..:: Welcome to the Alpaca Place::..
We will be supporting National Alpaca Day on Sunday 2nd May, with an Open Farm and a massive discount sale - Admission is Free!
Join one of our farm tours at any time during the day between 10:30am & 3:30pm
plus! you can actually purchase pregnant breeding alpacas for less than $2000 - you can save hundreds or thousands of dollars in our one day sale.
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Keep an eye on this website for updates on alpacas for sale and our amazing bargains
This website is for everyone interested in alpacas and their care, and has detailed information about breeding, shearing, fleece, health and welfare, cria and more. If you are new to alpacas, Alpaca Facts, Frequently Asked Questions, and Why Buy Alpacas will introduce you to the basics, and show why alpacas are the smart option for lifestyle farmers! 
The Alpaca Place provides:
- New Zealand Alpacas for Sale You'll find the alpaca thats right for you, right here!
- Outstanding Customer Commitment you'll enjoy unrivalled customer support and much, much more. You'll spot the difference!
- Fibre sales - you'll love the feel and look of your handspun alpaca yarn
- Free Workshops and seminars You'll benefit from the opportunity to have hands on learning about your chosen livestock
- Stud Services - you'll be impressed with our line-up of stunning stud males. Use them to improve the quality of your cria .... New service: drive-by matings are also available for a reduced fee. Ask for our Stud Services booklet - IT'S FREE!
- Our website is a valuable resource. You can use it to research almost every aspect of alpaca management - it is regularly accessed by alpaca enthusiasts all over the world. Notes on Website Navigation: Click here
Our Location - The Alpaca Place lies in the beautiful Rangitumau Valley, Masterton, New Zealand -for more information on where to find us, click here. We are really easy to find, but if you plan to visit, we suggest you save our phone number - 06 372 5565 into you cell phone, so you can call us if you need to.
Newsletter: Yours for the asking! Our value packed newsletter is by distribution list only- it is not a website resource. To view a back copy and see the interest factor in our newsletters, click here. To order now by email, click here, or contact us using the phone/address details in our "Contact" tab above.
Farm tours : We offer interactive farm tours for individuals, families and groups
Pre-purchase Research: Thinking of investing in alpacas for breeding or as pets, and want to know more? We welcome visits to our farm so we can discuss your questions with you, and show you the many benefits of alpaca ownership and of connecting with us.
..:: News and Updates ::..
March 3
It looks like our hay is finally about to be cut! An exceptionally wet December/January 
and even February put our contractors way behind schedule, so our hay cutting is about 2 months overdue. Fortunately that same wet weather has kept the grass green and growing, so our pasture is still in good condition for making hay.
Since our last news update two cria have successfully made their debut into the world. Dark brown Calibre was first - he is now 10 days old. Then on Sunday (when we weren't home - of course!) white Quintessence was born. Nicknamed Essie, we have been eagerly looking forward to her birth - she has a pedigree chock full of famous names - Inti (twice) El Dorado (twice), Highlander, Brujeria, and also including Purrumbete Minty and Forestglen Maestro, two outstanding Australian alpacas. It is too early to see if she will live up to her heritage, but so far she is looking good!
Biscuit is coming home today after spending the last couple of months off-farm. We chose to send her to an outside stud in the hopes of a boy with stud potential. Biscuit is unrelated to any of our female alpacas (except Cherrie, of course), so it was a good chance to get some outcross breeding. A little girl will be just as welcome, however!
Last Sunday, Gordon manned a stall at the Eketahuna Country Carnival. Eketahuna is our "next-door" town, so it was good to meet some of the locals from that area.
February 17
A couple of our girls have been showing weight loss (one of the benefits of body scoring picks this up early) not connected to lactation. We have separated these girls so we can give them an alpaca "muesli" - a specialist weight gain feed. As the commonest cause of unexplained weight loss in alpacas is phophorus deficiency, we gave them each an extra 1ml of AD&E aswell.
This year for the first time we trialled "paddock mating" - running several girls with a specified stud for several weeks. We are about to give them all an audio scan to see if they are pregnant - and how effective this strategy has been.
