Wooly times at alpaca
farm
Furry friends from Peru
July 2, 2010, The Daily Press
At Dream Acres the livestock grazes lazily about, going about
their day without a care in the world.
But Dream Acres isn't your average farm.
While you will find chickens, there are no cows and horses roaming the
grounds, but an animal usually found deep in Peru.
Gary and Jo-Anne Burton started raising alpacas two summers ago, finally
fulfilling Jo-Anne's dream of being a farmer. What started with nine of the
llama-like creatures has grown to include 19.
The Burtons
purchased their farm, just west of Matheson in 2006, and after fixing up the
area to house the animals, purchased their first nine males in July 2008.
"We were living out of the country and I saw an ad in a magazine,"
Jo-Anne Burton said. "I can watch them all day, they are so calming.
"They are all different animals, with their different
personalities."
While alpacas are known to be eaten in their native South America, the Burtons raise their herd
strictly for fiber. They are only one of two area alpaca farms and were the
first this far north in Ontario.
"They are from Peru,
but they are found in the Andes Mountains, so the cold here doesn't really bother
them," Burton
said. "In the winter they have six to eight inches of fleece so they are
very well insulated."
The males and females, two of which recently gave birth while another two
are pregnant, are kept in different areas of the property because a female can
become pregnant at any time. Once they do, their gestation period can last more
than a year.
The animals are eaten in their native Peru, but around the North they are
raised for their fleece, a material known to be lighter and warmer than sheep's
wool, water repellent as well as hypoallergenic.
Burton
soon joined the Porcupine Handweavers and Spinners Guild to learn more about
the art of spinning and weaving the alpaca fleece and now creates everything
from winter hats and mitts to blankets and scarves.
She said it was important that everything created using her alpacas' fleece
to be made in Canada.
The guild held an open house at the Burton
farm Saturday to let people know about the art.
"This is a way to get the message out and bring back the fiber
arts," Burton
said. "People are still making things by hand.”Everything here is Canada made,
either here on the farm, by members or we ship it to Canadian mills."
Alpaca fleece is not as popular in Canada
as it is in other parts of the world, but Burton
is confident the demand is on the rise. Items made in alpaca fleece are more
expensive, but it's not only because of the small demand.
"It's expensive because of its characteristics," said Burton. "This is
really nice stuff."
The guild was founded in 1976 and today has about 25 members from the area.
President Jessie Morrish said having the alpaca farm in the area has been a
really big boost for the group.
"This is a way of making fibers like our fore fathers did and it’s a
relaxing art," she said. "It's not really popular, but it is coming
back.”Promoting it like we are today is important to get people
interested."
People can learn how to weave and spin through a 10-week course. Burton called spinning
the fleece into yarn an art, while weaving is more technical. She said both are
challenging.
The group promotes the guild at events such as Welcome to Timmins Night, as
well as the Farmer's Market and the Fall Fair, and currently meet at each
other's homes. "Our biggest issue right now is finding a home,"
Morrish said. "But as a non-profit, someone is going to have to donate the
space."
