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This is the blog from 2005.
Click here for 2006 , for 2007,
and for 2008
2005 Journal
12/26/05
 Cold
as it is this winter in particular - alpacas often provide such a warm spot.
This particular warm one is watching Tanner Sherry with John Heinz (the
furry one). Tanner is so enamored with alpacas that he even loves
picking up the poop!!! My kind of guy!
12/5/05
Yes, it has been almost three months since I
posted last. Fall kept me busy with preparing for winter, boys going
to show, me doing my work thing so that I can bring home the bacon.
Here's a quick summary:
-
Honus is a real champion! He placed 1st
in the Empire Extravaganza (in a class of 16 that's not easy feat!).
Mario did well in the same class placing 6th. Then both of them did
well at the Ohio show - and it was really something since they both went
into the ring one behind the other ... and that's how the judge placed them
- 2nd and 3rd - one behind the other!
-
The new baby is named John Heinz - Heinz for
short. I thought I'd break the run of sports figures and go political
with him.
-
Kitties have decided they are no longer barn
cats and have moved into the house. I keep this food and heating pad
in the barn for them in futile hope that they may toughen up and take their
appropriate place in life at some point.
There was much more that went on - but I won't
bore you with the huge bonfire, pumpkin carving, or chainsaw episodes.
9/21/05
New Baby! Design
 gave
birth to an 18.4 lb beautiful baby boy. Is it something in the water?
This is the fifth boy in a row here at Pittsburgh Alpacas! Nonetheless
he is gorgeous. Look at that blanket - it is so very
 distinct
against the white of his neck and the two white front legs. Design is such a
good mommy. She is always very protective of her babies and wasn't
quite sure what to make of my intervention - except that she didn't want it!
Funny how I'm used to the routine now; check the afterbirth, check the mom,
make sure the baby is getting milk, dip the baby umbilical cord - and voila,
we have an excellent baby intro into the world! Not sure about the
name this time. Was thinking Tony...as in Dorsett, but not settled on
it yet.
8/11/05
Keyword today is "dust" . The summer is
dwindling away but kicking us on the way out with some almighty heat!! The
alpacas love the dust. They sunbath in it, roll in it, the dustier the
better. I don't share their love. I am dust adverse. It's
hay season and the effort involved in getting those bales into the loft can
be exhausting...and dusty.
Speaking of hay... Hayrides seem to have an
eternal allure for kids of all ages. It's so simple.. a soft bale of
hay and a tractor. You would think it was the Thunderbolt the way they
carry on!
This weekend is the
Alpaca Toolbox MBA Weekend at
MillCreek Farm Alpacas.
Always an enjoyable way to spend a weekend - with likeminded alpaca folks.
7/26/05
I cannot believe that it has been an entire
month since I posted anything. There's a raging thunderstorm outside
tonight and it seemed the perfect time to catch up. Here's what has
happened...not necessarily in any order;
Tonight I came home and the barn door had been
blown off. Can you say microburst? This is a very heavy door.
I'm a pretty strong gal and I can't even pick it up myself. Blew the
track that was bolted into the barn completely off and also sent two
portable panels that were leaning against it about 8 feet away from their
origin. Thank goodness everyone was just fine.
 Honus
and Franco came home to their newly built pasture. Nice little three
sided structure that is perfect for them to share with Mario and Starbuck.
Absolutely amazing what a few short months will do to turn them from the
cute little crias into dashing young studs. They are really looking
like the complete package. And they know that they are hot too!
Breeding time... Fiona was bred to Scotty.
Sarah and Tess set off to Highland
Alpacas to be bred. Down two (Sarah and Tess) and up two (Honus and
Franco).
Honus had a terrible fright. Don't know
what the heck happened but one of his legs was under one of the interior
fences and he couldn't get up. Take how upset he was and double it and
you have my state of mind. Jerry was here (Jerry built the new shelter
and has done a number of projects like moving the barn and building the
original pastures) and he hefted Honus in his arms up to the shelter in
front of the fan. Once there, I had to prop him in the cush position.
He was very weak. Correen came out and inspected him. 6 or 7
shots later she left with instructions to nurse him. Nurse him I did.
All day and through the night. Around 4:30am I really was comatose.