February 10
We attended Horowhenua Show a few weeks ago, and had a very successful show! Ma Chere (aka Biscuit) won the Huacaya Champion fleece as well as being Intermediate Champion Fleece and 1st in her class. With more than 50 entires in the Huacaya section, this is something to be proud of - congratulations Biscuit! Biscuit has now gone to stud and we look forward to her 1st cria next year. In addition, Woolmaster won Reserve Champion status in both the senior conformation and senior composite classes. (Horowhenua is a "composite show" - for a definition of this, see our Showing page), while Eclipse took a 2nd in his fleece class, his composite class, and 3rd in conformation. Lincoln also did well, winning his fleece class, and taking 3rds in conformation and composite, while Valour who was entered in the fleece class only, won a 2nd prize. Quite a haul of ribbons for us to bring home!
Last weekend we had a trade stand at Dannevirke Show. This was the first time we had attended Dannevirke, and we enjoyed beautiful weather and the chance to share our alpacas with the public. We were sited right next to the Oval with all the horse competitions were happening - our display alpacas (Sheridan, Chengari & Eclipse) were fascinated - they had never seen horses before.
February 3
Welcome to our new format home page! The same information is available to you, but you can now be more selective in your choice.
Things have been a little quiet here (apart from the sound of rain, rain and more rain), but we did have a bit of drama a few days ago when Sinti got stuck in a fence. Greedy girl stuck her head throught the hurricane netting to taste the grass on the other side, and then tried to bring it back through a different section. After a desperate hunt for the wire cutters, we managed to free her without cutting any wire, and I think we were more shook up than she was....she was straight into her breakfast nuts without a second thought for her near disaster!
New Pages
- Novice Handler Syndrome
- Blue-eyed white alpacas - not as black as they are painted!
- Stock Rotation
What you should be doing now (applies to New Zealand only):
Summer CriaIf you are expecting cria in mid-summer, be aware that new born cria cannot regulate their internal temperature well, and may overheat if left in the summer sun. Most mums will take their cria under shade if it gets too hot, but we have had the occassional alpaca who doesn't mind staying out in the mid-day sun, with the result that her cria stays out too. We have only had 1 cria suffer ill-effects from this, but it is particularly worth being aware of if the cria is weak from a difficult birth. If weather conditions are unfavorable, put mum and new-born in a shelter shed (it helps if mum is used to going into a shed, so practise feeding her inside before the cria is born). Company for mum in the form of a quiet female or wether helps too - but not if the so-called company becomes agitated and causes more distress than being alone! You should have plenty of straw on the floor, and will need to clean up dung and wet straw at least daily. Your baby cria will be able to join your herd outside within a few days. If you do have a cria suffer from heat stress, you must cool it down as quickly as possible - for more information on recognising heat stress and how to deal with it see "Heat Stress" . Something else worth watching for if you have white/light coloured cria is sunburn around the muzzle, and the tips of ears. This can be prevented by using a sunblock. We have seldom had problems with sunburn, but do watch out for it.
Routine Maintenance:
Facial Eczema - if you are in a FE prone area, this year is likely to be high risk. You should already be feeding your alpacas zinc fortified alpaca pellets, and have commenced fungicide spraying of pasture if applicable.
A,D & E - your alpacas should be due their fourth dose in Summer. Alpacas have proven to be very tolerant of high levels of A,D &E, so we feel it is better to dose all our herd rather than restrict dosing to just young animals as is often advised. However, as there is a risk of toxicity if you overdose, do please consult your vet first, if you have any concerns about how often, and how much you should dose your alpacas with. Remember black cria are partularly vulnerable to rickets, so ensure they are included in your dosing regime.
With the unusually cloudy and rainy summer we have had this year, alpacas are likely to be more at risk over the coming months. Keep an eye out for unexplained weight loss - it is often the first indication that animals are phosphate deficient!
Heat Stress - Alpacas tolerate extreme weather conditions well, but they are more adapted to cold weather than hot. To ensure your alpacas do not suffer from over-heating in hot summer conditions, please read our article on Heat Stress.
Farm Maintenance - If you have seeding weeds, you need to chop them out and burn them. Seeds will continue to mature even in plants that are dead or have been sprayed with herbicide. Leaving them unburnt will mean you have another crop next year.
Water - keep an eye on water supplies. Alpacas don't drink much, but they still need some, particularly in summer, and they do need to have fresh water always available. Even if you have an automatic watering system, this should be checked daily, as they can malfunction.
"The Alpaca Place" is the trading name of Huari and Sunstone Trusts, who are proud to be members of the NZ Alpaca Association. Operated by sisters Cheryl Hughson and Liz Barnes, The Alpaca Place breeds registered alpacas under the Huari and NZ Eikon prefixes.
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