Why Alpacas
“Quirky, inquisitive and endearing, raising alpacas is as close as I will ever get to having my own magical unicorns.”The alpaca is a species of South American camelid descended from the vicuña. This little ruminant is similar to, and often confused with, the llama. However, alpacas are noticeably smaller than llamas.
In America, this easy-to-care-for livestock is raised for it’s wonderfully sturdy and versatile fleece, also called “fiber”. There are two kinds of alpacas, the suri (pronounced: SOO-ree) alpaca, which sports long, silky, curly locks, and the huacaya (pronounced: wah-KY-ah) alpaca, which grows a thick, teddy-bear-like fleece. The fiber from both species of alpaca is used to make clothing, fiber arts, blankets, rugs hats and more.
Because alpaca fiber is hollow, it is both lighter and warmer than sheep’s wool and it is even water-repellent! It also lacks the lanolin coating of sheep’s wool, making it a great alternative for people with wool allergies.
“Quirky, inquisitive and endearing, raising alpacas is as close as I will ever get to having my own magical unicorns.”
Fun-Filled Events
From ranch tours, “Yoga with Alpacas” and birthday parties to learning how to do fiber arts and camping with alpacas, there is something fun for everyone to do here at Fitzgerald Acres.
Yoga with Alpacas
Looking for a different kind of yoga experience? We’ve got it! Yoga instruction in a peaceful pasture with a hands on alpaca experience. We offer classes for adults and for children.
Black Gold
Alpaca manure is a nutrient-rich, weed-free soil conditioner that improves soil quality and its ability to retain water. It is even gentle enough to put directly on young plants. Gardeners love it!
Call for Volunteers
As we continue to grow, we will need volunteers who are interested in helping with various tasks & events at the ranch, including, but not limited to:
Maintaining pastures
Animal care and feeding
Building structures
Events: Setup, take-down & assist
Ranch tours
Since we are just getting started, these volunteer opportunities will evolve.
If this is something you might be interested in, please fill out our volunteer application.
Alpaca of the Month
Meet Stormy
Zodiac Sign: Taurus
Age: 11 (about 40 in people years)
Birthplace: Owasso, OK
Stormy’s favorite past time is hanging with her best alpaca gal pals, Precious and Ginger. This sweet and playful little girl has a lot of pep in her step. Every once in a while, when she gets excited, she will hop around like a cria.
Stormy was born blind in one eye and with very limited vision in the other. Because of this she often holds her head sideways so that she can tell where she is and also to find her herd members. She doesn’t let her blindness stop her from getting around at all.
Fun Fact: Stormy is obsessed with people’s shoes. She loves to take a nice close look and a sniff of them. Some might even say she has a bit of a shoe fetish.