Although the storm that started earlier this year has now died down every show and farm still insists on each alpaca having a negative BVDV test result whether its to enter a show or just to go for a breeding. Similarly anyone with a female is very keen to make sure the farm where the stud resides is BVDV free.

Several farms in our area now have disinfectant baths for visitors to walk through or bootees for them to wear over their regular shoes.

I guess the North American herd must be pretty close to being BVDV free now but there is always the chance of cross infection and the main risk is cattle.



Where alpacas graze next to cattle there are precautions that you can take.

A hot wire to keep the cattle away from the fence is a good idea. This also protects the fence from damage
Spraying the fence line to kill vegetation means there is nothing to attract either the cattle or the alpacas to the fence.

BVD is here to stay but in the alpaca industry we can keep it at bay by being vigilant and testing all new arrivals.

Speaking of which I wish my new arrivals would get a move on.....


Adrian Stewart

The hay field is flood irrigated and we do it in two halves.
What this means is that we have to redirect the water by shovelling mud into one ditch in order to direct the water into the other ditch. This works fine but takes time and is pretty inefficient.

So today I built a wooden form at the junction and poured concrete to form a box that will redirect the water into either of the two ditches simply by moving a wooden board.

The picture below shows the box and then when the water is running.

Pretty simple to do the wood cost about $17 and the concrete about 420.

(pictures coming soon)

Adrian Stewart

Not a very glamorous day today. The irrigation canal which serves all the farms in the valley is being cleared of weed. What this means is that all the loose weed floats down stream and into our irrigation filters. So rather than cleaning them every week or maybe twice per week they have to be cleaned twice per day.

Eventually the weed cleaning machine passes by on its journey down the canal and its debris flows away from us rather than towards us and then things will return to normal.

On a more positive note our alpaca sales are going very well and we have now sold our Hemmingway daughter Ava to Alan and Robyn Schaffer. Ava is currently at NWA and is now pregnant to MFI Peruvian Providence. This will be her first cria and we expect great things from her. So thanks and congratulations to Robyn and Alan.

I will be sorry to see her go I was looking forward to showing her later this year but that's the nature of the business.

Adrian Stewart

Alpacas can be prone to injuring those great big gorgeous eyes. So it is a good idea to notice any sign of disharge or crying.

This week Gaia did notice that one of our older females had a tear streak down her face. So we got her in and cleaned up the eye. There was no obvious sign of injury but a short time later the eye was still weeping so we decided to get the vet Dr Timpson to check it out.

To help identify eye inuries the vet will sometimes use a flourecsent dye that sticks to any scratches. The dye is introduced to the eye then rinsed out and any scratches will then be highlighted. The dye can irritate so needs to be thoroughly flushed out after the eye exam is complete.



Once the dye was rinsed out a small scratch could just be seen under the upper eye lid.



Dr Timpson prescribed a course of antibiotics for the eye....the cream has to be applied three times each day for 7 days....and I know just how much this old girl will enjoy getting that sort of attention morning, noon and night!!

Adrian Stewart click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas.

Today we castrated two of our male alpacas.
We did this because neither boy was conformationally up to scratch.
There is more than one way to perform the castration and some vets use local while others use general anesthetic.

Dr Timpson our vet prefers to put the alpaca to sleep then operate under a local anesthetic.





Once the alpaca receives the shot they soon start to feel sleepy and within 10 minutes or so they will cush and fall into a deep sleep. At this point local anesthetic is injected into the testicles and the procedure begins.



I know this isn't everyones cup of tea so won't go into graphic details on the Blog but will post a more detailed article into the Mulberry Library sometime next month.

Everything was straight forward and the boys are now having some quiet time away from the herd and making a full recovery.

Adrian Stewart click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Having taken the hay we are now back into the cycle of flood irrigating the hay field to generate a second crop of grass.

This time I am using marker posts to see exactly where the water gets to and then adjust the ditch to redirect the flow.

