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Friday, Sep. 25, 2009

Alpaca ranches open gates for hands-on tours

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Hundreds of years ago, alpacas yielded fleece that clothed the Incan rulers.

This weekend, people in and near Stanislaus County can get a feel for what these animals are all about.

Free tours will take place at several area sites as part of National Alpaca Farm Days. The events will showcase a South American creature with one of the goofiest faces — and some of the priciest fleece — in the animal kingdom.

"They are really unique, really amazing animals," said Kimberly Blakeway, who will show off the Tuolumne County ranch where she and her husband, Erik, have 20 of them.

Dennis and Nancy Lilly will do the same at their 62-head operation, Lilly of the Valley Alpacas, just east of Modesto. They breed the animals and sell them to other people — for $9,500 to $18,000, according to their current price list.

The couple also sells fleece — $30 a pound for the raw stuff sought by yarn spinners, more for processed items. They said people getting into alpacas can eventually cover the investment through fleece sales.

The couple had 43 beef cattle but decided five years ago to switch to alpacas.

"We wanted to raise livestock, but we wanted something different — friendly and easy to be around," said Dennis Lilly, who also works in real estate.

Nancy Lilly was a registered nurse but now works full time with the alpacas.

As livestock go, they are fairly easy to manage. They eat pasture grass, supplemented by hay and vitamin-mineral pellets. They nibble the top of the grass and their hooves go easy on the ground.

They need fencing against coyotes and other predators, as well as basic care to prevent disease.

The alpacas are sheared in midspring, removing the coat they grew for winter. This year, the Lilly of the Valley crew sheared 61 animals in four hours, according to the ranch blog.

The owners breed the animals to achieve the desired color, texture, luster and strength in the fleece. Some of the fleece ends up in their gift shop, which has yarn, clothing, teddy bears and other products made from alpacas raised here and at other ranches.

The Lilly ranch is 4.3 acres, with fenced-off pastures for breeding males, pregnant and nursing females and recently weaned youngsters.

"The females eat and they make babies," Dennis Lilly said. "The males play and they wrestle."

Two 4-year-old males, William and Troubadour, did just that as their owners talked about the business. Nearby stood Kilimanjaro, the 14-year-old alpha male, whose job is to stay calm and break up the younger males' frolics when needed.

"They all respect him," Dennis said. "He eats first, and they all just give him room."

Alpacas hum when content but join in a loud chirp when a predator lurks. The females cluck to their babies.

Alpacas are related to llamas, another South American transplant, but differ in that they are not pack animals in the United States.

Nancy Lilly said alpacas actually are more like house cats — sometimes aloof, sometimes curious and often eager to nuzzle up against people.

"Their faces are all different types, just like people faces," she said.

The couple mentor new owners on how to raise alpacas and direct them to classes on the topic. The animals can handle most climates, they said.

Maureen Macedo, whose Delhi-area ranch will be open for tours, got into alpacas four years ago and now has 21.

Macedo, who teaches science at Blaker-Kinser Junior High School in Ceres, likes to spin and knit with alpaca fleece in her off hours.

Or just enjoy the animals themselves.

"I can relax after a day of junior high," she said. "I can go outside with the alpacas and they hum around me."

Bee staff writer John Holland can be reached at jholland@modbee.com or 578-2385.