Basic Alpaca 101 Education Class 

 

This class is highly recommended for novices who are looking at purchase or alpaca or have just

recently purchased, or “inherited” and seeking to improve their knowledge.

Up to 4 people. Held any time of the year at our farm. Class is speaking lecture and Q&A. 

 

• Learn about the alpaca, the breeds, requirements and basic care before purchasing an alpaca

• Learn about their health needs and on-ongoing costs of this

• Learn about flee and fight responses in alpaca 

• Learn about where alpacas come from and how this impacts their behavior now

• Work through your future goals for owning alpaca and what your needs are

• Take away Booklet provided.

Price is $40 per person for a 1 ½ hours session, bookings essential. 

​

Management and Care of Alpaca 102 Education Class

 

Following on from the class above, this class is recommended for those whom which to expand their knowledge and learn more about how to management their alpaca and ongoing care. Up to 4 people. Held any time of the year at my farm. Class is speaking lecture and Q&A with outside work and hands on, so bring gumboots (clean) and warm clothing/wet weather gear).

 

• Learn how to manage your alpaca on farm and work with them

• Learn how to handle your alpaca in a safe environment 

• Gain confidence in working with alpaca 

• Learn about pasture management and how to plan your farm or block effectively to suit alpaca

• Learn about different types of pasture and dietary needs of alpaca in comparison to other livestock

• Learn how to minimize internal and external parasite/worm burdens, and planning for management of this 

• Learn how to Body score your alpacas and do health checks

• Learn how to toe clip and bonnet trim your alpacas

• Take away Booklet provided

Price is $45 per person for 2 hour session, bookings essential.

 

Halter Training Class - for alpacas

 

​For those whom which to have their alpacas halter trained or “re-educated” to the halter, we offer the following service: 

I will visit your farm X 3 for 30 minute halter training sessions. This involves working with the alpaca and yourself in order

to train the alpaca in the following:

​

• Acceptance of halter and lead

• Walk to lead 

• Standing and acceptance of activity for management and care

• Presenting and leading alpaca for show ring (if required) 

• Ongoing advice for continuation for owner – owner commitment to do so is critical to halter training

• Fitting a halter correctly and sizing

 

Requirements: Alpaca must be under 2 years of age preferably, but if older, can visit and ascertain the alpaca’s ability and acceptance of training. Cria are not halter trained until at least over 4 months of age. Alpaca must be penned prior to visit, in a secure pen area. 

I supply temporary halters and leads if need be, but prefer before session 2 it is recommended the owner has purchased their own so that the halter can be correctly fitted. I recommend purchasing off Halter Plus for your alpaca gear as they have variety of sizes specially designed for alpaca.

​

Price is $50 per person for 30 minute sessions X 3 plus one-off travel costs of $40 to travel to farm. Total $80.00 for total of 3 sessions, if more sessions are deemed required this is extra.

Discount if more than one alpaca to be trained or if travel is less than 30 minutes.

 

Halter training Class – for owners

​

I run small classes (up to 4 people) on request for the training and education of new owners in how to halter train your alpaca/s yourself.

Bookings are essential.  You will attend 4 sessions over a two week period.

Held usually around our weaning time (April-June) working hands on with young alpaca around 5-6 months of age and progressing up to older already halter trained alpaca (1-2 years) if required. 

If class is required at different time of the year, you will work only with a young 1-2 year old alpaca

 

You will learn the following:

• Learn how to fit a halter and the correct way to do so

• How to put a halter on – methods and tips

• How to catch and hold an alpaca in a safe and effective manner

• How to train to lead and to walk working with the alpaca not against it

• Gain confidence in handling and working with an alpaca

• Learn about the flee and fight defenses of an alpaca and how to work with this

 

Price is $80 per person, for 3 class sessions, each session is 1 hour. Held at our farm outside so bring gumboots (cleaned) and warm clothing, wet weather gear also may be required. Full payment required to book.

​

​

Fibre Classes

 

All Classes can be made up of 1 person up to 4 max 

All materials are provided and you take home the item you have made.

I provide short ten-minute tea/coffee break for you in all these classes.

Bookings essential, can be any time during the day. Evenings during daylight savings only. 

 

 

Basic Felting 101 & 102

 

You will be making a square piece of art felt (101) as a décor item or a 

Narrow Basic Scarf (102)

In this class, you will learn the following:

 

• Basic principles of felting and working with natural fibre

• How to lay out fibre for felting

• How to lay out fibre for a decoration

• Wet Felting method for making felt

• Tips and methods of basic felting with alpaca and other fibre

 

Price is $60 per person for 2 - 2 1/2 hours

 

Nuno Felting 101

 

You will be making a narrow scarf, which you can take home

Following on from above, this class will teach you the basic nuno felting skills

 

• How to lay out fibre onto fabric for felting

• How to wet nuno felt

• How to layer and decorate your scarf

• Tips and methods for working with alpaca and other fibre

 

Price is $80 per person for 2 -3 hours

 

Felting with resists 101

 

You will make a one piece felt bowl or simple handbag shape

Need to complete Basic Felting 101 or 102 firstly before this class so you understand how to lay out fibre

 

• You will learn how to lay out onto a resist, a plastic form

• How to shape your form, into a 3D one piece

• How to remove your felt from resist 

• How to prepare the edges of your felted piece 

• How to finish the item and end felt process

 

Price is $60 per person for 2- 3 hours

This can be followed up with Felting with resists 102 Intermediate Class $100 for 2 sessions - making a vest

 

Felting soap 

 

You will make a felted covered soap, using basic wet felting skills. You do not need to complete Basic Felting 101 first.

• You will learn how to lay out the fibre onto soap

• How to wet felt the fibre onto the soap 

• How to add decorations in the final step

• How to finish off the felted soap

 

Price is $50 per person for 1 - 1 1/2 hour. 

 

 

Skirting Alpaca Fibre Class

 

Working with your own Alpaca Fleece, either Huacaya or Suri to teach you to correctly skirt a fleece for end use. Class is 1 on 1 tutoring, but I can take 2, if partners/owners to teach at same time.

 

In this class, you will learn how to

 

• How to roll and prepare your fleece for storage

• Tips on making a fleece table

• Recognise the brisket, legs, belly, neck and how to separate these from the desired blanket

• How to recognize the blanket area 

• Removal of secondary cuts ie shot ends from the desired blanket

• How to remove Vegetable matter ie VM which is hay, grass, seeds etc that contaminate the fleece

• How to recognize tenderness and other unwanted traits such as colour contamination

• Working through your fleece with tutor so that you should have a fully skirted fleece

 

The aim is to produce at the end a fully skirted fleece that can be used for commercial purposes, for selling to a fibre pool, for felting or carding. 

 

Price is $30 per hour. Can take 1 to 2 hours, depending on the fleece. Allow for 2 hours in total

​

Note:

This is not a class on how to skirt an alpaca fleece for show judging. That is a different and more time-consuming method. If you wish to be taught how to skirt a fleece for showing, this can be arranged on request to show the method BUT I am unable to do this for you if you wish to then go on to show the fleece. Showing a fleece, the fleece is judged out of 100 points on the fleece and then deductions up to 15 points, so how well it is skirted is taken into account when a judge calculations the final points awarded.

 

 

 

​

 

​