One sunny morning last week Steve Mortimer from Sandy Acres Alpacas along with his son Chris spent an afternoon at the Rohrbaughs shearing alpacas from four separate ranches. It seemed as if the alpaca multiplied before our eyes. A never ending assortment of sizes and colors of puff balls with legs.
The transformation from big fluff-ball to scrawny deer-like camelid is not an easy or quick transition.
The animals first need to be caught, not much like the commercials on tv, much more utilization of football and wrestling techniques are applied to catch these 'domesticated' animals. Don't stand to close to their rear legs, they kick. When asked if Steve had any funny shearing stories, his son Chris said, "No, but we have some painful ones" referring to the kicks that pack enough power to break a coyotes jaw. Oh, and Levi learned never to stand in front of an angry alpaca, they spit. The spit is actually bile. Once caught they are tethered by their feet and spread-eagled to be shorn. Whining, spitting and crying all the while. I can't forget to mention the alpaca dentistry a la Dremel!
Once sheered, the amount of fiber from each animal is astounding. Steve owns 32 of his own alpaca and his mother still sends her fiber to mill so she can spin it. I have been known to send fiber to mill and have been known to spin. Yet it takes 28 hours to spin enough yarn to knit a scarf. Then you have to find the time to knit one! Then there is the issue of finding the 'right someone' to give the scarf to that will actually appreciate the hours and hours of time and work that went into the scarf...and not hang it next to the $5.00 Walmart one.
By, Charity Maness
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