Both from lack of sleep and from despair. He just didn't seem to be
getting any better. Jen came over to help nurse him in the morning as
I had to go off to class. Just as I was leaving she yelled over that
he was on his feet. Throughout class that morning I had updates on his
condition via voicemail. He was standing, eating and drinking.
Thank goodness.
Jerry tried to move the shed next to the house
into the pasture for the boys - it would have been a great temporary shelter
for a couple of years. As you can tell by the past tense this didn't
happen. He did an awesome job of getting the shed dragged around three
corners - but it was three corners too many. By the end of a very hot,
sweaty afternoon the shed was pushed over the hill onto the burn pile.
A dash of diesel later we had one heck of a bonfire!
Oh yah, and let's not forget two flat tires on
the tractor, the sweetest raspberries anyone has every tasted, and
blackberries to die for. All in one month. How much fun was all
that????
6/26/2005 (later that morning)
Fred and mom are doing very well. Figured
an update on the picture was in order... one without the red eye.
6/26/2005
Welcome to the neighborhood Fred Rogers!
I've been on "baby watch" for the last several
weeks. Fiona was due on the 18th. I've been doing everything
possible to try to be here on the farm during the morning hours since about
the 9th or 10th. Naturally, when she finally decided it was time (7
days overdue!) she gives birth in the dead of night! Literally it was
around midnight!
This was the culmination of a day of anxiety.
Fiona was so uncomfortable all day in the 90 degree heat. She couldn't
get in a comfortable position. One moment she would be laying on her
side, the next she would be up walking, the next she would be on the other
side. I was really worried for a while because she was laying in front
of the fan and not getting up and making squeaks. So I called my
Highland Alpaca friends who advised me to water her down to cool her off.
Sure thing, worked like a charm. God bless you Fay and Jen! I
don't know what I would do without you!
If you are interested in what it's like for an
alpaca to give birth you can witness the whole incredible thing. When
Sara was born my friend Gail took pictures of all the details.
Check it out
Here is a bad picture of Fred Rogers. Had
to use a flash since it was 1:30am when I took the picture - and he looks
like a devil baby alpaca with the red eye effect!!! He is really the cutest
little cria you'll ever see! I've got to go back out and check on him
now...
6/08/2005
I hadn't seen Honus or Franco for about a month
as they have been pastured at Highland Alpacas for the show season and until
I get that new shelter in. So it was my first look at them sheared
yesterday. You never know exactly what is under all that fleece for a
first year shearing. It was great to see that both of them are looking
very studly - heads held high, strong, straight legs - good topline on their
backs. Surprise surprise, Franco has dark brown markings in his
armpits. It's a handsome contrast to that jet black coat. I
should have brought my camera... will do that next time.
6/05/05
It seems as though I am always playing
"catch-up" on building out. Now I need to add a shelter for the young
boys so that they can be pastured separately. Sigh. Of course
that also means more electric and water being dug. So the lesson you
must learn from me is that you should build bigger than you think you will
need. Of course I was told this too. But I'm too hard headed
sometimes - so don't be me.
5/24/2005
Woohoo! My boys are rocking! Honus got
another second and Franco placed fifth at the
PAOBA show in York.
Fay and Jen took them out and showed them. It was just too much to
think about getting in the car on Saturday and driving 4 hours to York and
then turning around on Sunday to drive five hours back. Both of them
got sheared at the show. What a hoot it is to see them after they are
sheared. It's like going from Paddington to ET in a half hour.
Now that the spring show season is over we turn
our attention to babies. Fiona is large, she is due June 18th.
Alpacas carry their young high, so they look more wide than just big.
She is definitely WIDE!
Check out this gorgeous maroon iris. My
friends Cathy and Lisa had these in their front yard and were generous in
offering me some to transplant last year. Alpaca poop is an awesome
fertilizer as is evident from this beauty...
5/17/2005
Honus and Franco did great at the Columbus
Buckeye Show show. Honus got a second in a class of six and Franco
got a fourth in a class of ten. Great comments from the judges - Honus
was a toss up for first and Franco has a great head. Both are showing
in York at
PAOBA this weekend.
In between shows my time is spent primarily mowing dandelions. Lots of
dandelions. Cheryl left me note letting me know that she was glad to
see that someone else had more than she did. Bummer.
5/02/2005
Going to the first show in a year or so.
