In between snowstorms we visited an outdoor holiday market in Boyne City. Santa Claus and Old Man Winter stopped by to visit. They loved the alpacas, but were disappointed to learn that they do not fly.

Fall Pasture

The "Girls" and the juveniles are out enjoying their new pasture on a sunny day in the fall. Alpacas love moving into a new pasture. Even the adults may "prong" a few times when they think no one is looking! I started working on this new addition in the spring to give me the flexibility to take care of the main pastures.

2010 Cria Update

With fall around the corner, you begin to wonder where the summer went and really start to notice how big the crias are getting. Col Du Tourmalet (on the left) was the born in June and is doing well. Looks like he is going to stay bay black. He will be easy to find in the snow!

Stormy Blues (on the right) has the "wow" factor, and I look forward to his show performance. Half interest has already been aquired by Maplewood Farm.

Malu is growing in leaps and bounds - literally. She is usually trying to coax the other crias into chasing her around the pasture, and especially enjoys leaping over her grandmother, Tendu, if she is cushed and resting.

And over the Labor Day weekend, the last cria, Tenaj, arrived and was welcomed by the herd. She is a very feminine rose grey female.

Maggie Mae's Legacy

Guess I have been in the business long enough now to appreciate and be in that special moment. Maggie Mae (on the left) delivered an exceptional gift Sunday morning. Maggie's Dam, Malu, came into the USA during the early 1990 Peruvian imports. Malu was laid to rest last year after living a long and productive life at Maplewood Farm. I was fortunate to acquire Maggie, a Dracula granddaughter, in 2005. To date she has been my best producer, and is responsible for my "Snow" line. Her latest cria is a very healthy girl (20#s wow) sired by my first born alpaca, Independance. "Indy" was born on the 4th of July back in 2002, and has sired a handful of crias. Independance died June of this year (necropsy identified a ruptured spleen)..so now I think you are getting the picture why this little girl is special. Her name was easy to come up with. Indy's Malu.

Welcome to the Ranch. ..................

4H Boys

Standing from left to right are Snow Ranger, Toga Party and Chinook. These yearling males would be perfect in a 4H program, on a fiber production farm, or as companion animals. These are high quality healthy alpacas produced from a reputable breeding program.

Alpacas are raised for their fiber, and live a long and productive life. Alpaca farming is a "no kill" industry. Therefore, when there is an excess of males on a farm they are usually sold to good homes for much less than what a production animal would cost. For example, a breeding fee is usually between $1,000 to $2,000. A production male can sell between $5,000 to $15,000. I am offering all three of these yearling males for $900. This is a great value if you want to begin raising alpacas. I prefer not to split them up, as they are bonded to each other. But if you have other alpacas, we can probably work something out. If you would like to visit or have any other questions just email me at sdralpacas@core.com or give me a call at 231-838-1152.

Cooling their heals

This has been an unusually hot spring and summer for Northern Michigan. Part of the daily routine is providing a nice cool stream of water for the 'pacas to enjoy.

Castle Farms Fiber Festival (Alpacas in the Palace)

For 6 years now, the last weekend in July has been reserved for the Castle Farms Fiber Festival in Charlevoix, Michigan. 55 vendors come together for two days to display and sell their fiber and fiber arts to the public. The "Castle" is a very upscale environment and a beatiful venue for anything. This years attendance was at an all time high.

That's "Easy to to Love" under the tent with her companions from Maplewood Farm, Mariposa and Flash. The alpacas drew a crowd both days, and I was able to answer alot of questions and most everyone got to feel just how soft these animals really are. Everybody left with a a smile.

"Romancing" the National Show Spin-off Competition

A Fine Romance, pictured here at the 2008 Indiana Invitational (Reserve Color Champion), added to her Blue Ribbon count recently without leaving the ranch! I entered her first fleece in the 2010 AOBA National Show Spin-Off competition and she came away with first place to add to her successful show carreer. She is currently bred and expected to deliver in the Fall. Romance is currently on my sales list. If you are looking for a unique, blue ribbon winning production girl, she is worth a look. Pricing and terms are negotiable.

Stormy Blues

Stormy Blues arrived last Sunday just before the heavy rain arrived. Maybe his name should have been Rainmaker.

His Dam is Bille's Holiday, and this is her fourth cria. Sometimes you have to wait to make a call on a cria, but Stormy is way out ahead of himself. Great health, mediuim fawn fleece, coverage, and presence. I'll enjoy watching him grow up and showing him.

