Why Alpacas?

Easy Care and Low Maintenance. Alpacas are small, gentle, intelligent, quiet, and easy to handle, even by children.  They require no special shelter or care.  Fences are more for keeping out predators than for keeping in the alpacas.  They are disease-resistant, resulting in low veterinary costs.  Their care includes regular dewormings, annual vaccinations, occasional toenail trimming, and annual shearing.  Alpacas are extremely adaptable, and are being raised from Maine to Florida, from Alaska to Hawaii, and at all points in-between.

Small Acreage Requirements.  Alpacas require less pasture than do other farm animals and can, therefore, be raised on small acreage.  Five to ten alpacas can comfortably occupy one acre of good pasture.

Earth Friendly.  Alpacas do not pull the grass out by the roots as they graze, their padded feet don't damage the terrain, and their community dung piles mean less pasture is smothered out and parasites aren't spread all over the pasture.

Investment Potential.  In 1998, alpaca breeders in the United States voted to close the alpaca registry to non-pedigreed alpacas, which basically stopped the importation of alpacas from South America.  Thus, the rate of growth of the supply of alpacas decreased dramatically, while the demand has continued to grow at increasing rates.  When considering supply and demand, suri alpacas remain the best investment - since they do occasionally produce huacaya offspring (but two huacayas don't produce a suri), suri numbers should always increase at a slower rate than the huacayas.

The supply is further limited by the fact that alpacas reproduce slowly, with a gestation period of 11 months resulting in one offspring.  These rare and unique animals continue to demand high prices and garner great interest from investors.

Few investments appreciate at the high rate of alpacas, and it's an insurable investment as well.

Tax Advantages.  Alpacas allow the investor tax-deferred compounding of his initial investment - as his herd and its value increase, he defers paying income taxes on his earnings until he sells his alpacas. Other tax advantages of alpaca ownership include expense deductions and depreciation, and the Federal government has recently enacted even more attractive incentives.

Luxurious Soft Fiber.  Alpaca could be considered the fiber of the future. As farmlands disappear, the best fiber that can be produced on the least acreage will become the most important.  Alpaca fiber is several times stronger and warmer than sheep's wool, while still being very soft and lightweight.  Each alpaca produces enough fiber each year for several sweaters.  And it comes in more than 20 natural colors!

Lifestyle.  Alpacas are raised for profit and enjoyment, while affording their owners a very desirable lifestyle, low in stress and high in rewards.  Many people who want to raise their children or live themselves in the country on a farm are drawn to alpacas because of their many attributes and because alpacas are a livestock that can be raised for income without having to slaughter it.

An Active Breed Association and Registry.  The alpaca industry is very fortunate to have a breed association that works for the benefit of all its members.  AOBA produces a high-end monthly magazine, and it advertises in major publications across the United States and on television, which benefits all breeders.  The registry protects the interests of all alpaca breeders by requiring blood typing of all alpacas before they can be registered, thus documenting bloodlines and keeping alpacas pure by preventing them from being crossbred with other camelids.

Why Ridgeview Farm Alpacas?  Back to Top  

Quality.  While not everyone wants to show their alpacas, show results are indicative of quality.  Our show results (see Shows) prove Ridgeview Farm is producing top quality suris capable of competing successfully against alpacas from much bigger breeders.

Herdsires and Bloodlines.  Whether you are buying or breeding, you will find a wide selection of bloodlines, representing many of the industry's top herdsires, at Ridgeview Farm.  Many of our herdsires' pedigrees go back to Peruvian Accoyo males, such as Bruxo, Amador, Uribe (Durazno), and Torbio.  Their pedigrees also include other Peruvian herdsires such as Aureo, Fuego, Royal Damasco, Elar, Royal Black Gold, Snowmass Silken Gold, Meteor, Cantano (who sold for $265,000), and Ricardo.  These same bloodlines, plus those of Peruvian herdsires Accoyo Ganador, Magnifico (deceased), Angel (deceased), Inca Hoots (deceased), and Great Balls of Fire, are found in the pedigrees of our foundation females as well, and in many of their offspring we offer for sale.

Size.  As the largest suri breeder in the Southeast (and by industry standards, one of the largest in the country), we offer our customers a wide selection of alpacas from which to choose, but we are small enough to offer very personal service on an individual basis.  When you call Ridgeview Farm, you will get one of us, Bill or Juanita, not a secretary, not a farm manager, nobody but us, and we are going to know who you are and who you bought from us.

Those Little Extras.  Little, but very important, extras, including a signed sales agreement, a prepurchase examination by an experienced camelid veterinarian, a reproductive guarantee, a 10-day live cria guarantee with a bred female - we take them for granted, and you can too when you buy from Ridgeview Farm.

Safe Healthy Environment.  When your alpacas are at Ridgeview Farm for whatever reason, your alpacas are in good hands - ours and those of an experienced camelid veterinarian.  Not to mention they are under the ever-watchful eye of Fritz, our Great Pyrenees guard dog who lives with our alpacas 24 hours a day.  Ours is a safe guarded environment.  Your alpacas will be cared for by Bill or Juanita, not by a farm manager.  The alpacas at Ridgeview Farm have lots of room to run or roam.  Camelid experts will tell you that one of the most serious problems within the alpaca industry is overcrowding - in the barn, in the pasture, and at the feeding stations.  Visitors to Ridgeview Farm frequently comment on how contented and happy our alpacas seem compared to alpacas they've seen at other farms.

Financing, Boarding, and Delivery.  We can discuss any or all of these and make them a part of the deal.  Terms of financing? You tell us what works for you.  Our boarding rates are some of the lowest in the industry and include everything except insurance, shearing, a nominal birthing fee, and extraordinary veterinary expenses. (Some farms will charge for each deworming, a handler's fee, etc. in addition to a daily rate.)  Delivery cost is based on where, when and how many but has never been a problem and can often be included as a part of the deal.

Experienced.  With over 22 years of experience in the fiber animal industry, we can advise our alpaca customers knowledgeably on fiber and conformation, breeding, and marketing.

Involved. We remain  involved in the alpaca industry on both the national and regional levels, previously serving as director and/or officer of various industry organizations. (See About Us.) We are dedicated to the success of this industry.  Our buyers' success is our success.