You might think having 30 alpacas in your backyard sounds like a lot of work. But, according to Rick Hazard, vice president of marketing for San Diego-based WAXIE Sanitary Supply, alpaca farming is both easy and relaxing.  

Rick and his wife Patti live about 23 miles east of San Diego in Jamul, Calif. Becoming alpaca farmers happened by accident.

“Patti said she’d like to have some animals, and we just happened to be at a party at which one of our friends was wearing a beautiful alpaca shawl,” says Rick. “Patti asked about the shawl, and then said, ‘What’s an alpaca?’ I just knew from the conversation on the way home that we were going to be alpaca owners.”

The day after that party, Rick opened the newspaper and saw an ad in the livestock section for alpacas.
“We went to the place selling the alpacas and fell in love with them,” says Rick.

That was at the end of 2003. Today, the Hazards have a small herd of 30 Peruvian alpacas on their farm. The alpaca is part of the camel family, as is the llama. Alpacas are smaller than llamas and have a higher quality fiber.

“We are hobby farmers. Our initial priority in raising alpacas was to both breed the animals and sell the fiber,” says Rick. “The market for breeding alpacas has diminished, so we now focus on the fiber.”

Rick and Patti shear the animals once a year and send the raw fiber to a mill in San Diego, where it is processed into skeins or spools of yarn. Each animal will produce roughly three to four pounds of fiber per year.

“Patti has really established our farm as a source for alpaca fiber. We participate in farmers markets, street fairs and also show our animals,” says Rick.

The alpacas are known for not requiring a whole lot of work or effort. They are self-rationing with food, eating about a bale of hay per animal per month. They need water, and, depending on the part of the country in which they live, they might need shelter. They like to sit in the rain, and their fur insulates them from the cold. When they want to communicate, alpacas hum.

“They’ll hum if they’re stressed. A mother hums to her babies to create a connection between mother and child. Or, a mother might hum to her little one if the baby is getting too far away,” says Rick. 

Alpacas are also known to spit.

“It’s a form of defense for them,” says Rick. “They usually start out with puffs of air, and then it turns to spitting. However, alpacas don’t get upset unless they are provoked. About the only time we see them agitated is when they are sheared in the spring.”

Though they are farm animals and not house pets, Rick is still surprised by how attached he is to the alpacas.

“One of the best parts of my day is to sit outside under a shade tree with a handful of grain. The alpacas eat from my hand, and it’s like candy to them,” he says. “For me, it is the most calming and relaxing part of the day.”  

Gretchen Roufs, an 18-year janitorial supply industry veteran, owns a marketing and public relations company in San Antonio. To suggest someone you think should be featured in “Freetime,” contact her at Gretchen@GretchenRoufs.com.




POSTED ON: 10/19/2012