Land requirements for alpacas

Good evening everyone,

For today's blog I thought I would run through the basics requirements in terms of land.

So first off, stocking rates. That is the number of alpacas per acre. A standard figure is normally about 4 to 6 alpacas per acre. It's important to add that ideally for every acre of land you have, you want an additional acre that can be used for rotational purposes.

You also want to keep the sexes separate, so remember to factor this in.

Next, fencing. Whilst alpacas will not normally challenge fencing, we recommend 4 foot high fencing that can consist of posts and stock wire. You should avoid barbed wire and electric fencing. Due to their thick fleeces there is a risk of them getting caught, which could be deadly.

The third factor to include is shelter. Ideally you want a 3 sided field shelter and also lots of natural shelter such as trees. Alpacas will use the shelter to escape all extremes of weather, from the harshest winter through to the hot sun.

The final key part of your set-up is a pen. This is where you can gather the alpacas for inspections, giving medication, halter training, etc. For this we use a range of metal gates/fences that are either 4 foot, 6 foot or 8 foot long, allowing us to vary the size of the pen.

All in all, alpacas have fairly simple requirements. It's essential though that you get the basics right to ensure your alpacas remain healthy and happy.