Solomon (who shares a name with my cat) is the newest addition to one of my friend's alpaca herd . He was given that name due to the high hopes the owners have for his career as a herd sire. Because he is a true black, they are expecting breeding fees of up to 4K! Right now, he has no thoughts of such a future; he's still exploring this new world that he entered just a week ago.
I was visiting the alpaca farm to participate in shearing day which I will tell all about in another post. We arrived early and enjoyed spending time with the alpacas out in the pasture. It was a lovely experience to sit out in the fresh spring grass and listen to the contented grazing of these gentle, shy animals. Eventually, their curiosity overcame their wary nature and the whole herd crowded around us, sniffing our hair. Solomon was even so bold as to nibble on my shoulder!
His short baby wool is soft and silky. Even though his coat wasn't long enough for spinning, he got to have his first haircut too. Since alpacas are mountain animals they don't do well in the summers without being sheared. That plus the chance to train him to accept the shearing while he is young and impressionable are good reasons to include him in the shearing. His proud owner is going to card the baby curls into some longer wool to make a special yarn and/or use it in some of her felted art.
I've got lots more pictures to share another day,
until then,
-Jayne
1 comment:
It looks like it was a lovely day! Not too much spit I take it? :) Solomon is quite the little man. Very handsome! :)
Hugs!
Kristin
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