Today I had a helping hand from a flock of Canada Geese that were passing through. They did a great job of walking along the boundary between wet land and dry.



Tomorrow we are castrating two of our boys they are both two years of age so just about perfect timing in my book. In both cases they have decent fibre but are confformationally not up to breeding standard.

Adrian Stewart click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

The bees appear to be settling into their new home and on Friday I will open the hives to check that the queens are laying eggs.



Meanwhile on the alpaca front our friend Gaia from Italy is busy working with the alpacas to make sure they are all halter trained. Gaia is studying Camelid Dynamics with Marty McGee Bennett. So is something of an expert on the behaviour of South American camelids.





This is also a great opportunity for me to brush up on my alpaca handling skills. It really is impressive to see someone like Gaia work with the alpacas in such a calm and confident manner. We all know what can be achieved through brute force so its enlightening to see how much more can be achieved through understanding. Sometimes I think men can be too ready to use their weight and strength with alpacas in way they would never dream of doing with a cow or horse. Anyway if you ever get the chance, take the time to see Marty or one of her trained practitioners in action. Then you can buy the book, watch the DVD or attend a course the choice is yours. Happy handling.

Adrian Stewart click here to return to Mulberry Alpacas.

Well today was the big day and I was up at 5.30 to be at the beekeepers at the earliest possible time. Always move bees while they are sleeping if at all possible.



On arrival I was told its always best to come in a pick-up truck as the nucs (bee colonies) are in boxes which are not totally bee proof!!!

So we carefully loaded the three colonies into the back of the expedition covered then in a picnic blanket, then turned the air conditioning to the max so that the cold would make them drowsy.....

it worked and we only had a couple of brave souls that insisted on flying around inside the car on the journey home.

Once home it was a matter of removing the colonies from the car.



With all the protective gear on, my nerves totally on edge and the dangerous parcels at my feet I felt much closer to the bomb disposal squad than I did to bee keeping.



As I raised the bees from the boxes their constant buzzing increased in pitch and to say I felt threatened is an understatement. Anyway it all went pretty well and the three new colonies appear to be settled in the new hives and I only managed to get stung once which was pretty amazing really.

Gaia was however the most brave she stood not far away taking the pictures that you are currently enjoying. Not long after she was seen running down the drive waving her arms in the air and trying to get an angry bee from out of her hair. I have to confess that I laughed...more from the release of nervous tension than any enjoyment at her situation you understand!

On the alpaca front we are still waiting for a progesterone level on our "pregnant" female and I am hoping to hear something later today on that.

As we were driving to the bee ranch we passed a London Double Decker bus, the number 9 to Knightsbridge to be exact... somehow that very familiar sight (from all the years I spent in the city of London) was the strangest part of the whole day...weird.



Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Today we went to visit the annual county fair and see what was happening.
The local fair runs for 5 full days so only a mad man would go for all five days it makes alpaca shows look super fast by comparison.

But there is always something to learn at these events particularly in the show ring.



Now I know we have a dedicated alpaca show later in the year but I wonder why there is no alpaca section in the local show? I must ask because I think it does sometimes detract from our credibility that we keep ourselves separate from other shows and don't sell alpacas to existing farmers to any great extent.
Of course with all the concern over BVD and alpacas I guess there wouldn't be a big hurry to buddy up your prize alpaca stud with some drooling steer..



Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Today one of the SoJAA (State Of Jefferson Alpaca Association) members had an open house. This was a great opportunity to visit another alpaca farm take a look at some decent alpacas and enjoy the fellowship and hospitality of SoJAA membership. Courtesy of the Andresens.

The open day was at Andresen Acres in Eagle Point.

If you are new to alpacas then one thing you need to know is that the vast majority of alpaca breeders are thoroughly decent human beings and a pleasure to know and work with.

Gaia (our Italian alpaca Breeding friend) and I went along and had a really good time, no one mentioned Italy winning the soccer World Cup so I guess either they didn't know or America is still in denial.

