Thursday, August 21, 2008

The Alpaca Registry (ARI)

Sent in the bloodcard to ARI for this little angel today. All alpaca breeding stock are registered with the Alpaca Registry. (or should I say alpaca breeding stock should be) Each alpaca is DNA bloodtyped before they are registered. This assures everyone that when we say a certain alpaca is this one's sire, that information has been verified through DNA. On our farm we do handbreeding, which means that we put a male and a female together alone in a pen and observe the breeding. This helps us know when to expect a cria (baby alpaca), and it can help alert us to any problems or unusual behavior that might need to be noted. To send in the blood we draw a little, put it on a bloodcard designed for ARI, and mail it in. We should have her completed registration in a few weeks, hopefully in time to enter her in some Fall alpaca shows.

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