Services: Alpaca Bella Fina Bootcamp

Welcome to Bella Fina’s boot camp. It is just as it sounds, so prepare to put on your old boots, roll up your sleeves, and get dirty! You will spend the entire day working with us and our alpacas. We will cover basic husbandry which will include giving shots, clipping toenails, fecal tests, and health record keeping. Depending on the time of year, you may take part in rounding up dams and participate in a few breedings.

As full time farmers, we have had to deal with so many daily issues that often arise, our ultimate goal is to keep the alpacas healthy and vet costs to a minimun at all times. In order for your farm to be profitable, you must watch your bottom line at all times. Why pay a vet to do something that you are capable of doing yourself just out of convenience. The money you save on doing things yourself can and should be applied to your marketing program. In 2008, our total vet bill was $2,300. This was only for CVI (Certificate of Veterinary Inspection) expenses necessary for us to attend all of our alpaca shows. We now pull our own blood for BVDV and send it directly to Washington State University to be tested. This saves time and quite a substantial bit of money.

We are firm believers in the old English saying “A stitch in time saves nine.” We believe in being proactive in the care we give our alpacas by doing a fecal check on every alpaca individually every month, and not unnecessarily treating the entire heard across the board. Less is definitely more in the case of a deworming program, because some alpacas can build up a resistance to the dewormer. Larger farms are experiencing this problem right now, some have resulted to adding dewormers to their feed daily. We have incorporated a deworming rating system that we will gladly go over with you, it ranges from your regular dewormer to the big guns you use very sparingly only when all else fails.

Although we are not experts in and particular field, we have had extensive experience in birthing cria and after birth care of both cria and dam. We will alert you to the key things you should be looking for, and the telltale signs of trouble for both dam and cria.

We also offer alpaca farm days where you are welcome to tour the ranch and ask us as many questions as you like.