Cindy’s Alpaca Blog

It’s late June in Florida and the heat index has climbed to over 100 degrees.  How are our alpacas coping?  Believe it or not - they cope with the heat better than I do on most days.  I usually go out in the afternoons and wet down their bellies - a treat much like running through the sprinklers used to be when we were kids.  They love this cooling down with the water hose so much that before you know it you’ll have 8 or 10 alpacas lined up waiting for their turn at the hose!  We wait to feed hay until late in the day so that the sun has gotten past its most punishing phase before the alpacas gather up around the hay bins.  But for the most part, alpacas know how to “chill out” on a hot day by staking out a resting place in front of fan, and just laying around in little clumps of alpaca bodies, relaxing.  I often wish that we had retained the tradition of siesta on hot summer days ourselves!  But the working world doesn’t stop - we just crank down the ac and keep going.

We do try to keep activity at a minimum for our animals during these hot days.  We avoid mid-summer breedings and birthings.  We limit herd health days to the absolutely necessary check-ups and fecal testings.  And we just enjoy hanging in the barn with the animals and watching them relax.  That is what summer is all about right?  So far we have been fortunate, and have not had any signs of heat stress.  With a little care and planning alpacas can thrive in the Florida climate - just take a look at our animals!