Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp. Facebook Twitter Email. They also protect broods of hens or rafters of turkeys and other poultry.
Farming Newsletter Get the latest farming news and advice every Tuesday and Thursday. Dr Tony Holohan: We're socialising at a level we can't sustain. Frightening images show boy jumping between storey apartment blocks.
Lightning-fast grandmother catches falling baby. I have spoken to many people who believe two llamas are better. Obviously a llama can only be in one place at a time, and depending on the size of the lambing mob s , the topography and the size of the paddock, more than one llama may be a better option. Once lambing is complete in one mob of ewes, llamas will readily accept responsibility for a new flock. How many lambs do you think you lose to foxes per annum? How many more might you be losing to foxes?
What is the value of a weaning lamb? There are unseen costs too, such as slower growth rates due to stress by intruders. Pet, show or performance geldings or males as well as breeding females are of course considerably more expensive. Alpacas will also act as guardians, however their smaller stature, slower speed, heavier fleece and woolly face and small ears, makes them not as effective as the larger llama. His height of around 2 metres makes him an ideal fox-sighting sentry.
At — kg, he is three or four times heavier than the alpaca thus posing a much greater threat to a fox. The more athletic llama has greater speed and stamina, which he uses to great advantage to relentlessly pursue invaders. The alpaca is a cheaper alternative, but not as effective as the llama. In USA many alpaca farmers keep a llama to protect their alpacas from coyotes! The llama is the elite fox chaser.
They must be trained and handled correctly if they are to guard lambs. Q Is there a risk of fibre cross contamination? There is very little risk, as alpacas do not shed their fleeces. Alpacas do not come into physical contact with sheep unless forced to in yards and even then the risk is less than from dogs during yard work. However to minimise the risk alpacas should only be run with sheep during the lambing season and they can be removed a couple of days after the last lamb is born and at least 8 weeks before shearing.
Most farmers do not shear their ewes with young lambs at foot to prevent mismothering. When not needed as guardians they should be kept in a group of at least two in a paddock near the homestead where they get accustomed to farm dogs and keep the foxes away from the chook yard. With occasional feeding they will feed out of your hand and be easy to handle. Q How long do they live? In South America they live til about years.
So in Australia we should be able to expect at least 15 years of active service as guardians. Their teeth continue to grow to replace wear.
Q How are they shorn? This is best done annually after the sheep are shorn to avoid any risk of fibre contamination. They can be restrained easily on their side by leaning on their neck with another person holding the rear legs in a similar way that calves used to be branded. If many are being shorn it may be easier to use ropes with slipknots positioned just above the pasterns near each foot. The alpaca can then be stretched preferably with each pair of legs separated by a 45cm 10cm by 5cm thick board.
They can be shorn with conventional shearing equipment but a variable speed hand piece with a flexible cord is more convenient for shearing large numbers. Q How much do they cost? Sexually active male alpacas have been seen mating with unjoined ewes and nannies but no sheepacas have been born so far!! There aren't any gopacas yet either!! About the Author. John and Julie Lawrie and their family have been involved with alpacas in Australia for more than 15 years.
We have been and are still very much involved in Association activities. A popular footpath runs through the field and signs have been erected to warn dog walkers to keep dogs on leads when walking through the field. Ultimately this affects my job and jobs for other young people in sheep farming. Sign in.
0コメント