Pendle Alpacas

Back in April, our farm population doubled in size with the addition of thirteen baby chicks! In keeping with our farm's aesthetic, we chose breeds of chickens that are extra fluffy and feather-footed. We have seven mottled cochins, two black silkies, two mille fleur bearded d'uccles, one buff brahma bantam, and one porcelain Belgian bearded d'uccle. They were straight run, mail-ordered chicks, so we had no idea what ratio of males to female we would receive. Now at seven weeks, we have a pretty good idea: 5 roosters and 8 hens. One of our mottled cochins just a few days old! We've had a great time watching them grow and coming up with names for each one. Tiny babies! There were difficult to tell apart when they were little, but the mottled cochin with the black beak is Gareth, the lightest colored mottled cochin is Emerson, the black silkie standing is  Kylo Hen, and the black silkie sitting is Rosebud. The roosters are:           Bertie Roost

Last Wednesday, our alpacas had their "favorite" day of the year: shearing day. Alpacas are only sheared once a year in the spring, and while it can be a little stressful, for their health it is a necessity. Especially since it got up to 87 degrees the day after shearing: we know they wouldn't want to be wearing their heavy winter coats for that! Micah Before Shearing Micah After Shearing Smudge Before Shearing Smudge After Shearing. Rio's a little confused. Our boys each had about 4 inches of fleece on them. It's amazing how much they change when it all comes off! Even the alpacas can't recognize each other at first. Rio Before Shearing Rio After Shearing and feeling a little sorry for himself Speed Bump Before Shearing Speed Bump After Shearing We have processed most of our fleece from 2017, but now we have a whole new mountain

Pendle Alpacas will be at several events in North Carolina and Virginia in the coming months. Check out our events page for more details on locations and times. We hope to see you at one of these events!