Alma Park Alpacas™

Nice project! Thanks for posting.

2011-06-29T08:32:32.559-04:00

Nice project! Thanks for posting.

Gorgeous Thor!

2011-06-22T23:54:53.802-04:00

Gorgeous Thor!

You go girl! It's beautiful!

2011-06-01T10:16:32.359-04:00

You go girl! It's beautiful!

Thank you so much, Rose. I loved this Alpaca. It w...

2011-04-27T11:15:35.968-04:00

Thank you so much, Rose. I loved this Alpaca. It was so easy to use and braid.

I'm sure your Alpaca will adorn many of my doll's heads in the future!
:-)

Catt

Way to go Rose!! Keep up the good work!! I could...

2010-12-22T18:08:47.768-05:00

Way to go Rose!! Keep up the good work!! I couldn;t agree with you more on EVERYTHING!!!!

Congratulations to Rose on her first book and than...

2010-12-20T14:30:33.549-05:00

Congratulations to Rose on her first book and thanks to Mr. Frost for inspiring her to write it!
Dawn

Rose, great article. You go far beyond just selli...

2010-12-11T13:36:50.302-05:00

Rose, great article. You go far beyond just selling your aplacas. You have given us so much more. We have and hope to learn so much more in the future from both you and Joe. Thanks,

Rose, as always, you are on the money, succinct &a...

2010-12-08T11:30:09.300-05:00

Rose, as always, you are on the money, succinct & insightful. (and constantly reminding that there is soooo much I need to learn!) I think I received tremendous value in my group. I have 3 rock-stars, a baby on the way & potential studs in 4 color groups. Even my non breeding aunties are an integral part of balancing my herd! (and you know who is stuck leading me thru all of the special ed I will need as time goes on!) I can't thank you enough for everything you & Joe have taught us! Fiber Fiber Fiber!

I agree Rose, when you buy an alpaca your buying a...

2010-12-08T10:12:39.669-05:00

I agree Rose, when you buy an alpaca your buying a package that ideally includes everything you mention. If it's a bred female you need to include who she is bred too as well. It's all part of what your paying for.

Rose, One clarification within your excellent syno...

2010-11-21T15:26:12.252-05:00

Rose,
One clarification within your excellent synopsis: The North American Alpaca Fiber Producers Cooperative IS registered as a true agricultural cooperative as per IRS guidelines.
Pam

Pamela Harwood
Longwoods Alpaca Farm, LLC
Cumberland, ME

Rose Thank you for writing an overview so quickly ...

2010-11-21T15:16:52.377-05:00

Rose
Thank you for writing an overview so quickly and getting it out. Key to this effort will be using our collaborative resources to keep the communication flowing in a constructive and thoughtful manner. Your blog comments have certainly helped get us off on the right foot.
There will be a preliminary e-mail out on Monday to thank everyone who participated - both in Nashville and on the web. I have also looked at all the web comments and understand the points raised including "how to improve the management of web participant input". At this point I would like people to have a little time to talk to their various organizations and among themselves with a definitive statement as to "next steps" posted the week following Thanksgiving.
Again, thank you for blogging.

Yeah, Rose! Very well summarized for those who wan...

2010-11-21T14:32:11.431-05:00

Yeah, Rose!
Very well summarized for those who wanted to attend but could not because of the dreaded, but very thankful to have in this economy 'day job'!!
Vickie Parker
Parker's Alpacas
4139 Highland Rd.
Melissa, TX. 75454
214-803-0420

Hi Rose, I also want to thank you for taking the t...

2010-11-20T23:19:07.190-05:00

Hi Rose,
I also want to thank you for taking the time to write your synopsis and offer your comments.

I've been in the alpaca business since 2003. I've thought from the very beginning that the alpaca industry needs an end product to survive. There's a finite number of people who want to raise alpacas and if all you're doing is selling animals at some point you're going to saturate the market. I think that day isn't far in the future even though those who still believe in only selling animals would argue. I equate the alpaca business with raising emu's. (most alpaca people will cringe when they read that!) The emu breeders didn't have an end product that the public wanted so their business died. I don't want to see that for the alpaca business.

I agree that we are not in competition with other natural fibers, such as wool, mohair, cashmere, etc. Alpaca fiber is great but it does have it's limitations. Mixed with other natural fibers enhances alpaca and makes it more versatile.

I think the biggest hurdle in developing a fiber industry is getting the majority of alpaca breeders "bought in". Convincing those who are in a "sell animal" mentality that they need to participate in a fiber industry will be difficult. I'm not sure how that can be done.

It would be interesting to do a survey on why people didn't participate in the Build a Tent. I wonder how many breeders didn't participate because they aren't interested in a fiber industry. I didn't participate because I work full time to support the farm and unfortunately they chose a time during the day.

Many alpaca owners don't trust AOBA for whatever reason so I believe that having someone outside the industry running the project would be beneficial. Plus if we could get someone with previous experience it would just save us lots of headaches. Why reinvent the wheel?

Anyway I hope this is a turning point for the alpaca industry. It's needed, it's necessary and it needs to happen now.

Thanks for keeping us updated and I look forward to future discussions about the fiber industry.

Diane Creek
Meadowlark Alpacas
Topeka, Kansas

Rose I appreciate the synopsis of the meeting- I ...

