Hi, I'm Aikem, and I'm Olivia, and today we're at Bookmark Alpacas and we're excited to learn all things alpacas.

(music) (music) Hi.

Welcome.

I'm Candy.

I'm going to show you the alpacas.

I'm assuming that's why you're here but I want to show you everything and you can gravitate toward whatever you like the most.

And we'll stay there as long as you want.

In my mind I know what I want to show you.

But this is your tour.

Okay.

Alright.

We're going to start down this way and meet some little goats first.

Okay!

Ooh exciting!

(music) So these are all miniature goats.

A full size goa would be able to jump over this.

Really?

So I'm going to give you a treat.

You don't want it to fall out of your hand.

So make a little bit of a bowl.

And because their mouth is their blind spot you're going to not be afraid.

Just put it right there.

Good.

Perfect.

(laughing) (music) Feel this.

This is alpaca.

Okay.

Soft?

Yeah it is soft.

Yeah.

And then this is wool.

This is from a sheep we're going to meet later.

Okay.

So feel that and really get your hand in there.

Do people prefer different types of wool over the other?

Well, alpaca is the best.

Do you feel that kind of greasiness?

Yeah.

That's lanolin.

And that one processed can make some people itchy.

Oh.

So I can tell you that this is an adult female.

And I can tell you exactly this is a two year old male by looking at their bone structure.

So first of all all the all peckers have a bony palate up here.

Teeth only on the bottom in the front but then their molars are in the back.

Okay.

Look at the teeth on the side how sharp they are.

These are called fighting teeth.

So take a look at this.

This one only has two because this is a young boy at two years old, they get their first teeth.

And at shearing time we cut the tips off because the boys play pretty rough.

(music) So this is Donny.

He's a miniature donkey.

They're from the desert originally.

That's why he's got the long ears.

It helps keep him cool.

He's pretty calm.

Yeah.

Very chill.

Got him?

Yeah, I think so.

Have you ever held a sheep before?

I've not.

There you go.

(sheep noises) This one's a little boy.

Oh.

And if you feel this head, you can feel the the horns coming through already.

Oh, wow.

Already?

Yeah.

Oh, yeah.

You can.

Wow.

(music) Im going to go to the babies.

We're here with Macy.

So can you tell us the inside scoop of what really happens behind the scenes?

(sheep noises) (sheep noises) Oh, really?

Which one do you like better?

Alpacas or sheep?

(sheep noises) (laughing) Hi.

Come here.

Im trying to think of other questions.

So what are your thoughts on Donny?

Seems like you don't like him.

How about you What's your favorite WKAR show?

(sheep noises) (sheep noises) That's a good one.

That's a good one.

What's your favorite animal on the farm?

(sheep noises) Yeah?

That's pretty good pretty good.

(sheep noises) (music) What's the difference between a llama and alpaca?

A lot of people ask me that.

So I have this picture showing you the difference.

This is alpaca.

This is a llama.

llamas are about this tall.

And they have banana shaped ears.

So they curve and they almost touch on the top.

Whereas the alpaca have more like kitty cat ears.

Little pointed ears.

Also the llama has a longer face whereas the alpacas have more of a rounded face.

llamas can be used for pack animals.

Alpacas are used for their fleece only.

So let's go take a look.

Alright.

How many alpacas are there out here?

Sixteen.

Okay.

Ready?

Yes.

Alright.

So these are all the girls alpacas.

Some of them will come up to you and some of them wont.

(wind) They're being a little skittish.

Alright Im going to try to call them in with our grain.

Paca.

Here they come.

Paca.

Paca.

Come on baby.

Paca.

Behind you there thats Sydney.

Oh, hi.

She's pretty friendly and she likes treats.

There you go.

Yeah.

You can both get close, (music) She's probably one of the older ones here.

They live to be about twenty.

Actually, Sydney's eighteen this year.

Oh, wow.

You can see a little bit of gray in her face.

You can also see Suri in Huacaya.

Remember the Suri have the long hair that hangs down and then Huacaya have their hair sticking up like this.

Oh yeah.

And some of them are shorter.

Doesn't mean necessarily they're younger.

Okay.

Just, you know, like some people are taller, some are shorter.

Yeah.

Same without Alpacas too.

So they'll spend their day ou here eating grass, sunbathing.

And then as i starts to get evening they go up towards the barn.

See they're done with us.

Bye bye.

(music) Thanks for joining us.

We had a great tim getting to know all the animals.

And my personal favorite Donny.

I really like the baby lambs.

See us next time.

Bye.

(music)