Trending
RANDOLPH – Warmer temps mean it’s that time of year when alpaca owners begin to shear the fiber from their alpacas.
The annual shearing started at Slice of Heaven Alpacas on Tuesday at the farm of Sue and Mike Bean, of Randolph. Sue said with 32 alpacas on their farm, including the addition of two babies this past year, the harvest of fleece was substantial.
“Our shearer does two to three farms a day, usually starting in April and working until sometime in June,” she said. “Josh Kline and his helper from Shinglehouse, Pa., are amazing and very good at what they do. One alpaca will be shorn, toenails and bottom teeth trimmed, in about 10-15 minutes.”
According to Bean, it takes a small group of people to make the shearing process go smoothly and efficiently, so they can move on to the next farm. She said everyone has a job to perform. A few people bring the alpacas to the shearing area and then, once shorn, take them back to their pens. As an alpaca is being sheared, one person is responsible for rope duty. The alpacas need to be tied-down and stretched gently for the shearer to safely cut the fleece off the alpaca. She said the alpacas are not hurt during shearing.
Bean said another person is in charge of fleece collection. Each alpaca has its belly fleece (main blanket) removed first, which is sheared onto paper and moved to a safe spot until they can take care of it later. A handful of fleece is taken from the blanket, which will be sent in for a micron-count to determine the fineness of the fleece. The neck, shoulders and hips are sheared next and that fleece is put into a separate bag for each animal and labeled. This is usually made into yarn and rovings, which is alpaca fiber combed in one-direction and made ready for spinning.
The legs and top of the alpaca’s head are trimmed last. According to Bean, this fleece is too short to make into yarn or rovings, but there isn’t any waste – it can be used for felting. Scarves, blankets and boot liners can be made from the shorter fiber. Another person is responsible for cleaning the area of any loose fiber before the next alpaca is brought in.
“We are a well-oiled machine,” she said of the entire procedure.
According to Bean, once skirted, which is removing anything that isn’t uniform with the main part of the blanket, the alpacas’ blankets can be sent to alpaca shows – hopefully winning ribbons for their quality, structure and fineness. Every ribbon they win raises the value of the alpaca.
Bean said alpaca fiber is amazing. It’s a hollow, fiber-like wool, but it doesn’t have lanolin, which makes it hypoallergenic. It is also anti-microbial, so it won’t harbor bacteria. Because the fiber is hollow, it will wick moisture away from the body. It’s softer, stronger and more durable than wool, and there is nothing like it. She said anyone who hasn’t tried alpaca, doesn’t don’t know what they’re missing.
“We enjoy sharing what we have learned with anyone who wants to learn about alpacas,” she said. “They are a gentle, non-aggressive animal that makes your day anytime you are around them.”
Bean said if anyone is interested in starting an alpaca farm and enjoying the tax benefits, their alpacas are for sale. They offer discounts for multiple purchases and they guarantee breedings from their males.
The Simply Natural Alpaca Gift Shop is on the premises and carries a large variety of products to cover visitors from head to toe, and more. Inside the gift shop is a fleece room where visitors can see the alpaca’s main blanket, handle the raw fleece and learn the process of raw fiber to yarn. A floor-loom was acquired this winter, which will be set up to start weaving projects for the gift shop.
“We don’t process all of our fiber ourselves,” Bean said. “We send it to our fiber-mill where they weigh it, wash it, card it, make rovings, yarn, felt, boot liners and more. They can also blend bamboo, cotton, or anything you want into your alpaca fiber.”
The Beans sell the yarn from their animals to their customers, or give it to local knitters who make products from the alpacas.
“Purchasing a product from the farm you have visited – maybe gotten a picture with or a kiss from an alpaca – makes the product more personal and memorable,” Sue said.
For more information about the Beans’ alpaca farm at 11144 Pope Road, in Randolph, call (716) 358-5242, stop in, or visit online at asliceofheavenalpacas.com. The gift shop is open Monday and Tuesday from 5-7 p.m.; Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.; and Saturday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. The shop is closed Sunday. To learn more about the products, visit online at simplynaturalalpacagiftshop.com or Facebook/A Slice of Heaven Alpacas/Simply Natural Alpaca Gift Shop.