Empire Alpaca Extravaganza

The Empire Extravaganza in Syracuse, New York was definitely interesting and a new experience to all of us from HGA. There were over 1000 alpacas entered, and many of the big name farms were there. So the competition was steep.

It was rather cold and rainy on Saturday, so we were happy to be inside yet a bit soggy going from one building to the other for the shows. Cody showed Wonders Peaceful Warrior in the halter show and a performance class, but the competition was good in the bay black class, and in the performance shows Warrior just was not in the mood to perform. He seemed to be more interested in other alpacas than doing what was required at the time. Hence, no ribbons were won at this show for him.

On the other hand, Dark Knight's Templar stood true to his bloodlines and brought home a first place ribbon in his dark silver gray class. He truly made us proud. He was handled by Bonnie again at this show, and you can see Templar, Bonnie and Cody in the photo above.

Thanks for stopping by!

Shiphrah take 2

Here are a few more pictures of Shiphrah from the farm. Kelly had the pleasure of helping with this little cutie this weekend and was able to get some photos to share with you on line. Shiphrah is doing well and is seen here with her mama, Honey. She has gained almost a pound since Thursday, as she weighed in at 20 pounds 10 ounces this morning (10/25/2008).

She is really looking forward to playing with the other crias, as she is very curious as to what goes on outside of her stall. She has been out off and on, but it was rainy and nasty here today, so she and Honey remained inside all day. Hopefully sunshine will help to dry up the mud, and tomorrow will be a more enjoyable day for everyone.

Thanks for stopping by, and leave us a comment if you would like on our newest addition to the farm.

Busy week

Wow, it has been busy at the farm. Leonard has shoulder surgery. Then while he was recooperating, we had our last birth of the year last Thursday when little Shiphrah was born. Here is a picture of her, but the color is off quite a bit, as she is really pretty dark (like a bay black). She was rolling in the dust/dirt earlier with her mama, Honey, so maybe that made her look more brown than black as well. We are planning for the Empire Alpaca Show in Syracuse, New York this weekend, so things are still quite hectic. We hope to be back with pictures soon of some ribbons from the boys again (say a prayer for us, as this is a bigger show than last) :D

Ariel and Sophia

Here are some pictures of the newest editions to the farm. They are two Great Pyrenees pups (actually sisters). We chose to name the all white one Sophia, which stands for angel whose name means wisdom and the other little girl with gray ears, Ariel, which means Lion of God, angel of protection. Sophia, the one to the right in the first picture is very loving, energetic, and doesn't seem to stay still long enough for a picture. Ariel is more laid back and watches to see what her sister is going to do first (I guess a bit of a follower).

Pics from Farm Day

The fall colors were out and coloring the countryside beautiful shades of reds, orange, and yellow. Although last weekend was a bit of a washout during Open Farm Day, we did have 9 visitors on Saturday between showers, and a couple of phone calls on Sunday asking to stop by and visit another weekend. Since the alpacas were pretty soggy and the dusty the usually adorn themselves with to keep the flies away had turned a bit muddy, we thought that was a good idea, too.

Typically the alpacas do not like to be out in the rain and will head to the barn, so having them away from the barn and the rest of the herd was a little bit distressing to them as well. We started out with Templar and Warrior in the first kennel out of the pasture and in the fresh green grass where it was more level for visitors to see them, but Raphael just was not happy that his buddies weren't in the pasture with him. So we had to bring him along too. They like to be together for sure (herd survival instinct I guess).

Then we brought Angel and Naveah down so the visitors would be able to see a cria and dam up close and possibly feel how soft her fleece is.

We had a table set up with raw fleece and some handmade items, and the other table to show the different grain, supplements, and feed that the alpacas are fed. There were hot dogs and drinks for refreshment and balloons for the children.

All in all, it was a great day for our family to get together and teach others a little bit about an alpaca farm. We can't wait to do it again!!

The picture above looks to be the crias playing tag. (Left to right) Noah, Joey and Nevaeh. They like to run around the tree and stop there like they are hiding from one another.

The bottom picture shows Zack and Joey. These two pal around together a lot. You don't usually see one without the other unless they are both nursing at the same time. Ironically, Zack is the white one with the brown mama in the picture. Joey is the brown one, and his mama is Amber, our white female.
Below: A little grazing and playing in the afternoon after the rain.