It's the Buckeye Show in
Columbus. Really looking forward to seeing everyone and immersing
myself into the alpaca world for a day or two. Lots of prep to get
ready. Certificates from vets, copies of
ARI stuff, a flyer to put
together to identify them in their stalls. God bless Fay and Jen at
Highland. They are taking
Honus and Franco to the show and stalling them. I have to teach
Saturday morning til 12:30. Will immediately hop in the car and
hightail it to Columbus to try to get there before the Saturday stuff is
completely done.
4/25/2005
Shearing is done. Big sigh of relief.
Thanks so much to Hugh and Richard, and my fabulous helpful friends Brenda
and Jen. It was a quick, relatively painless process. As for the
alpacas, poor things, to be shorn and then to have this bitter weather.
I restrawed the barn and distributed coats but I can't shake the metaphor of
being thrown naked into the snow. Very disturbing. Here are some
pictures of the shearing.
4/24/2005
Snowing. On shearing day it's snowing.
Mother nature is having a hoot of a time this season.
Shearing is a nightmare of logistics to make
sure it's set up to go smoothly. The barnprep; tarp down for the
shearing, eye hooks in the right places so that the tie downs for the
animals are spaced out, set up the panels so that I can move the animals
into the barn for shearing (if you have a bigger barn you do it all inside,
but inside space is at a premium for me) and placed brooms in an opportune
position. It's been raining for a day or so - so I had put them all
inside the barn for a day to make sure that they dried out and stayed as dry
as possible. Still, it's snowing and the moisture isn't good. Sigh.
I just finished prepping the dectomax shots inside and putting names on bags
for the fleece.
The guys that do the shearing are from New
Zealand. True professionals. They wield these big electric
shearers with finesse. Less than five minutes an animal and they are
cleanly sheared. My favorite part is when they shear the blanket -
close to the body it flows off them in soft, velvety warm folds. But
there is no time to enjoy it because you have to stuff it into the bags and
keep moving so that the animal is down and stressed for as little time as
possible.
4/16/2005
Apple trees are budding out, peach and pear
don't appear far behind. Haven't had rain for like 10 days and very
little forecasted beyond. Under the heading of "be careful for what
you wish for"; I'm wishing that we would have some rain. The pastures
have already been nibbled down to nubs. Beyond that it's exhilarating
to shove my feet into sandals and forego the coat to go outside.
Cleaned out the barn - all the straw - putting the alpacas into greener
pastures. I use a temporary webbing fence (www.kencove.com)
to create pastures outside of the fenced in perimeter. These are very
cool, easily moved as they stake into the ground by stepping on a pronged
end and they are electrified. When there are crias (baby alpacas)
around I take them up as they are unsteady on their feet and may mistakenly
move into them. But the older critters get the picture and as flimsy
as they are they offer protection from outside animals.
Today is the first day of mowing. Rite of
passage for the summer. Got to go pull the snow blade and put the
mowing deck on the tractor. My day to play "Rosie the Riveter..."
4/03/2005
Someone should give mother nature a clue.
Raging blizzard outside - it's a subtly stunning scene with the red tinged
budded trees contrasting with heavy snow. But it's a last gasp - going
to be up near sixty tomorrow.
Some unhappy baby boy alpacas in the pasture
now. The three young boys are going through the weaning rite of
passage. It's another process that is far more stressful to me than to
them. Although the boys are fussing and carrying on while staring
plaintively through the fence at their moms - the moms appear utterly
unconcerned.
3/26/2005
It must be spring.. because we are dectomaxing
again! Everyone does it a bit differently but I vaccinate my alpacas
against the meningeal worm (a worm carried by white tailed deer and harmless
to them but deadly to alpacas) March through November/December depending on
when the consistently freezing temperatures hit in. My good friend
Brenda came over to help me. She has horses - so she is great with
these guys who are fly weights compared with the size animal she deals with.
Giving shots is stressful to me - probably more so than to the animals.
I just worry that I'm not doing it right or that I'm hurting them.
Other than the imports who always holler some when I handle them, the rest
seem oblivious to the shot - more focused on the fact that they are being
handled. Brenda holds the alpacas while I give them the shots.
It's particularly tough in the spring because they have a full coat of
fleece and just finding the skin is an Easter egg hunt of it's own!
3/23/2005
So we just finished another
Alpaca Toolbox MBA Workshop.
