Who's Your Daddy?

The owners of registered alpacas know without a doubt which animals are a cria's dad (sire) and mom (dam). Alpacas cannot be registered without verification of parentage. No genetic shenanigans in the world of alpaca breeding!

On Friday, my friend Kristin will visit. We plan to pull blood from the three crias born on Stormwind Farm for the DNA cards that must be submitted to the registry. There are several options on how to get the few drops of blood needed to test for parentage as well as for Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (BVDV). Kristin has perfected the technique where blood is drawn from the tail. I will hold the cria securely while my friend will pull blood with a syringe.

There is absolutely no possibility that one of my crias will test positive for BVDV. Why do I opt to have them tested for the virus? The alpaca community has worked very hard to eradicate the virus, but—due to the ignorance and foolishness of a few breeders—BVDV is still around. I would never purchase an alpaca without a negative BVDV PCR test. It is only fair that I offer tested alpacas for sale. The cost for registration/testing is currently $80. That's not cheap, but well worth paying. The fee to process the paperwork is reduced if done over the computer. The staff at Alpaca Registry Inc. is first class. A live "flesh and blood" person answers the phone within seconds of dialing the number. Amazing... and very much appreciated by those of us who prefer to do business the old-fashioned way.