Should you get an alpaca

Answer 1

An alpaca is from South America. They were/are mainly used for fur. They are about 150 pounds. They are from the Camelid family. They are more docile/nicer than llamas. They spit, and gestation is about 12 months.

ALPACA HABITAT

Who could believe that the natural alpaca habitat is a harsh, unforgiving land? Alpacas come from the Altiplano region of the Andes Mountain in South America. Altiplano means high plain. Alpacas live at the 12,000 to 14,000 ft level.

It is a very hard life for humans and animals alike. Vegetation is scarce, the air is thin, and the temperature can change by as much as forty degrees in one day. The vegetation that exists is mostly tough clumps of grass, Thola bushes, and occasionally clumps of Quenua trees. There are volcanos that have left volcanic flows. It rains, snows, has freezing temperatures, intense sunlight, and powerful winds. Pumas prey on altiplano livestock.

Surviving in this harsh alpaca habitat meant an animal had to be hardy. After seven years of owning alpaca we have discovered how hardy these animals can be. They are stoic and they hardly ever get ill.

Knowing the alpacas background of its original environment helps us to understand the alpaca and give better care for this wonderful animal.

The alpacas padded feet are environmentally friendly. This adaptation was probably needed so they didn't destroy the scarce vegetable matter. Same is probably true for why they don't pull the grass out by its roots.

If alpacas didn't have their dense fleece, they probably would not have survived the harsh winters on the altiplano. Alpacas can go days without water and food.

Since there were times when food wasn't available, alpacas adapted to going without for awhile. With food scarcity, an alpacas fleece will grow less. An alpaca will borrow nutrients from other parts of its body to continue life. Keeping alpacas at their optimal weight means your fleece will be denser and grow better.

Alpacas actually need less feed than most other animals. It only takes 1.5 to 2% of an alpacas body weight of feed to sustain a healthy alpaca. The alpacas three-compartment stomach converts grass and hay to energy with extreme efficiency so they eat less. The harsh conditions they live in on the altiplano makes this survival adaptation a necessity.

Alpacas don't drink a lot of water. This is another adaptation of the unforgiving altiplano. Clean water should always be available for your alpacas, though.

Alpacas go without food and water in their natural alpaca habitat, but doing so stresses an alpaca. When alpacas fear for their survival they will abort babies. Keep your alpacas free of stress by making sure that each alpaca is able to feed freely and have plenty of water and you will have less cria losses.

An alpaca is really a very fast animal. Probably developed to survive escape of the Puma. Not giving an alpaca enough room to exercise keeps them from doing what comes natural to an alpaca and could be another source of stress. Keep them in large enough pastures where they can run.

Knowing the natural alpaca habitat can help you understand your alpaca and provide for their needs. A lot is still not known about alpacas, but the industry has made huge steps in learning about caring for alpacas.
an alpaca is a smaller version of a llama. Llamas are used for packing and you can ride them while alpacas do not have the strength to do either of those things. They are mainly used for the fur or as we call it fleece or fiber.

~EDIT~

An alpaca is an animal from the Camelid group. They are closely related to the llama, which they seem like a smaller version of, but they are also close relatives of camels. Alpacas are mainly bred for money from selling both animals and their valuable fleece. Alpacas come in two different breeds, the suri and the huacaya, the suri having longer, stringier fleece and the huacaya having more puffy fleece. (Edit found by 11 year old Megan Varney)
An alpaca is a member of ther camelid family, a cousin to the llama.

alpaca's are breed for their fibre,which is used to make knitted item's just like sheeps wool.

Answer 2

Alpacas can be kept as pets, but as they are mainly grazers you will need to ensure that you can provide them with the correct environment.

If you live on a farm, or your property has a reasonably large area of grass - you could possibly have an alpaca. You should consider other requirements - such as shelter and access to fresh water. Also, since alpacas are herd animals, they can get lonely (and then show behavioural problems) when they are kept alone. You should ensure that you have proper Fencing (if stressed alpacas can jump fences).

As with any pet, you should ensure that there are no poisonous plants in or near where the animal will be.

Alpacas will be more comfortable with humans as the become accustomed to them, as long as they are treated in the correct manner. Interactions will generally go more smoothly if you allow the alpaca to approach you, rather than trying to chase after them. They also do not usually like to be touched straight away - this may take some getting used to.

Answer 3

An alpaca is a mammal native to the high elevations of the Andean Mountains. The animals are herbivore ruminants, although their stomach compartments are arranged differently than cattle, sheep or goats and they excrete very dense and dry feces. They are quadripeds with two toes per foot; each foot also has a soft pad (rather than a keratin horn) as well as sharp keratin claws on each toe used in defense and traction. Relative to body length, alpacas have long necks and small heads. They are covered in dense fiber that may be sheared, cleaned, spun and woven similar to sheep wool. They have a single offspring once per year, with a gestation period of 12 months.

Answer 4

A baby alpaca is called a cria.