Creating your vision...
A lot goes in to creating your own farm and finding the perfect home for the animals we love so much. In Virginia we have diverse seasons, all of which bring unique challenges. We read books until we were blue in the face during the initial stages of setting up a farm, but honestly a lot of what we read didn’t really seem to sink in until we experienced the challenges first-hand, and then went back to the books to understand how to combat blowing winds, driving snows, or the heat and humidity of the summer that can be deadly to alpacas if not properly managed.
We plan to share some of our eureka (!) moments in our blog; in fact, you can find some of those already here, but we are also happy to discuss with you any questions you may have about your own farm, regardless of whether it is still in the “dream phase” or an on-going operation. We personally love visiting other working farms because we always learn something new about how others facing the same challenges are handling them, and we have learned a lot of great strategies from other alpaca breeders.
A farm is a 24x7 operation, no matter what the weather, and we believe it’s imperative to be committed to the safety and comfort of our animals. We genuinely try to put their needs ahead of our own. While we are only with the animals a few hours each day, we believe it is critical to have 24x7 cameras capturing everything that is going on at the barn. Being able to monitor those cameras no matter where we are is not only a great comfort to us when we are away, we also find they have been helpful in diagnosing issues that arise with individual animals. Having the ability to go back and view recorded events is really helpful in determining all sorts of things, like, for example, who was fighting, who thinks that water buckets are fun to put their feet in, or who just isn’t acting normal – thus requiring a quick run to the barn that you otherwise would not have been aware of until feeding time. This is especially critical when you are expecting a cria, and also just as critical in weather extremes to catch the early signs of heat stress or hypothermia.
Contact us to arrange a visit or email us if you have specific questions about setting up your own farm. We want to help you be successful, and we’re certain we will all learn something along the way! If there is one thing we love about farming, it is the sense of community and feeling like we are all in this together, regardless of our individual motivations for getting in to farming. We’re willing to help! So, give us a call today!