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Newsletter No 2 - January 1999 Stud services 17 visiting females were served by our stud males, plus all those who were re-mated after calving here before going to new homes. We will have some new stud males this year, our aim being to keep the stud stock fresh with new bloodlines, history and performance coming in on a recurrent basis. New feeding regime We have modified our feeding regime - yet again!. Some females have been dragged down quite badly by constant pregnancy and lactation, and we have found that 250 grammes of cattle rough mix twice a day effects spectacular weight gain in a very short time (females in good condition are doing fine on haylage alone). We have recently brought all the weanlings into the big shed alongside the adult females, and they too are getting a tiny feed of rough mix twice a day. They are now jumping out of their skins, with fleeces soft and lustrous as never before! Care of calves We've sold quite a bit of alpaca colostrum, and indeed had cause to use it ourselves on a couple of occasions. It seems to be excellent, so much better than the other sorts tried over the years. We wouldn't face a birthing period now without having a bottle on the shelf. We also have found useful on occasions, especially in cold, wet conditions, thermal jackets for alpaca calves. Calves can get cold so quickly - even during the actual birth - and if they get chilled then away goes most of their drive to 'get going'. Sometimes a warm coat is all that's needed, but if in doubt use the hair dryer first. Get them thoroughly warm and sucking, then put them out in a coat and let mum take over. Shearing services Bob the shearer will be on the road again this summer. Apply early for shearing services, and we will get his schedule finalised as soon as possible. Bob has spent some time with the sorters and graders of our fleece, and gained some valuable expertise in how, why and what they want in the fleece presented. Some lovely fleeces were found to be completely spoiled by contamination - so easily avoided with a little care. Tips: feed hay in low containers, and don't 'top' the pasture until after shearing. Co-op fleece sorting This went very well, and there are four tons in six colour lots - quite a sight. There wasn't much of the super fine (or baby) quality (under 22 microns) but this can be increased over time by the use of good stud males. Uncommon ailments Whilst on his travels, Bob saw a few alpacas whose back teeth had overgrown to such an extent that they were lacerating the insides of the cheeks and causing pain and loss of condition. Our vet has had tiny files made - expensive but very useful in the circumstances. We've also been talking to the vets about a skin problem that affects a few of our alpacas. Mostly this has been put down to mites, but in our experience this isn't the whole answer. The problem seems to be sex and colour linked, and our vets suspect a complex syndrome. They are making efforts to come up with a cure, even though they can't yet name the cause! If anyone has a contribution to make on this subject, we would be glad to hear it, and of course we'll keep you informed of progress

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