More babies are coming. Tendu is next, then Maggie May and Romance.

The Harvest is In!

Shearing is complete for the 2010 Season. Toga Party is sporting his new look. He sheared 9.5 lbs of fleece! Toga Party was one of 120 Alpacas that were shorn at Maplewood Farm over two days by a professional shearer and lots of semi-professional helpers.

For every alpaca farm, shearing is equivalvent to bringing in the crops. The alpacas grow their fiber for a year, and then sheared when the weather turns warmer. Depending on the size and age of the alpaca, they normally shear anywhere from 4 to 10 lbs of fleece. Samples of each animals fleece will be sent to a fiber testing lab to determine the quality of the fleece. Some of the fleeces will be prepared and shown at fleece shows. Then the fleece is usually sold to spinners and fiber artists, or I take it to the local mill to be spun into yarn and sold to knitters.

Snow Ranger has his first show under his belt now at 8 months old. He placed second in his halter class in Davisburg, Michigan at the Michigan Breeders Show and Fiber Festival over the weekend. He has been impossible to live with since then...... :)


The show is always open to the public, and the public came out in force. Alpacas always draw a crowd, and lots of questions!

If you are looking to add color to your herd this year, take a good hard look at Breezy. She is a proven female (had her first cria in 2009). She was left open over the winter to take advantage of getting into the "spring/summer" breeding cycle. She is a daughter of a Maplewood Farm Peruvian import, Blossom, and her Sire is Killer Joe, a well known true black that is a Black Mesquite son. She comes with a breeding to any of Maplewood Farm's or Snow Dancer Ranch Alpacas Herdsires. She is being offered for a very reasonable price of $8,000.00 . So Let's Go!

Spring is ahead of itself above the 45th parallel this year. The Juvee's are a tight knit group, leaving the hay tables behind to do what they love to do....graze! But the pickens are slim at this time of year, so the hay tables are still on the menu.

From left to right: Easy to Love (female), Toga Party (male), and Snow Ranger (male) is in the foreground.

Time to start thinking about 2011 Crias! Check out the Northern Michigan "Conan" connection

We have just gone through a great strech of sunny days and temperatures approaching 60 degress up here above the 45th Parallel. How can you not get spring fever?? And as alpaca breeders, our thoughts turn to the breeding decisions soon to come.

Odds are, you have heard of Conan. He is a bit older now, but his offspring have left their mark in the showrings over the years. If you are looking for color and Conan genetics, check out his two grandsons, Royal Dalton and Snow Lordd. Half-interest is only $5,000 for each one, making breeding to quality herdsires very affordable. They have been shown and are blue ribbon winners. They are worth a look. More information available under "Alpacas for Sale" button.

I happen to love winter and the first big snow storm of the season. This one came the first week of December 2009, and the juvies' were exposed to their first big change in the seasons. Snow Dancer Ranch went into full winter operations that day, but the preparations had already been made. Heat lamps were rigged in the barn and put on timers to operate at night, heated water buckets were in place, and extra bedding was already in their stalls. Living north of the 45th parallel adds some additional challenges to raising alpacas. To keep them from becoming barn potatoes, their hay feeding tables are placed about 400 ft from the barn. The morning hay is placed on the tables, usually second cutting to entice them to stay outside. Once they are grained, they are in the habit of heading out to the tables for the day, coming back to the barn every once in awhile for water. First cutting and a second round of grain is usually placed in the barn for the evening.

On some of the colder days, coats are employed to help the older animals cope. Tendu, pictured here with her very fashionable orange coat, is 17 years old (and bred!) and appreciates the extra warmth. Usually it's just the older animals and the very young animals that need some extra attention.

The great warmth in winter comes from spending time with the weanlings, as they are learning to be separated from mom, forming personalities and bonds amonst themselves; they are young and curious and getting handled alot by the humans and being introduced to the halter and lead.

Winter is to be endured for sure, but it has it's place here in the cycle of the seasons. I go into winter with the idea of keeping a closer eye on the bred females to make sure they remain bred, make sure the weanlings thrive and gain weight, and the yearling and adult males don't gain too much weight!

New Alpacas added to the sales list

Toga Party, a Huacaya male, and Easy to Love, a fancy rose grey female, have just been added to the sales list! Toga Party is being offered as a fiber male (or pet). Easy to Love has a show career ahead of her and then a big future in a grey breeding program.

Getting the Herd through the Winter