On Saturday we delivered three young male alpacas to their new home at Fantom Farm in Mass. The farm had two older alpacas and when one died recently, they were left with one alpaca who was looking for his companion and not happy with just his goat and sheep herdmates. … Read More
It’s that time of year again…we’ve weaned most of last year’s crias and they are big enough to wear halters comfortably. This means it’s time to start lead training. We start by fitting the alpacas with halters and letting them wear the halters for short periods for a few days. … Read More
Those of us who farm in colder climates have to work around some challenges posed by the cold, ice and snow. One challenge is to stay warm while working outside, especially if you can’t wear heavy gloves for the task at hand. Another is to find good days for using … Read More
Here at Snowshoe Farm we are looking back at 2011 and counting our blessings. Despite a down economy, we’ve managed to sell quite a few alpacas this year; we had a beautiful crop of crias – mostly female (yes, that’s a good thing); our homegrown herdsire, Snowshoe Aristides, won another … Read More
This time of year is as close as we get to “down time” on the farm. Outdoor chores are limited: no gardening, no mowing. Breeding chores are limited; no breeding, no birthing. We stick very close to home in the spring and summer, but this time of year we have … Read More
Our herd was due for its dectomax injections this week, so we took advantage of the gray, wet, but still fairly mild weather to get that chore done today. Snow is in the forecast for tonight and more seasonable temps to follow. It’s time… Tomorrow the crias get their oral … Read More
The NYS Sheep & Wool Festival is coming up next weekend and we’re busy getting ready. We have a nice selection of alpaca and alpaca blend yarns we’ll be taking to the festival. The last of the white DK yarn is skeined and washed and dry – ready to label. … Read More
It’s herd health day at Snowshoe Farm, our monthly day for dectomax shots and body scoring. If the weather cooperates, we’ll also finish up weights and toenails on the “big boys”. It’s hot and very humid today and the forecast is for a chance of thunderstorms, so we’ll try to … Read More
Today was a busy one at Snowshoe Farm. With 70+ alpacas in four barns, we scrambled to prepare for Hurricane Irene’s arrival tomorrow. Like many people in rural areas, we depend on a well for water and if we lose power, we lose our water. So we filled 5-gallon containers … Read More
We like to shear our crias before the end of summer. This removes the discolored, often tender, tips of their fiber and gives us a better fleece at shearing next spring. This week we sheared the nine crias that have been born so far here at Snowshoe Farm. This is … Read More