The temperature must have been 110 degrees and I don't think norm Andresen even lit the barbecue to cook the sausages, the sun just did the job for him!

Correy Bol was at the open house and he very tactfully reminded me that I am committed to find a white huacaya stud for the AlpacaMania stud auction....so I guess I better get cracking on that one later today.

Adrian Stewart
Cick here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

I believe I said this last year but back in England when we take the hay from he hay field to the barn we always talk about "leading" the hay, which is kind of interesting but that's for another day.



Once the hay is baled and into decent rows JP will show up and start scooping it into stacks. Its very dry dusty work but much of the back vreaking labor has now been removed.





In total we took 623 bales from the field this year, the yield is higher due to a later cutting date but mainly the fertilization we did back in spring of this year.

Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Today our good friend and fellow alpaca breeder Gaia arrived from Italy.
We first met Gaia last summer when she came to work on our farm as part of the "WWOOFA" scheme. Gaia is now firmly a part of the family.

WWOOF is dedicated to helping those who would like to volunteer on organic farms.
The aims of WWOOF are:
To enable:
people to learn first-hand about organic growing techniques
and town-dwellers to experience living and helping on a farm
to help farmers make organic production a viable alternative
to improve communications within the organic movement.

WWOOF organisations compile a list of organic Host farms that (from time to time) welcome volunteer help. When you become a member of a WWOOF organisation, you will be put in contact with these Host farms. It is then up to you to contact the Host farms that interest you and make your own arrangements with them.



Gaia has a small herd of alpacas in Tuscany, Italy. She is now almost qualified as a judge under the supervision of the Britich Alpaca Society and is an advanced practitioner of Camelid Dynamics and regularly works with Marty McGee. Oh yes I forgot to mention she also shears alpacas. A growing number of young people in their 20's see judging as a way to get into the alpaca market without huge capital outlay.

Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

There are several ways to do this so I am not saying this is the definitive method but it sure is the quickest and easiest.

First lets look at the equipment: We have a standard battery powered drill, the hay probe which is in two parts. The first part cuts the hay and collects the sample. You then use a wooden stick to push that sample down and into the second part of the hay probe, which I call the barrel.



The two parts of the hay probe are screwed together then attached to the power drill.





The process is then to drill into a bale of hay. Pull the probe out and use the wooden rod to push that sample back into the barrel. You repeat this about 5 or 6 times on different bales.
Obviously the idea is to create a sample that is representative of the whole field.



Out of interest I drilled 5 bales which looked pretty green and 5 that looked much more straw like. The two samples will be analysed seperately so it will be interesting to see if there is any material variation between the two samples.

Some alpaca breeders use the hay analysis to reformulate there feed (grain) each year so as to be totally sure what the alpacas are being offered by way of nutrition.

Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Spent the morning mowing and generally improving the pastures which are looking much better but there is still a long way to go.

I was just heading off in the car when three deer broke cover and headed across the drive.



Everyone loves to see the deer strolling around but they are a real nuisance eating the fruit trees and bring parasites onto the property.



Interestingly they fascinate the alpacas who can't quite decide whether to lie down or send out an alarm call.

Tomorrow I will take samples from the hay bales and explain the process.

Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas

Today we started to bale the hay, but baling machines being what they are it wasn't long before we had a mechanical failure which put us out of action for a few hours.





On the alpaca front we have decided to castrate two of our boys who though adorable are never going to make the grade when it comes to breeding.

Had a great e-mail from the fibre mill that is processing a fleece from Lucky Luciano one of our fibre boys to say how wonderful the fibre was. Can't wait to send them a really good fleece.

Having volunteered to be the guest editor of the Ideal Alpaca Community Newsletter today was the submission day for my first edition copy so lets hope it hits the mark as I am starting to prepare the second edition.

Adrian Stewart
Click here to go to Mulberry Alpacas