| Quick Links & Events |
Heritage Farm - Explore our website and discover more about Heritage Farm and our alpacas
Getting Started Guide -Download our free guide full of information to help get you started with your own alpacas.
Newsletter Archive - Review past issues of Alpaca Works for information about alpacas and alpaca husbandry.
Starter Packages - special prices on packages of Alpacas and Services that will get your new herd off to a great start!
The Suri Network - The homepage of the Suri Network, an organization of Suri alpaca breeders dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the Suri Alpaca.
Mark your calendars:
|
|
|
| Greetings! |
The older I get, the more intensely I see and feel the seasons. Maybe it's because I realize I have a finite time left, and the good things around me are to be  savored and valued. Spring is one of those good things!
As a kid, I always looked forward to April and the elation associated with finally being able to spend hours playing outside. Those positive feelings were accompanied by greening grass, moderating temperatures, more light to enjoy the day -- and thunderstorms. "God's fireworks," as my grandpa often called them, and spring in Indiana rarely disappoints in that category.
Over time many other things also added to the "rites of spring." Like the distinct earthy aroma of freshly plowed fields and that first day when the woods have a slight green cast to it that you almost miss as you drive the country roads. Then there's the morning when the fields are alive with the Conk-a-reeeee song of the red-winged blackbird. In recent years, we enjoy the energy experienced by our alpacas as we turn them out on pasture on a balmy spring day.
Nature's rebirth in this season also coincides with our own faith in the celebration of the resurrection, a connection that has become more meaningful over the years.
Since the cycle of Spring brings Iife and activity to the farm I can't think of a better time to invigorate your marketing program by introducing a new series of articles called "Farming the Web'. In the alpaca industry, our potential market crosses state borders and indeed is national in scope. However, many alpaca farms are not yet taking advantage of this expanded marketing opportunity. Better utilizing the Internet is a means to expand your local, regional and national presence. But, according to the 2007 AOBA survey only 64% of farms survey have a personal website and only 51% use a commercial website to promote their farm and alpacas.
In the next few issues of Alpaca WORKS, we will publish several articles that discuss how to maximize your web presence.
|
| Hand-made Shawl Benefits Alzheimer Research |
 In our last newsletter we announced an ebay auction for a one-of-a-kind piece which was hand spun and woven during our open house for National Alpaca Farm Day last fall. Starting with carded fleece, a volunteer group of spinners and weavers donated their time and talents to produce this log cabin patterned shawl in natural fawn and brown.
We are happy to announce that the winning bid was made by Bruce and Alison VanNetta of Sur-Real Alpacas. We thank Bruce and Alison for their generosity in supporting such a worthy cause. 100% of the proceeds went to the National Alzheimer Association.
Click to "Learn more" link to read a touching article from a Chicago Tribune staff writer chronicling her story of caring for two parents who suffered through Alzheimers simultaneously.
| | |
|
| #1 Stake Your Claim: Choosing a Web Address |
|
Choosing the right address for your website is very similar to choosing a site for your farm -- it needs to be flexible for any future changes you may make, you want to know if there were any harmful toxins used there in the past, and you'll be spending a lot of time there, so you better like looking at it!
First, let's talk terms: URL is the entire address of the website, for example this site's URL is: http://www.ourheritagefarm.com. The "domain name" is the part of your address that identifies you uniquely - in our case "ourheritagefarm.com".
Many free website services will offer you a URL with a subdomain, such as www.alpacafarm.earthlink.com or similarly, some people list their Alpaca Nation site as  their primary web site address: www.alpacanation.com/alpacafarm.asp . From a business standpoint, these practices do not promote the fact that you are serious about raising alpacas so you may want to reconsider using either one of these. From a technical standpoint, if you ever want to switch to a different web service provider you will have to change your address and tell all your visitors about a new address. Needless to say, all past bookmarks to your site will be broken. Think long term and spend a few dollars to get a solid domain name that represents your farm and lets people know you are serious about your business.
So how do you go about getting your own domain? It's really a simple and inexpensive process. Only one person on the Internet may own each domain name, so if you have a common farm name you will need to be creative. For example, when we were investigating using HeritageFarm as our domain name, we found that heritagefarm.com and heritagefarm.net and several other extensions where already taken. The domain registrar we use was helpful in suggesting several alternatives. We chose OurHeritageFarm because in conveys that the farm is part of our heritage, which it is. You will also want the domain name to be very flexible to accommodate any new areas your business may explore. For example, if you currently own only suri alpacas and you call your site heritagefarmsuris.com, what happens in five years if you decide to breed and sell huacayas as well? Perhaps a better choice would be heritagefarmalpacas.com. You get the point.
|
| Alpaca Shearing Day Open House |
You and your family and friends are invited to our Shearing Day Open House" on Saturday, April 26th from 10 AM to 4 PM. Besides shearing, there will be fiber artists spinning alpaca fiber and alpaca 101 seminars
.
 |
| Now Standing at Heritage Farm - Ameripaca's Jericho |
Jericho's first ciras are due this spring. We are excited to see what this exciting stud produces for us. His fleece is jet black to the tips and extremely lustrous. He has uniform pencil locks right to the skin. His sire is the award winning herdsire from Ameripaca, AABC Zeplin. See a large photo of Jericho by clicking here.
