((PKG)) RAISING ALPACAS
((TRT: 04:00))
((Topic Banner: Alpaca Farmer))
((Reporter/Camera/Editor: Maia Kay))
((VOA Georgian Service))
((Map: Upper Marlboro, Maryland))
((Main characters: 1 female; 0 male))
((Sub characters: 0 female; 0 male))

((NATS))

((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
I’ve learned about alpacas two years before I was going to retire.
So I spent up to 34 years and nine months in the military overall, you know, from the beginning to the end. My last job was at the Pentagon, and it was strategic planning.
((NATS: Alpacas))
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
So I started this business about ten years ago, but really it started out as a hobby. I really enjoyed being around the alpacas. I had four of them that I started with.
((NATS: Sue Kolb))
Come on, here we go. Here we go. Come on girls.
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
But then I purchased some more, and I also bred, and more alpacas were born here on the farm. So now I have 37 alpacas.
I don't think there's anything more adorable than a baby alpaca. It's called a cria.
((NATS: Door opens and closes))
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
They love to be, you know, they have to be next to their mom because they're still nursing, but they love to frolic and run around and race. They go so fast, they'll run down the pasture and run back, and they want other crias to chase after them, and they play just like little kids. It's adorable.
((NATS: Tractor moving))
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
For a number of years, it was not profitable, unless you can really find an outlet for your alpaca fleece. But I found that giving the tours has really been nice. I enjoy it. I enjoy sharing my alpacas with other people.
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
I opened a shop. I opened my alpaca shop here on the farm, and then after the tour, I take people in there. Everything in there is made out of alpaca and people really love the items in here.
Well, I wanted to raise some animals that I didn't need to slaughter in order to make some additional money after I retired. So, you know, I didn't want cows or pigs or something like that.
So alpacas, you just shear them once a year, and it doesn't hurt them. They actually like it. And it's important to do that because of their health too, because they cannot get overheated with their fleece. So, before the summer comes, they're sheared, and so they run around. They really like it after they are sheared.
((NATS: Water running))
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
Alpacas are part of the camelid family, and in that family, you've got camels, lamas, and alpacas. Alpacas are the smallest of that family. And when you think about it, they're each raised for different reasons too. So, alpacas are raised specifically for their fiber, and their fiber is often called, ‘fiber of the Gods’, because it's as soft as cashmere, it's warmer than wool, and it's also hypoallergenic.
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
In the good weather, they like to be outside. They enjoy the cold weather in the wintertime here, and they enjoy the snow. They're very curious about it. They are very curious animals, and they love to watch, you know, everything around them.
((Sue Kolb
Owner and CEO, Alpaca Lane Criations))
If I had to choose all over again, you know, going back ten years ago, I definitely would do the same thing I did. I would definitely get alpacas. I love them so much. They are so cute, and they provide so much peace to me. The farm is very peaceful, and it's just got a very positive energy with my alpacas here.
((NATS))