Boot Camp in Alpaca Husbandry, Winter Session, 2014-15
Syllabus and Schedule
Instructor: Stuart White
Introduction
The llama and alpaca were domesticated from the guanaco and vicuña, respectively, about 4000 years ago in the
central Andes. Husbandry of the two domestic species subsequently diffused north and south, and by the early 16th
century the camelid culture area encompassed the mountainous regions of modern Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru and
Ecuador, plus the irrigated coastal valleys of the desert Pacific Rim. Llamas and alpacas permitted the successful
occupation of a vast area of the Andes, often too high and too dry for agriculture, but productive when occupied by
these hardy herbivores. The transformative impact of the llama and alpaca, however, was halted by the demographic
collapse of both human and camelid populations following the Spanish Conquest in 1532. Due to introduced disease
and the displacement of camelids by Old World domestic animals, by 1650 the llama and alpaca population had
dropped by 90%, associated with many local extinctions.
The demographic bottleneck was exacerbated by a loss of quality, as llamas were allowed to breed with alpacas
(producing a fertile and undesirable hybrid) and as indigenous husbandry practices were abandoned. Camelids
persisted in remote pockets away from Colonial activity, but their quality as well as their numbers continued to
decline. The camelids now grazing the Andes, with localized exceptions, are a major retreat from the genetic and
productive levels obtained after millennia of selection, culminating with the Incas. Recovering the pre-Columbian
quality of llamas and alpacas therefore becomes the major challenge for contemporary herders and indigenous
communities in the Andes.
This course will permit students to become accomplished in the principal alpaca husbandry practices through daily
work with a large alpaca herd on the Mazar Wildlife Reserve (MWR), and will place alpacas, llamas and vicuñas in
their historical and geographical contexts.
Setting for the Course
We will have access to a herd of 500 alpacas in a beautiful setting in Ecuador located between 10,000 and 12,000 feet
elevation. The landscape includes alpaca pastures, montane forest, and grassland páramos above tree line. The host
ranch is part of a private conservation area, the Mazar Wildlife Reserve (MWR), owned and operated since 1982 by
the instructor and located 50 km to the northeast of Cuenca. Various sites within the MWR, separated by walking
distances of 1-5 hours, will be used for husbandry practices.
Students will be housed in rustic cabins. Basic services (flush toilets, running water, road access) will be available at
both the páramo and lower camps, and electricity at the lower camp. Internet access will be limited to the beginning
and end of the session, during stays in urban areas. Hikes between sites that traverse forests and grasslands will be
used to discuss the conservation opportunities provided by alpaca husbandry.
Although most of the course will take place on the Mazar Wildlife Reserve, where the alpacas ranch is located, a short
field trip to central Ecuador will focus on llama husbandry by indigenous communities, and provide a unique
opportunity to view vicuñas at close range on the high páramo within the government’s Chimborazo Faunal Preserve.
For those interested, we will have the option to ascend to the climbing hut and spend a night in the shadow of Mount
Chimborazo’s glaciers.
Instructor
The instructor, Stuart White, has lived in Ecuador for 31 years and raised alpacas on the MWR since 1985 after
introducing them from Chile and Peru. He has also raised cattle, llamas and sheep. Stuart received a PhD in
Geography at the University of Wisconsin in 1981 and subsequently taught Geography at the University of New
Mexico, Albuquerque, until moving to Ecuador. In addition to raising alpacas, Stuart has spent his years in two
pursuits: First, promoting the reintroduction of this camelid to the Ecuadorian rural economy; and second, as habitat
conservation advocate, crystalized in the establishment of the Fundación Cordillera Tropical
(www.cordilleratropical.org), which he headed between 2000 and 2010. Since 2010 Stuart has been associated with
the Geography Department at the University of Vermont, where he taught during 2011-2012.
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Course Objectives
1. Understand camelid culture history in the Andes.
2. Learn the principal camelid husbandry practices: Handling and restraint, the parenteral and oral administration
of pharmaceuticals, blood drawing, castration, placement of uterine boluses, toenail clipping, incisor trimming, use of
a feeding tube, shearing, and fiber classification. Students will have the opportunity to work directly with large
numbers of alpacas and will perform all of these interventions, some many times.
