'Tis the season to get out the coats, scarves, earmuffs and warm socks. But maybe those socks made from sheep's wool just aren't warm enough? Introducing alpaca fiber or "the fiber of the gods" as the Incans called it. It's a luxury fiber similar to cashmere, but has a hollow core that gives it an extra insulating property, which makes it lighter and warmer. On Sounds Good, we meet Kathy Tinkham of Red Roof Ranch Alpacas in Trigg County and learn how she got into raising alpacas and some of the items in her store that will keep you warm this winter season.
Kathy and her husband Rick found alpacas by accident. They were on vacation in Ohio one summer and passed by an alpaca farm. They'd never seen an alpaca before and were intrigued. They came home, did some research and "became enchanted with the idea that you could raise a farm animal as livestock and harvest a product from them without harming them." Before raising these South American camelids, Rick had a career in the construction business and Kathy in retail management. After reading up on alpacas, they built Red Roof Ranch and bought three animals to get started.
Now they have 51 alpacas on the ranch. They'll be sheared in the late spring. The process doesn't hurt them - it's more like a haircut. The fiber then gets processed into different things, like homegrown yarn, socks, dog cushions, etc. Part of the fiber gets sent to the North American Alpaca Fiber Co-Op and some is saved for local fiber artists. Their store has yarn, a variety of locally produced alpaca items to Peruvian imports. The back of the store has a viewing deck to see the alpacas and, if they are willing to interact, an opportunity to pet and feed them.
Like many animals, alpacas have varying personalities - some will come right up to you and others will shy away. Since alpacas are herd animals, they tend to be on the shy side (it took several months to make the original three feel comfortable around humans). A prey animal, they don't have much in the way of defenses, but Kathy says they have been lucky in that there aren't many natural predators in Trigg County other than a some neighborhood dogs.
They've had better luck than usual with babies. 14 alpacas were born this year, with a mortality rate of zero. Kathy says in the 12 years they've been raising alpacas, they've had a relatively low mortality rate. Because of their herd instincts, they will make an effort to hide any natural illness or injury - they'll stick with the herd and try to blend in. It's difficult to tell when they get sick. You have to watch them closely, get to know their personalities and look for subtle signs.
Red Roof Ranch Alpacas is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 to 5. Call ahead to make school field trip arrangements.
Red Roof Ranch Alpacas website
Red Roof Ranch Alpacas Facebook page
*Red Roof Ranch Alpacas is a WKMS underwriter