Three days of alpacas - with an emphasis on business. About half of
the 20 or so folks already had alpacas and the other half is doing due
diligence. It's an alpaca sharefest! This time we
conducted the workshop at Chris and Jon Gray's farm
Songhill Alpacas in Marion NY.
What was really cool was that Friday night about a half hour after most had
departed one of the alpacas had a baby. No greater kick than being
present when that happens! Too bad everyone didn't have a chance to
see the birth - but they all had a chance to see the newborn the next day.
The Alpaca Toolbox experience is one that Chris, Kim DeVoss and I all
treasure - and it's a great way to usher in spring. It's true, alpaca
people (and potential alpaca people are a joy to spend time with.
3/16/05
Birds are just busting a gut singing this
morning. Sun is shining, cats are basking in it's warmth on the deck
and the alpacas are scraping snow from the pastures to get at whatever the
heck is waiting for them under it. It may not seem like spring with
the temp dipping below 20 last night. But during the day it's there.
The orchard up the street has already started pruning. So, lemming
that I am, I also took the pruning saw that was such a thoughtful gift from
Jenn this Christmas (thanks Jenny!) and started going tree by tree.
Should take a couple of weeks sporadically working on them. Alpacas
like the trees too. Unfortunately during the winter months they are so
hungry for growing things that they start eating the bark. So it's a
good idea to take some of your no climb horse fence and just put it around
the trunk of the trees to prevent them from girding the tree. Yah, you
could just take the trees out -but they offer valuable shade for the summer.
Summer...now there's a thought!
3/1/05
March is indeed coming in like a lion.
Wind is howling.. bitterly cold and laced with drifting snow. So much wind
that by the time I returned from the barn after my nightly visit that my
tracks out were already covered. Couldn't have been more than 15 minutes to
obliteration.
It's taken me a while to write again because I
was debating whether or not to share the latest tragedy. On my morning
trip to the barn one February Sunday morning and found a miscarried fetus.
Shocking, pitifully little - complete with all four legs, ears, about as
long as my hand. The sac was still intact. That was the only
good news. It meant that mother nature in her wise ways found that
this baby was "incompatible with life" and ended it's life before mom
or baby had to suffer more. "Incompatible with life" is a phrase I
became familiar with a couple of years ago at the Ohio State University
Veterinary clinic when my first baby alpaca had to be put down. Sophie
had congestive heart failure due to a heart that just wasn't assembled
correctly. Sure, there was a more elaborate explanation - I've just
forgotten the details. Doesn't "incompatible with life" sounded
detached? Sterile? Such an efficient heart stopping declaration.
Back to the miscarriage. I checked all the
girls. None had any evidence of any problems. In that sense it
was a clean miscarriage - the mom not having any internal problems thank
goodness. My intuition tells me it was Tess. Confirmation won't
happen until I check them all for pregnancy sometime in May or beyond when
the timing will be right to rebreed for a spring baby.
Meanwhile, life in the barns seems to have not
missed a beat. Strange in one way. In another it's just a stark
example of reality. Do you know someone that couldn't bear to get
another dog after they have lost one so beloved? Or someone who won't
bear the risk of loss for any gain? I don't think you can expect to
love and not lose - and that goes for animals and people alike.
2/16/05
So it took us all quite a while to get over
that Steeler playoff loss. Franco in particular. But we're over
it and now looking to spring for inspiration.
The new pastures are in. Fenced in about
another acre and a half. To the right is a rendition of the plan. It's
good to put it on paper. Even better to have another alpaca person
critique it. Draw the gates and all to make sure you can see your
flow. Sorry this isn't any better of an image.. but you get the
impression. The original pasture is in blue. The new is the
black, gates are orange.
Yesterday it was gorgeous - 55 degrees, a
little bit of sun and the perfect day to show everyone the new expanse of
grass. It was soooo inspiring. The boys raced into the pasture
kicking and performing complicated gymnastic maneuvers over invisible
obstacles all around the fence line. The girls were a bit more
reserved, but their excitement showed too. It was all over in about 15
minutes or so when they got their focus on the grass and got down to what
they do best; eating. But I think it was a good indicator that spring
is around the corner.. close enough to hang onto as a thought anyway.
1/29/05
Steelers lost in the playoffs.
Painful afternoon. We have to move on..
