LA MOTTE, Iowa -- Most livestock raisers know their animals are destined to be killed and eaten, but not so for alpaca growers.
The smallish, grass-eating animals, members of the camel family, are raised in the U.S. for their thick, soft fleece.
Mike and Julie Delaney, of rural La Motte, like that about their breeding herd -- they know their animals will be well-treated and live long lives.
"That's why people are drawn to alpacas -- they don't have to die" to be useful to humans, said Mike, 47, as he helped a youngster get close to a baby alpaca, or cria, on Sunday. The couple's Irish Meadows Alpaca Farm hosted a public open house as part of a national campaign to promote alpacas.
The Delaneys sell their show-quality alpacas all over the country. In addition, Julie takes the animals' fleece to mini-mills in Wisconsin to have it spun into yarn, which she sells at the farm and over the Internet.
Sunday's warm weather brought scores of curious folks to the Delaney scenic, 160-year-old farm. Its huge red barns always are on the state's historic
| by the numbers 6 Number of alpacas Mike and Julie Delaney started with in 2004 52 Number now on the farm 11.5 months Alpacas' gestation time 1 Number of times per year that an alpaca's fleece is shorn 3 minutes Time it takes the Delaney's shearer, from New Zealand, to remove each animal's fleece 15 to 20 years Average alpaca lifespan 100 to 200 Average adult weight, in pounds |
Joni Osterkamp and her family drove from Cascade to learn more about the South American native animals. She's considering getting some of her own for their wool.
"It's really soft and beautiful colors," she said as several curious adult alpacas stared down the crowd.
As new alpaca owners themselves, Rob and Robin Klima, of Lake Delhi, came to find out more about raising them.
"They're very curious and laid back. I love to watch them wrestle with each other like 12-year-old boys," Rob said.
Jocelyn Martin will have stories to tell about her visit to the alpaca farm. The 8-year-old Maquoketa girl petted a number of the furry animals soliciting very different reactions from them. Several alpacas gave her "kisses" with their soft noses, but one protective mother spit on Jocelyn's face when she ventured too close to her baby.
That's very unusual for alpacas, Mike Delaney said.
"Llamas are known for spitting, but alpacas almost never do, only when they are protecting their young," he said.
