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When we bought our property, the ad said, "Horses OK". Being city folks, we thought that would be nice, but we really wanted a pool. We soon realized that a pool is just an expensive hole in the ground, so we decided to find another use for our land.
Our alpaca adventure started when I wanted to get a pet, but Rich didn’t want the indoor kind that sheds fur. A friend brought me an alpaca brochure from the county fair. After looking it over, I got interested in the furry critters. I said to Rich, "What about alpacas?" to which he replied, "Al- - what?" He wasn’t totally against the idea, and wanted to find out more about them, so we began visiting alpaca ranches.
At the first ranch he was just warming up to the idea. He thought they were cute and all, but probably a lot of work (which he didn’t want anything to do with). We left the ranch and discussed the various responsibilities we (I) would have if we were to actually realize this pursuit. (I think he was really hoping that I would forget about the idea as soon as possible.) We learned that alpacas were a good investment and we both wanted a home-based business, so we continued looking at other ranches. As luck would have it, at the second ranch we saw a cria (baby alpaca) that was born that morning. Rich petted the little gray girl and said it was just like reaching into a cloud. At that moment we were both hooked.
Before we knew it we were on our way to purchasing our first alpacas by first clearing the brush and planning for fencing. We cleared the land just in time as only a few weeks later the Viejas fire roared through Alpine within a couple of miles of our house!
We
used the standard 2x4 no climb with redwood posts for the interior fence and 6' chain link for the exterior fence.
It's a good thing that alpacas don't challenge fences, although Tandi has tried to sneak underneath! We have since blocked all her possible escape routes (save for going over the top or leaving the gate open).
It's really nice when a couple of your friends just
show up out of the blue to help you run fencing. Dave and Wendy, you
guys rock! We would probably still be stringing the fence if it weren't
for them.
Dave designed a simple tool to stretch the wire. Two four-foot pieces of angle iron, four large c-clamp vise grips, and a piece of cable. That, a come-along and our truck, and we were fencin' fools. Thanks again, Dave, for your ingenuity.
In
December 2001 we built a shelter for the winter rains (which never came).
Alpine has very mild winters and a barn is not needed because the alpacas prefer
to be outside. They love the openness the shelter provides as well as relief
from the sun on hot days.
We built this shelter with a little help getting started from a friend with construction experience; the rest was amazingly easy. It survived a 90 mph Santa Ana windstorm two months later.
We thought that once we finished the fences, gates, and shelter our ranch would be complete; however, we now realize that the ranch is a perpetual work in progress.
Alpaca Country Ranch
Karen and Rich Gribi
2909 North Victoria Drive
Alpine, CA 91901-3672
619-659-5782
This page was last updated on 09/26/10