New pasture should be going up in
a week or so. Paul and Mike from WestPaw Fencing started pulling out
the old pasture fencing at Patty's. Cool that you can recycle fence.
The ground being frozen means that it doesn't get chewed up during the work.
Post pounder puts the posts in nice and firm. Some folks had told me
this was bad, that the pounder also took out a gap of like a 1/4 inch around
each post and this resulted in something less than stable. But the
posts put in last winter are very solid. For my thought you can't beat
the efficiency of a post pounder - quicker, better set. Only thing is
- it's a mighty machine... to be respected and operated by someone who knows
what the heck they are dong. That would not be me.
1/23/05
5 inches of snow today. Steeler playoff.
Both impactful events. Got to try out the new straight blade on the
tractor. A huge sense of satisfaction to plow myself out and
know that I can now handle mother nature's snow tantrums. Alpacas are
hunkered down in the barn. As long as they are out of the wind they
are very comfortable. It's like the Bahamas when the sun shines on the
leeward side of the barn. They, along with the cats, stretch out and
bask in it.
What with the playoff, Honus Wagner grabbed a
terrible towel and did a run around the pasture.
1/17/05
Getting ready to put up more fences.
Thank heavens everything has frozen over. Under the heading of "be
careful what you wish for..." it's going to be 3 tonight.
So the fencing won't start until it gets just a little bit warmer, like in
the double digits. Trying to figure out where the gates are going and
design runways and all can be kind of mind numbing. Or maybe its just
the temperatures freezing my brain.
1/07/05
Mud and poop. That's
what life has been about in the last three days. They don't really
compliment each other very well. But they make me appreciate my Muck
Boots. These are indispensable, waterproof resilient boots that come
in a variety of sizes all appropriate to the respective seasons. NO, I
am not getting compensated for this. They really are that good.
Check them out online. This link takes you to
the model that is very unflatteringly called "the hoser". God help the
creative folks that thought up that name!
1/03/05
Went to Denver for about 10 days
and missed my critters something fierce! It's pretty stressful getting
ready to leave and putting all their care in someone else's hands. I'm
really fortunate to have so many great folks helping out. Plus it gets
the all the animals socialized and use to seeing lots of different people.
Joey Murphy rocks. Literally. She's the one who stays here - and
not only is she good with the farm, she's a very talented singer/songwriter
- here's her website:
Check it out
So I was pretty psyched to come
home and see everyone. The last time I went away, the return was quite
rewarding. All the alpacas stopped eating and came over to greet me as
I came through the gate. Alpacas are very reserved with their
emotions so I was honored that they conferred such a welcoming on me.
It equates to my lab mix's enthusiastic wiggling hello.
My homecoming was less than a hit
this time. Maybe it was the bright yellow slicker that freaked out
Tess. She can be kind of skittish at times. She's an import. (an
alpaca that has been part of the original Peruvian importation) and not as
socialized as the alpacas born here in the small farm atmosphere. So
anyway, I grabbed a hold of Honus and she went bonkers. Maybe she
thought that it was her baby Mario that I had? Major spit -
everywhere! Thanks to Tess, I really knew I was home.
12/19/04
My friend and co presenter of
Alpaca Toolbox MBA Workshop,
Chris Gray has been on me for over a year to update this site. My
professional background is marketing and the media. So it's really
irritating having her point out the hypocrisy of my assertions that you
should always keep your website up to date when I was lagging so far behind.
Sigh. I have to agree.
That said, I'm on the blog wagon.
Blog is short for weblog. It's like having a journal online. I
thought this might be helpful for new alpaca folks who want to know the
daily details of the alpaca lifestyle.
In March of this year I moved to
a fabulous 8.5 acre farmette in beautiful Fombell, PA (just west of
Zelienople and only about 35 minutes north of Pittsburgh. With
me came three alpacas; Fiona, Tess and Sarah and my terrier Moxie.
Throughout the following months our ranks have swelled. Fiona and Tess
both had fabulous baby boys, and they were joined by Design who also added
to the boy's club. Max the golden lab mix was looking for a home and
he's definitely found it here. Then came two barn kitties; Tom and
Sophie. What a menagerie!
So at last with the winter months
on us and the sun limiting the outdoor activities, I can take a breath
and turn attention to updating the web site. Check back often to see
it develop! |
