Winter - Classical Mileend Alpacas

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What exactly are we showing when our alpacas parade around a ring? Obviously we are showing the animals to the judge to learn about the conformation and fl eece so that we may improve our breeding programmes. We are actually showing a lot more than that! We are also showing the uninitiated how much fun it is to work with an alpaca, how interesting the process of breeding fl eece animals is and how in the midst of a competition we are good sports. In short, we are also showing future alpaca owners our animals and our industry. Depending on how it is done we could be showing off our huggable investment or a right rodeo. Much time and effort is expended getting the general public to our shows. You have to wonder what John Q must be thinking when alpacas are upended and tackled for nothing more complicated than a look at their fl eece. It is clearly in the long-term interest of the alpaca industry for the animals to be shown to the judge and to the public to their best advantage. We want the 40 Alpaca World Magazine Winter 2004/05 Don’t let the fear of unruly alpaca behaviour put you off from entering some shows this season. In the fi rst of two instalments Marty McGee talks us through the fundamentals of getting the best out of man and beast that even some of the most experienced handlers can sometimes overlook. public to see beautiful animals that behave beautifully. In my opinion there is more to successful showing than good preparation at home. Showing an alpaca off requires the cooperation of not only the animal but the entire show team including judges, ring stewards, show organisers and exhibitors. Animals that are normally very tractable can be made to behave badly by well intentioned but uninformed ring stewards and a lack of coordination between handler, steward and judge. Animals, like people, only have so much tolerance – using it all up before the show starts is a recipe for bad alpaca and human behaviour. When it comes to the issue of shows I am in a unique position – I don’t own alpacas or show them but I do spend my professional life helping people, many of whom are new to the camelid industry, learn to handle their animals. I don’t want to win, I want everyone, two and four-legged, to win. When it comes to the show ring I am behind the scenes, I hear the enthusiasm and excitement; I also hear the frustration, disappointment and disillusionment. Showing is a choice. Enter the ring and you have made an agreement to abide by both the ring procedures and the decision of that particular judge. When you choose to take your alpaca to a show it will necessarily involve some boredom, annoyance and some new sights and sounds – nothing unreasonable. There is no point in making it more diffi cult that it needs to be. I have seen alpacas that are miserable at a show and ensure that their owners are too. It is my observation that with very little effort we could make the process of getting ready to show and the act of showing much easier for all concerned. I offer this article as food for thought for judges, ring stewards organisers and exhibitors. This article is organised into two parts. Part One; suggestions for handlers, ring stewards, judges and organisers. Part Two; getting your alpaca ready to show, problem solving, retraining animals who have become impossible to show. There are certain general principals of animal handling that determine the likely behaviour of an alpaca in any given circumstance, I call these principals the Laws of Camelidynamics. I have organised this article using these laws and how knowledge of them can be used to help with the specifi c issues faced in showing.
LAW OF CAMELIDYNAMICS: When an alpaca is afraid it wants to run away. When prevented from running it will fi ght. Alpacas can think but they are largely creatures of instinct, particularly when they fi nd themselves in new and strange situations – like a show. Instinctive responses to danger are the fl ight, fi ght and freeze responses. The alpaca’s fi rst response to danger is the fl ight response and is the most heavily relied upon. When confronted with something frightening an alpaca wants to run away from it. Prevent the alpaca from running away and he will have no choice but to fi ght. Techniques that help to make your alpaca feel safe with you and safe in his environment will reduce if not eliminate unpredictable instinctive behaviours. LAW OF CAMELIDYNAMICS: Containment works better than restraint for controlling the fl ight response. ❍ Containment: Limiting the space in which the animal can move. ❍ Restraint: Physically holding or tying an animal with the aim of preventing movement. Instinctive responses are muted when animals are worked in a container. The smaller the container the more muted the response. Nine by nine or ten by ten foot spaces work fabulously for most show chores and are always handy since they are the same kind of panels used to house the animals at the show. Allowing movement inside a small container offers the alpaca the opportunity to realise that the situation is not dangerous and begin to relax. When alpacas are restrained they are left with the fi ght or freeze response to danger or some unpredictable combination of both. When we know that many animals are going to be at least a bit frightened and unsure of themselves for both the vet check and the colour check and we can plan in advance to provide a container. The animals will be more cooperative about both of these pre-show chores inside a pen and the time spent opening a gate and walking an animal into the catch pen will be more than made up for with more cooperative animals. It is always a smart idea to minimise opportunities for negative behaviour. If your alpaca can practice standing quietly in a catch pen for both the vet check and the colour check, he has just had two opportunities to learn how