Welcome to our blog about life with six alpaca "fiber boys" in the Colorado foothills! We post once a week, usually on the weekend, when life slows down to sweet, slow dance. ~ Gib & Lisa

The Pacas

Above: Ralphie
All of our alpacas are "fiber boys," which means their only jobs are to grow fleece, and to look cute!  Since I promised my husband that I would *someday* write a children's book about alpacas to help pay for their care, they are all named after children's book characters or authors. 









Ralphie completed our "six pack" in November, 2010. As the littlest alpaca, he has the biggest attitude ~ he makes sure he gets his fair share of the food.  Ralphie likes to "help" us do the chores, which is why everything takes longer now.





Above: Ben
Boxcar Ben tries to bully the other boys into letting him have their hay, but they stand up to him (which isn't easy, because he's at least a head taller than the rest of them).  Since his guerilla tactics don't work, Ben grabs a HUGE mouthful of hay and scarfs it down as fast as he can.  Maybe we should have named him "Piglet"...


























Above: EB


E.B. White (or EB, for short) isn't a patient boy ~ his favorite trick is to stare at you over the door, pawing and rearing until you feed him.  He's actually our sweetest alpaca, but you'd never know it at feeding time!












 


Above: Jake














Jake Drake is our lookout man ~ he'll let out a high-pitched hum anytime dangers lurks.  Of course, in Jake's world, "danger" includes mule deer, bull elk (he doesn't care about the cows), stray dogs, butterflies and wind.















Above: George


Guess which one is Curious George?  He's our only Suri alpaca, which means his fleece grows in spirals like dreadlocks, rather than in overall fuzz like a teddy bear. George is an *in-your-face* (literally) kind of guy.




























Above: Chocolate (with his buddy Lois)
We saved the best for last, just like dessert!  Chocolate Charlie loves to give kisses, and check out your hair.  Chocolate charmed our hearts in 2003, and we've been alpaca slaves owners ever since.