He has performed well in the show ring, despite his limited exposure. Jericho took 2nd at the 2007 Buckeye Show and 1st and Reserve Champion at the 2007 AOBA National Show!
Last year's 2007 AOBA show consisted of 51 Black Suri males and 14 in the Championship class. Despite the stiff competition, Jericho brought home Reserve Color Champion at one of the largest shows of the year!.
Jericho is co-owned with Ravada Hills Alpaca Farm.
If you're looking for a True Black herdsire with rare genetics, consider Jericho for your female. Call or email for more information.
 Awards Received
- 1st Place - 2005 Northern IL Extravaganza
- 4th Place - 2006 Futurity
- 3rd Place - 2006 Northern IL Extravaganza
- 2nd Place - 2007 Buckeye
- 1st & Reserve Champ - 2007 AOBA Nationals
Stud Fee: $3000
more... |
|
Spring Show Season Alpacas |
|
Spring show season is here and we have made plans to attend four shows with Argonaut's Telemon, Sweet as Heaven and Sienna, a male and two young females that we are excited about. Look us up if you attend any of these shows. We would be happy to talk alpacas with you!
MOPACA Invitational - Mar. 29th-30th at Springfield, MO.
- Sweetie - 3rd
- Telamon - 1st
Indiana Alpaca Invitational - Apr. 4th-6th at Fort Wayne, IN
- Sweetie - 1st
- Telamon - 4th
- Sweetie -
- Telamon -
- Sienna -
The Buckeye Alpaca Show - May 3rd-4th, Columbus, OH
- HFS Argonaut's Telemon - Born in August, Telemon is a great looking white male out of Argonaut. He is developing good lock structure and the luster his sire is known for.
- HFS Sweet as Heaven- Born in September, Sweetie is the first cria sired by Macgyver's Hotazel and from one of our best females, HFS Lovely Lady (Uribe and Mahogany Prince lines). She is a fantastic dark brown girl with incredible luster and density.
- HFS Sienna - This is another dark fawn girl we are excited about. Another cria sired by Argonaut, Sienna has incredible luster and density. She is a full sister to Argonaut's Quest who showed very well last year (including a reserve color champion at the Kentucky Classic).
- HFS Silverado - This is a sharp gun-metal-grey male yearling out of Platinum Marquis, an outstanding male that has an extensive silver gray heritage. Silverado has consistent coverage, uniform lock and great luster.
|
| Foundations for Success - Starting and Building Your Alpaca Business |
| This day-long seminar is sponsored jointly with Ravada Hills Alpaca Farm. It is designed to help new and existing alpaca breeders as well as those just exploring the possibilities of owning alpacas. The day is packed full of great alpaca information. Learn to build for success in selecting the best alpacas, setting up your farm, keeping your alpacas healthy, running a profitable alpaca business and much more! This event will be held two times this year:
Saturday, June 7th at Ravada Hills
Saturday, Sept. 13th at Heritage Farm.
The events are identical, so pick your best date and mark your calendar. Here are some highlights:
- The Alpaca Industry - Past, Present and Future
- Creating a Home for Your Herd - Facilities, fences and pasture layouts
- Maintaining a Healthy Herd - Nutrition, management and herd health
- It Pays to Be Different - Finding Your Niche
- Selecting Your First Alpacas
- All About Fiber
- Marketing for Success
- Why Consider Suris?
- Buying from "Farms of Distinction"
...and much more! We belive the information in this seminar will give prospective alpaca owners the information the need to make informed decisions around starting an alpaca business themselves.
|
| Alpaca Wordsearch |
|
Show season is here. Here's something to pass your time when you are at one of the spring shows waiting for your next class. All words in the puzzle refer to some aspect of an alpaca show.
R N O I P M A H C G G P C S U BITE CHAMPION
R E T S U L F F E B R N O S N COLOR CHECK CONFORMATION
C R S J S L N T O O P G N A I CRIMP DENSITY
E O T E E E O G D D N T F L F FINENESS FLEECE
L S L E R F N U L I U D O C O GET OF SIRE GREEN JACKET
I H C O S V C E L N R R R R R HALTER CLASS HUACAYA
N E U I R E E R N A Q E M E M JUVENILE LUSTER
E P R A O C A C W I I D A T I PRODUCE OF DAM RED TIE
V E M F C E H E H R F T T L T RING STEWARD STAPLE LENGTH
U E D I Y A T E U A H I I A Y SURI UNIFORMITY
J A F F R S Y S C T M E O H E YEARLING
M R O U G C N A H K M P N C T RESERVE CHAMPION
H T G N E L E L P A T S I M I
Y E I D E N S I T Y G Q T O B
G R E E N J A C K E T F Y I N
|
| Our Heritage Cornerstones |
Heritage Cornerstones is a selection of noteworthy quotes centered around a theme appropriate for the season. This issue focuses on...
No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.
HAL BORLAND
It is only the farmer who faithfully plants seeds in the spring who reaps a harvest in the autumn.
B.C. FORBES
In the spring I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours.
MARK TWAIN
If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall.
THOMAS HARDY
Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime.
ROBERT FROST
Science has never drummed up quite as effective a tranqulizing agent as a sunny spring day.springtime.
W. EARL HALL |
|