3. Appreciate herd management as practiced in the tropical Andes, including the use of infrastructure, routine
preventive health care, major causes of morbidity and mortality, pasture management, and the construction of a
salubrious and productive farm space.
4. Gain a practiced eye in the evaluation of fiber quality and conformation in alpacas, and review methods for genetic
improvements. Students will learn to judge alpacas and to make on-farm selection of promising sires.
5. Know the principal parasitic and infectious diseases affecting alpacas, means of control, and treatment.
6. Observe the non-lethal methods employed to reduce predation by mountain lions and foxes, and the cost of these
interventions.
7. Focus on the reproductive cycle, birthing and support for newborn crías and alpaca dams. For the Winter Session,
we will have the opportunity to work with birthing mothers and alpaca newborns.
8. Distinguish llamas and alpacas in physical aspect, ideal types, and economic potential.
9. Evaluate the feasibility of alpaca husbandry as a tool for conservation and the protection of environmental services
in the tropical Andes.
Course Structure
This course earns 4 credits.
Class discussions on specific topics early and late in the day will be combined with sustained daily involvements with
the alpacas as detailed in the schedule below. On most days, 2 hours will be dedicated to the instructor’s
presentations, followed by discussions; and 5 hours learning husbandry techniques with the alpacas. An additional 1-2
hours will be needed to complete the day’s readings.
Students will be provided a spiral-bound volume with all required articles included, and from which readings will be
assigned.
Grading will be based on participation in discussions, mastery of husbandry techniques, a written exam, and an end-ofsession oral presentation to the class.
Readings
*Brown BW (2000) A review on reproduction in South American camelids. Animal Reproduction Science 58:
169-195
*Brush S (1982) The natural and human environment of the central Andes. Mountain Research and
Development 2: 19-38.
*Carpenter L (2003) Bacterial, viral and fungal diseases. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 446453. Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Davis G (2003) Breeding to improve fleece quality. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 545-552.
Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Ellis R (2003) Clostridium perfringens enteritis. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 454-458.
Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Fernández-Baca S (1990) Llamoids or New World Camelidae: Llama, alpaca, guanaco and vicuña. In: Payne,
WJA, An Introduction to Animal Husbandry in the Tropics, 4th edition, pp. 557-580. Longman, Essex,
England.
*Fowler M (1994) Health care of the geriatric llama and alpaca. In: Johnson L (ed), Update on Llama
Medicine, pp. 391-399. The Veterinary Clinics of North America, Food Animal Practice 10(2).
Saunders, Philadelphia.
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*Frank, EN, Hick, M, Gauna C, Lamas H, Renieri C, Antonini M (2006) Phenotypic and genetic description of
fibre traits in South American domestic camelids (llamas and alpacas). Small Ruminant Research 61:
113-129.
*Giorgi J (1990) Trematodes. In: Giorgi J, Parasitology for Veterinarians, 5th edition, pp. 103-117. Saunders,
Philadelphia.
*Hoffman E (2003a) Behavior and communication. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 33-56.
Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Hoffman E (2003b) Anatomy and conformation. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 57-82.
Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*IUCN (2013) RedBook listing for vicuñas
*Luteyn J (1999) Introduction to the páramo ecosystem. In: Luteyn, J (ed) Páramos: A checklist of plant
diversity, geographical distribution, and botanical literature. Brooklyn, New York: New York Botanical
Garden, 1-39.
*McConnel T (2003) Parasitology. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 423-426. Bonny Doon
Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Smith B. Timm K and Long P (1996) Llama and Alpaca Neonatal Care. Clay Press, Jackson, CA, pp. 1-112.
*Sponenberg DP (2003) Genetics of fiber type and coat color. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp.
523-544. Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Sumar J (1996) Reproduction in llamas and alpacas. Animal Reproduction Science 42: 405-415.