2010-11-20T22:22:30.393-05:00

Rose
I appreciate the synopsis of the meeting- I guess I did not understand that this meeting was an important meeting about the future of our fiber - I would love to be able to sell my fiber at my gate instead of spending a fortune on shearing, sorting and processing all of my fiber to get a very small amt of yarn that I have to sell at a high price because of the cost-

Sherry Alpert
Awesome Acres Pacas & PrYrs
Oklahoma City

Rose, Also, thank you for providing this overview...

2010-11-20T21:25:05.049-05:00

Rose,
Also, thank you for providing this overview. I also saw some of it on internet but had to miss the afternoon portion. I am really excited and I think other people are as well after reading and hearing all that is being said about what this industry really needs to be. I'm not a spinner, weaver, craft person or knitter, but I breed both suri and huacaya for the ultimate end result beautiful useable FIBER! I want to bag my clip, leave it at the gate and have it picked up and taken away. I want to know I am contributing to an industry that I am helping to build. Sure we too will keep some of our fleece for special projects. But what a feeling to be able to be a part of an industry that is growing more than we know it. I agree that they should hire a person that has been through the ups and downs of the fiber business and can educate and stear us in the right direction. Can't wait for more!
Laurie Findlay
Alpacas of El Dorado

Rose, First, thank you for providing such a comple...

2010-11-20T13:41:37.942-05:00

Rose,
First, thank you for providing such a complete overview of yesterday's meeting. I also attended via internet invite.

As a new farm and a lover of fiber I have to admit I'm totally surprised that the alpaca industry as a whole has not been and continues to fail in marketing the actual product which I also believe is FIBER!

It seems to me that most people already in the business want to sell the animals themselves, speak on and on about the alpaca lifestyle, and fail to promote the benefits of the actual fiber. Many farms we visited prior to our purchase had little knowledge about the fiber aspects - microns, grades, what to do with it!

I was further surprised to find on the list of attendees that I was the only one attending from Michigan! I believe as this necessary direction to promote the fiber industry is taken, we will have a long road to haul with getting the majority of the farms in the US on board as many that I have visited, facebooked with, met at shows and seminars etc are all geared to the "cottage industry" arena - that is IF they are selling their fiber, they are doing so at fiber festivals, on etsy, etc in an attempt to find immediate recooping of their monies to cover expenses.

I'm not sure where the answer lies, but I certainly agree with you - I also would keep a small % for myself to use, but in the larger scheme of things, want to assist in driving the alpaca fiber movement forward.

Thank you again for providing detailed information about the meeting and sharing your personal thoughts!

Kathy Ainsworth
Clear Sky Alpacas
Carson City, MI

Sorry Knapper, that you can't see it,...the gu...

2010-09-23T14:55:52.438-04:00

Sorry Knapper, that you can't see it,...the guest shows Jay Leno how alpaca fleece stuffed into a nylon stocking, absorbs all the oil off the top of the water, in an aquarium to mimic the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. They brought an alpaca on stage, and did the demonstration...Very cute and shows the wicking ability of the fleece....Very good and educational.

I love the commercial,...it is factual, it is &quo...

2010-09-23T14:40:01.160-04:00

I love the commercial,...it is factual, it is "down to earth", and the fact that the lawyer was wearing alpaca socks,.....was priceless!!! Love, love, love it.

Julie - while you do need a sire owners permission...

2010-08-15T16:39:08.646-04:00

Julie - while you do need a sire owners permission to register the cria (this protects the sire's owner if there are any fees due), you do not need their permission for naming unless you are asking to use something specific relating to that sire in the cria's name. Can you clarify what it was that you had to ask permission for?

thanks!

Loved your article. Very informative. Just a not...

2010-08-15T16:25:07.754-04:00

Loved your article. Very informative. Just a note: We DID have to get the sire's owner's permission to name our crias but it wasn't a problem.

I love your list of the good benefits! What a gre...

2010-08-02T15:35:19.845-04:00

I love your list of the good benefits! What a great way to frame it.

Cara

Wish I could see the video. I get a message saying...

2010-07-08T16:56:53.333-04:00

Wish I could see the video. I get a message saying it is not viewable in my region.

Thanks Meredith!! - I fit into the non-retiree cat...

2010-04-15T09:35:49.767-04:00

Thanks Meredith!! - I fit into the non-retiree category as well since I started with alpacas at 32 -- thanks for the reference to the store. . . actually my yarn is on :

www.yourLYSonline.com

:) glad to read your thoughts. I certainly fit in...

2010-04-13T12:20:23.764-04:00

:) glad to read your thoughts. I certainly fit into the non-retiree alpaca owner category. You know I am excited to get my kids involved! In an age of xbox & wii, it is tuff to get kids motivated or excited about anything. I already have 3 knitter & crochet-er friends- all younger- who are excited to get their paws on fiber- after I told them how great it is. I knew it would be a while b4 I had any, so I told them about your store on ebay! ;)

Congrats on the great results! Progeny-based wins ...

2010-03-16T02:44:39.968-04:00

Congrats on the great results! Progeny-based wins are indeed the most valuable for a male, and they look great!

We feel we have not really succeeded in breeding if the progeny of our alpacas don't succeed to be great. Our herdsire Corazon have some great kids in Australia, but none in Norway yet, so we're excited about the prospects.