthy and safe. Cross-grazing with horses is valuable as they seem to relish the lush grass that grows around the alpaca middens. This in turn keeps worm numbers down and horses are unaffected by the same worm species as alpacas.
There are owners who keep their alpacas in with other species and their assurances are sometimes seen on social media. To balance this, I suggest that these owners are not likely to advertise on social media when there has been a serious or fatal event. The need for separate paddocks can be significant for a lifestyle block and may be an issue if different species are wanted.

Fleece value

Whilst once a valuable source of income for the alpaca owner, fleece values have dropped markedly in recent years, similar to sheep wool prices. In part this is due to increased supply (although not necessarily increased quality) but mainly due to the failure of government, industry and AANZ bodies to research and develop appropriate and 'value-added' markets for all New Zealand fibre production. Whilst many of the major breeders have specific markets for their large quantities of fleece such as for knitting wool, in duvet manufacture, etc, the situation is dire for owners of small numbers of animals. Much of their fleece output is currently dumped, composted, stored in the back of a shed or sold to fleece brokers whose main use for it is in tourist-focussed products. COVID-19 severely disrupted this latter market resulting in a glut of fibre and poor returns. However, international tourism is now returning to pre-COVID 19 levels, as should fleece values.
It should be noted that even the best returns for fleece do not cover the cost of shearing and niche value-added markets are desperately needed to support the industry as a whole.

Animal values

In the early years of the alpaca industry, animals frequently had sales values in excess of $10,000. The higher quality tiers aside, the values of animals have dropped steadily over the last 20 years due to an ever expanding alpaca population. A significant part of the more recent breeding has not been by AANZ members and the numbers of alpacas (of unknown quality) being sold through particular sales channels has depressed prices considerably.
It is hoped that potential new owners purchase alpacas from AANZ members for the reasons given above. These breeders will have ever better quality, AANZ registered animals available at lower prices, particularly true with larger breeders retiring the industry. Potential owners who have an aim of breeding alpacas should not expect to see improving animal values over the coming years although the price of alpacas does seem to have stabilised.

Conclusion

It is fair to write that with the fall in alpaca values and the low returns from fibre, alpacas are not going to make money for the smaller herd owner, at least in the near-term. This situation may change with an improving consumer perception towards natural fibres.
Given their nature, alpacas are an absolute pleasure to have on the farm or lifestyle block. They do have particular needs which must be provided for, just like any livestock species and background research to understand these needs and quirks should be done before committing to buy. Moreover, owners must accept that getting their hands dirty is part of alpaca ownership. This website has an Alpacapedia of information starting with the basics to assist all potential and existing owners.

If you have ambitions to breed, buying registered alpacas from an AANZ member is essential as off-spring will need to be registered in the AANZ database. There are many considerations to be weighed up before taking the plunge there but these are outside the scope of this article and best discussed with several alpaca breeders. A look at the AANZ directory of alpaca breeders will show where your nearest ones are. Most are very happy to talk alpaca whether of not you buy from them!
Potential owners simply wanting 'back yard nibblers' for their block could also consider alpacas that are unwanted, have been abandoned or 'given away with the block' when a property owner sells up. Unfortunately, these alpacas are available all too frequently but from personal experience of rehoming them, I know they can be wonderful animals. If you would like to adopt some of these, please contact me on this e-mail form or contact any other AANZ member for advice. Alternatively you can enquire on one of the NZ Alpaca Facebook pages.

Quick Page Links

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• 021 813 746
• 736 Papaiti Road,
  R.D. 14,
  Wanganui,
  New Zealand.

Directions - Once in Wanganui, drive up Somme Parade and when it becomes Papaiti Road (just past the cemetery), travel a further 7.4km alongside the river. We are the first house on the right with a large white letterbox and sign for the farm. On Google Maps we are shown as 'Te Korito Alpacas'.