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Learning About Alpacas

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I loved alpacas when my family lived in Bolivia! We would drive out on the Altiplano and see herds and herds of them. They were much gentler than llamas, and their wool was softer. Alpaca wool is soft like cashmere, warmer than sheep wool, hypo-allergenic (alpacas don’t produce lanolin the way sheep do), and very water-repellent. It’s also less itchy than wool.

My kids had seen alpacas in photos and from a distance, but over Thanksgiving weekend they got to see them up close – we stayed at Mike’s aunt’s home, and she owns alpacas! So the kids go to learn about feeding alpacas, and cleaning up with them. I’m hoping that they’ll get to meet some baby alpacas, eventually, but it may take a while – alpacas stay pregnant for almost a year!

The alpacas I met as a 12- and 13-year-old living in Bolivia were fairly shy, and the ones we met at over Thanksgiving were the same way, although the one pictured above LOVED the camera! The others would walk away when I tried to take photos, but this friendly female alpaca posed and posed!

Have you learned about any new animals recently?

afterschool linky

2013 After School Party HOSTS

The Educators’ Spin On It
Afterschool for Smarty Pants
Boy Mama Teacher Mama
Coffee Cups and Crayons
Little Wonders’ Days
Mama Smiles
Relentlessly Fun, Deceptively Educational
The Measured Mom
This Reading Mama
What Do We Do All Day

There were so many fun Christmas-themed activities in last week’s After School linky! These bird seashell ornaments from Happy Hooligans caught my eye – so cute, and different from anything we have on our tree! I’d like to try a red cardinal bird version!

Now it’s your turn! Share your fun and educational family time activities for elementary aged kids in this week’s linky! By doing so, you give us permission to feature your post and pin it to our After School Activities & Adventures Pinterest board – thanks!

MaryAnne is a craft loving educator, musician, photographer, and writer who lives in Silicon Valley with her husband Mike and their four children.

22 thoughts on “Learning About Alpacas”

  1. Sweet! We’ve never seen real alpacas but my girls love the British children’s show “Nuzzle & Scratch” about two puppet alpacas that are always mixing things up. They would love to see a real live alpacas one day. With the rains beginning here the scorpions and cobras have been coming out so we’ve been learning about them and why it’s important to keep our shoes on and our eyes open.

  2. Manhattan Image and Style

    This is fascinating! What a lovely animal. Great post! :)

    Feel free to visit my blog as well! You will find topics such as health, self-image, personal growth and motivation between others! <3

    Diana
    http://www.ManhattanImageandStyle.com
    New Video Post: NYC Holiday Window Tour

    1. Wow! I think a truly friendly alpaca is pretty rare, but they do tend to be nicer than Llamas. Most of the goats I have met are very friendly, though!

  3. How fascinating. We only saw alpacas in a zoo. Smarty had a book report to write about animals in the end of the first term, but she chose to write about cats.

    1. They really are neat animals! They apparently can spit, but they don’t do it nearly as much as llamas. I’ve seen several llamas spit, but never an alpaca.

    1. Their fur is used as a softer, warmer alternative to wool in clothing, and I think that is what her end goal is. She is a veterinarian, and only started raising alpacas a couple years ago. Her alpacas are the prettiest ones I’ve seen!

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