*Thedford T and Johnson L (1989) Infectious diseases of New-World Camelids (NWC). In: Johnson L (ed),
Llama Medicine, pp. 145-157 (The Veterinary Clinics of North America, Food Animal Practice 5(1).
Saunders, Philadelphia.
*Tibary A (2003a) Obstetrics and neonatology. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 387-402.
Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Tibary A (2003b) Female reproduction. In: Hoffman E., The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 351-386. Bonny
Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Tibary A (2003c) Male reproduction. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca Book, pp. 325-350. Bonny Doon
Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*Tibary A, Vaughan J (2006) Reproductive physiology and infertility in male South American camelids: A
review and clinical observations. Small Ruminant Research 61: 283-298.
*Wheeler J (2012a) Evaluación genética de las variedades de llama k’ara, suri y llamingo en Peru y Ecuador.
PowerPoint presentation at the International Camelid Conference, Arica, Chile.
*Wheeler J (2012b) South American camelids: Past, present and future. Journal of Camelid Science 5: 1-24.
*Wheeler J Russel A and Redden H (1995) Llamas and alpacas: Pre-conquest breeds and post-conquest hybrids.
Journal of Archaeological Science 22: 833-840.
*White S (2003) Sarcosystosis: A disease endemic to Andean alpacas. In: Hoffman E, The Complete Alpaca
Book, pp. 427-434. Bonny Doon Press, Santa Cruz, CA.
*White S (2013) Grass páramo as hunter-gatherer landscape. The Holocene 23 (6): 898-915.
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Schedule of Activities and Topics
Date
Friday,
Dec. 26,
2014
Saturday,
Dec. 27
AM Discussion
Course
introduction and
distribution of
class reader
Sunday,
Dec. 28
Introduction to
Sangay National
Park
Monday,
Dec. 29
(1) Predators
(2) Parasitic
diseases
Tuesday,
Dec. 30
[Preparation for
departure to lower
camp]
Wednesday,
Dec. 31
Basics of alpaca
physiology and
behavior
Infectious diseases
Thursday,
Jan. 1, 2015
Daytime activities
PM Discussion
Reading
Students fly to Guayaquil. . Students will be met at the Guayaquil airport by the
instructor or hotel personnel, and be taken by shuttle bus directly to the Grand
Hotel Guayaquil.
[Internet access]
AM visit to Malecón river park in Guayaquil.
Overland trip from Guayaquil to Cuenca. We traverse the broad coastal plain,
dominated by rice, bananas and pastures, and see Zebu cattle, then climb the
steep western face of the Andes. Light picnic lunch in the páramo grasslands of
Cajas National Park. Arrival in Cuenca (8,400’) by late-afternoon.
Night at Hostal Posada del Angel in Cuenca.
[Internet access]
Cuenca to the Mazar Wildlife Reserve (MWR) and alpaca ranch: Three hours of
mountain landscapes and exposure to sloped agricultural systems. Settle-in after
arrival, and our first encounter with the alpaca herd.
Páramo. Origin of páramo vegetation; fire management; nutritional and
husbandry considerations in páramo; watershed conservation; infrastructure
Parasitic Diseases I: Fascioliasis. Life cycle and role of swamps, infectious
necrotic hepatitis, controls
Night at páramo camp (11,300’).
Parasitic Diseases II: Sarcocystiosis. Subclinical and acute forms; life cycle,
control; using the microscope
Predators. Management practices to reduce predator losses to the puma, Andean
fox, domestic dog.
Basic infrastructure and daily routines. Pastures, peripheral fencing, corrals,
salt stations, ‘las puntas’. Help put alpacas into their night corrals.
Night at páramo camp
Orientation
Fernández-Baca, 1990
Franklin, 1982
AM: Hike or ride down through páramo and then tropical montane forest to
lower-elevation pastures (3 hours).
PM (after arrival in Pilisurcu): Pasture walk-about and observations:
Observations of normal alpaca behavior and physiological parameters:
pulse, respiration, body temperature
Alpaca anatomy: sacrifice an alpaca
Basic Husbandry I. Handling and restraint; toenail clipping; incisor trimming;
oral delivery of antiparasitic drugs; and the provision of mineralized salt.
