More Herd Planning

Like most alpaca owners, my first purchase was an emotional one. I saw Keona and fell in love. There was just something about her I connected with. Her half brother, who I renamed Michael Jackson, was just the cutest thing ever especially when I saw him fence running with his buddy, now named Sir Ewok. When I saw how much they loved each other, I couldn't separated them. And so I purchased my first three alpacas.

In writing my business plan, I've had to think about how I want my herd to grow. And now that I'm over the initial excitement of alpacas, I am making more clear headed, business - sense decisions about future purchases. For instance, had I been thinking, when I purchased my first alpacas, I would have bought one of the pregnant females that I'm now planning to purchase instead of Keona. Don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy with my kids, but a yearling maiden and two nursing boys probably should have been a second purchase, not the first.

At least they weren't "hay-burning" purchases. Both Keona and Michael (Blade does beautiful work) are show quality animals, so I get to learn about and participate in shows. My next purchase will be one of the pregnant girls. I decided to buy my preggo from All American where I bought my kids so that the animals are familiar with each other. I hoping that being familiar with each other will help alleviate the stress of moving from California to Arkansas.

The most ideal situation for me would be to not make my move with just these four. If budgeting goes well, and the animals are still available when I'm ready to move, I'd like to buy one of the white girls, one of the herdsires and possibly the black girl. The herdsire purchase will depend on whether or not the guys can live together. I'm still planning and deciding, but I have plenty of time. After the preggo, my next purchase won't be until I move to my farm, which if everything goes according to plan, will be next summer.