Alpaca Facts
Alpacas are related to llamas, which are domesticated versions of the guanaco - Llamas are mostly used as pack animals and alpacas for their wool - Alpaca fur incredibly soft and does not retain water. In fact, it's the second strongest animal fibre after mohair - Llamas and alpacas can breed, and their babies are called huarizo - Around 6000 years ago the Andean people started to domesticate alpacas - There are two kinds of alpaca, the Huacaya and the Suri - Alpacas, native to the Andes, are happy living at altitudes up to 4800 metres - 99% of the world's alpacas still live in South America.
Alpacas are highly sociable, gentle and curious- Alpacas make really good pets and can be trained fairly easily - Alpacas are herd animals and don't like to be alone. When their own kind aren't around they like to live with llamas, goats and sheep - The members of an alpaca herd will all use the same loo rather than pooping randomly. This helps prevent diseases from spreading.
It's funny to see female alpacas queuing for the loo in a line, they like to "go" together!
Alpacas come in 22 colours, from a deep blue-black through browns and tans to white - Alpacas don't have teeth in the top-front of their mouths, which is why they sometimes look a bit goofy.