to stand when handled. This practice will defi nitely help in the show ring when you don’t have the luxury of a catch pen. In the show ring judges have different ways of checking the fl eece (more on this later) if the colour checker mimics the method of fl eece checking that the judge will use, the process can serve as a bit of a dress rehearsal for the fl eece check in the show ring. Colour checking is informal and doesn’t happen with an audience; perhaps exhibitors with diffi cult animals could be encouraged to bring a bit of grain with them to help the alpaca remain calm. In any case setting up both the colour check and vet check so that it is easy for the animal lays a good foundation for the show ring. LAW OF CAMELIDYNAMICS: Animal feel safer and are less likely to fi ght when they are allowed to have some distance from humans and when they are standing in balance. My personal preference for checking fl eece is to stand on the left side of the animal and reach over the back checking the fl eece on the animal’s right side. When the alpacas moves it will be to move away from the contact with my hands and move into my body. In this way I can keep the animal in balance between my hands and my body. If the animal kicks it will likely be on the side that I am checking – the side away from my body; that is always a good thing! Checking fl eece on the same side of the animal you stand on does not give you the opportunity to control movement between your hands and your body. The animal moves away from the contact with your hands and also moves away from you. This means using some sort of restraint unless of course you are in a catch pen. Colour checkers who prefer to check fl eece on the same side they stand on can use a side of the catch pen as the other boundary. Simply line the alpaca up parallel to one of the four panels (the handler behaves as described below regardless of which method the checker employs.) The following is the procedure for checking fl eece inside a catch pen with one handler and the colour checker standing on the left checking on the right. (Later in this article I will offer tips for fl eece checking in the show ring without a catch pen.) The handler stands the animal in a corner with the body parallel to a panel (see title photo). The handler stands on the animal’s left slightly ahead of the eye about a foot and a half away from the alpaca, with the right hand on the lead rope very close to the halter and the fi ngers of the left hand resting lightly on the neck (see photo below). The colour checker stands on the left and leans over the body to check fl eece on the animal’s right side (see photo) The colour checker is safer and can control the movement of the body more easily when standing close to the alpaca. It is much better to part the fl eece with a very defi nite motion using the sides of the hands or by pushing the fi ngertips into the fl eece and opening the fi ngers (see photos below). Gently sorting through the fi bre tickles and will usually provoke a negative reaction. The handler uses the lead rope to attempt to keep the animal’s weight evenly distributed over both front feet. The handler does not use the lead rope to hold the animal back or hold him still. With the handler’s hands positioned as described above he can move the balance to the animal’s right or left and can also feel the alpaca’s intention to move with the fi ngers of your left hand on the neck. Should the animal begin to fuss and indicate a desire to move the handler allows the animal to move up to the next corner and the checker follows. Balancing an animal involves using intermittent signals on the lead to shift the weight in the desired direction followed by a release when the animal comes into balance. When I use the word release I do not mean letting go of the lead rope or loosening your connection with the animal – only releasing pressure on the head. Steady pressure on the lead rope will push the panic button and cause the alpaca to begin to fi ght. With a few minor changes your job as the handler will be the same in the show ring. The trick to fl eece checking in the show ring without a catch pen is to build one with people. Alpacas primarily think of escape as a forward event. They go where they can see. Since you have a lead rope on the alpaca and the ability to steer, you can contain your alpaca quite handily with three people, the judge the ring steward and the handler. Let’s assume that the judge wants to check fl eece in the way I described earlier – that is, on the right by standing on the left and reaching over the back.* In this case the judge is going to provide the left side of the catch pen. The ring Alpaca World Magazine Autumn 2004/05 41
Page 1 and 2: M A G A Z I N E Winter 2004/05 £4.
Page 3 and 4: Issue 12 Winter 2004/05 ISSN 1477-7
Page 5 and 6: ��
Page 7 and 8: DOGS ATTACK AGAIN Dear Editor, Furt
Page 9 and 10: Classical MileEnd Alpacas Outstandi
Page 11 and 12: Not all breeders will be looking fo
Page 13 and 14: BOZEDOWN WEST at WESTWAYS ALPACAS N
Page 15 and 16: Continued on page 18 Alpaca World M
Page 18: Special Feature Boys and how to cho
Page 21 and 22: mating have been reported as low (S
Page 25 and 26: Alpaca World Magazine Autumn 2004/0
Page 27 and 28: liaise with the breeders, arrange t
Page 29 and 30: Search or Advertise Alpacas for Sal
Page 31 and 32: “The highly decorative costumes t
Page 33 and 34: to colonise and breakdown plant mat
Page 35 and 36: 40% NDF, or 25% CF, of which 25% is
Page 37 and 38: THE FEED FOR SHOW CHAMPIONS Bob Raw
Page 39: defecate. The list is long, the mes
Page 45 and 46: One point worth mentioning is that
Page 47 and 48: Violet is a two-year-old alpaca wit
Page 51 and 52: crinkly type fl eece with high curv
Page 53 and 54: smiling face. The AOBA infomercial
Page 59 and 60: Wessex Rural Alianza Don Pepe Plant

Winter - Classical Mileend Alpacas

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