Basic husbandry II. Parenteral administration (IM, SC, IV), taking a fecal sample;
normal and abnormal feces; castration The geriatric alpaca. Productivity,
support
Infectious diseases. Symptoms; treatments; management solutions
Invited lecture by
Patricia Espadero,
DVM
(1) Basic Andean
geography
(2) Cultural and
political
chronology of the
Andes
Brush, 1982
Luteyn, 1999
White, 2013
(1) Review of
Fascioliasis y
Sarcocystiosis
(2) Campfire:
Alpaca husbandry
as a conservation
tool in páramo
Giorgi, 1990
McConnel, 2003
Thedford and Johnson,
1989
Ellis, 2003
Carpenter, 2003
White, 2003
(1) Domestication
and diffusion of
domestic camelids
(2) Campfire
Wheeler, 2012b
New Year’s Eve
celebration in local
style
Objectives of
contemporary
husbandry
Hoffman, 2003a
Wheeler et al., 1995
Fowler, 1994
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Date
AM Discussion
Topic
Daytime activities
PM Discussion
Topic
Reading
Friday,
Jan. 2
(1) The ideal
alpaca
(2) Llama and
alpaca—
differences and
similarities
Care of dams and
crías; common
problems
Identifying the Ideal Alpaca
Fiber. Fineness, density, uniformity, crimp, sheen. Practice in estimating micron
count; use of laboratory fiber analyses
Conformation. Common conformation defects; practice in evaluating
conformation
Choice of sire. Evaluation of males for soundness and quality
Reproduction. Normal and abnormal female and male anatomy; normal birth
process; dystocias and corrections of abnormal presentations; vaginal and uterine
prolapses; use of the intrauterine bolus and prolapse retainer; feeding orphan
alpaca crías by stomach tube.
Criteria for
selection of sires
Genetic defects
Hoffman, 2003b
Sponenberg, 2003
Davis, 2003
Frank et al., 2006
Saturday,
Jan. 3
Sunday,
Jan. 4
Monday,
Jan. 5
PM: Alpaca al grill
Measuring your
reproductive
success
Tibary, 2003 (a, b, c) #s
10, 11, 12
Tibary and Vaughn,
2006 #__
Smith, Timm and Long,
1996 #__
Brown, 2000
Sumar, 1996
Day for catch-up and additional husbandry practice
[Early rise to pack
and depart for
Salinas via Cuenca]
Tuesday,
Jan. 6
Llama husbandry
in Ecuador
Wednesday,
Jan. 7
Vicuña
conservation in the
Andes
Thursday,
Jan. 8
Course summary
Friday,
Jan. 9
3 AM overland to
Guayaquil airport
Overland to Salinas. From Mazar Wildlife Reserve to Salinas (eight hours), a
town adjoining Ecuador’s “Avenue of the Volcanoes”. En route we will survey
highland agricultural systems and their intimate relationship to changing natural
environments, markets, and culture areas. Overnight at hotel in Salinas.
[Internet access]
Visit with indigenous llama and alpaca herders in Bolivar Province. Invited
lecture by Ing. Lizbeth Medina.
Night at Chimborazo climbing hut, or return to Salinas hotel PM. [Internet access]
AM: Trip to Chimborazo National Faunal Reserve to observe vicuñas in the
wild.
PM: Visit Palacio Real, an indigenous community that manages llamas.
Includes walking tour, meat processing plant and community museum. Llama
lunch (vegetarian options available). PM: Overland return to Cuenca. [Internet PM]
AM early: Visit Cuenca’s animal market
mid-AM: Preparation for oral presentations and written exam.
PM: Exam and oral presentations
[Internet access]
Student departures during the day and evening
The Ecuadorian
llamingo
Wheeler 2012a (ppt)
Vicuñas
IUCN, 2013
[En route to Cuenca:
Preparation time for
oral presentations
and exam]
End-of-course
farewell dinner
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