Business is booming

Alpacas

Wehave the second largest Alpaca industry in the world behind the Peruvian industry.

Hobby farmers Lou and Kerry Vitullo breed, produce and sell Alpacas on their property in Koonoomoo.

Trading as Koonoomoo Alpacas, they started their journey in 2011 on a small property with a modest 13 sheep and three alpacas.

In 2018 they purchased a larger property just down the road, and can now house anywhere between 40 and 80 alpacas at a time.

The fascinating and lovable animals make perfect pets. They produce great wool and are also herd guardsperfect for protecting sheep, lambs and goats.

They have excellent eyesight over kilometre distance, where they can see dogs and foxes that approach flocks.

The Vitullos sell two breeds as pets - the Suri alpacas have straight dreadlock-like hair, and the Huacaya have a fluffy teddy bear look.

Due to the high demand, the Vitullos are “down on numbers”.

They have between 30 and 40 alpacas on the farm right now.

“Sales are great at the moment,“ Mr Vitullo said.

“We normally sell the males to guard the flocks, but due to short supply the females are also being used to keep watch.

“There are more foxes around and farmers are wanting to protect their sheep and lambs, especially as the returns on the market are good.”

Alpacas are sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Their soft footpads create minimal soil damage, and their natural fibre further supports the green fibre industry.

They are a wonderful green fit for Australia’s farming climate, as they perform better in dry conditions than most livestock.

They require only small amounts of supplementary feeding.

A baby alpaca is called a cria.

After six months they are weaned off the mothers and put into a paddock, ready to go to their forever homes.

“We give them extra cuddles and attention as the transition can be a bit hard for the mums and bubs,” Mr Vitullo said.

The crias are born after a gestation of eleven months, or 355 days.

They usually weigh between 6kg and 10kg at birth.

They tend to be standing within the first hour of being born, and often frolic around their mother’s side in time.

“They are usually born during the daylight hours, often before lunch, as the mums like to have them up and running before the foxes arrive at night posing danger.

“We check the female alpacas every fortnight as they can sometimes absorb their pregnancy.

“We bring them into the yard with a male, and if the female spits on the male it indicates she is pregnant.

“If she sits down it signifies that she is not pregnant.

“When the babies are born we like to name them starting with the same letter that their mum’s name starts with; it makes it easier to keep track of them.

“We look up baby book names, because they need to be named to be registered.

“The females are all registered, and for the males to breed they need to be registered and certified. The working wethers don’t necessarily need to be registered.

The family also love to show their alpacas but said opportunities in that field have been limited since COVID-19.

“We have been showing the alpacas for 13 years and hope to get back into it in the next six months or so,” Mr Vitullo said.

“It is good publicity for our business and if we produce good fleece that is crimped and has a natural lustre; the better the fleece the better the sales can be.”

“The judges look for good confirmation, natural lustre in the fleece, the fibre is strong and resilient and it has consistency throughout.

“We sell our fleece to a fibre mill in Bacchus Marsh, where they process it and distribute it further.”

Alpaca shearing normally occurs in September so the fleece is off for the summer months.

It also means that as the cooler months come around, their coats have grown back for warmth.

The business is also making the most of a booming export market sending alpacas overseas.

“We have a gentleman in Shepparton who organises a combination of breeders who provide stock to fill a crate of approximately 22 alpacas.

“They are then sent overseas by air.”