• Investigating - ask questions no charge to you, we love to educate, visit with folks, and generally talk about alpacas, the alpaca business, alpaca products even alpaca poop...so ask away.  Call us today.

• Ranch Visits - bring the kids, bring the camera - but please call and schedule first.  We don't charge for visits to the Double "A" Ranch.   Farmers, families, school outings, church groups, vacationers, all are welcome.

• Purchasing Animals - whether it is your first purchase or your twentieth - if you intend to keep alpacas or want to invest and agist (board) them here,  we can help you find what you are looking for.  Tell us the type, color, and bloodlines you are interested in and purchase from us or let us be your broker. 

• Training -  Handling sensitive and gentle alpacas differ from all other livestock.   If you've never worked with livestock before of if you're an experienced farmer with traditional livestock experience unless you're familiar with tending alpacas specifically you'll want to get some hands on field work. Learn how to wrangle, harness, and doctor (take temps, give shots) these gentle creatures.  Learn how to manipulate them; from pasture to pasture, into the trailer, into the chute or into the proper stall.

• Registration - All animals purchased from us will be ARI registered, DNA analyzed, and certified for your protection and peace of mind. Microchips can be implanted if requested.

• Upbreeding - to better your herd and increase their value breed to champion herdsires - we will help you locate the proper male and negotiate stud fees to suit your breed program as well as your budget.

• Sale of Fiber (with micron count and analysis) Fiber is the future of the alpaca industry We'll help you locate where and how to process and sell your fiber and even introduce you to local artisans  who make fine alpaca products right here in the U.S.A.

• Agistment - short term or long term-  Our ranch is a work in progress but the 123 acres of secluded land has 30 acres of pasture and half of that is ready for alpacas today.  We have separate barns for temporary quarantine of visiting animals or long term agistment animals till they can be integrated into the main herd.  Our hands on herd health practices along with careful attention to bio security and clean pastures make it a safe and wonderful place for your alpacas to stay.

• Stud Service -   we guarantee live births from  every breeding at our ranch.  Bring your girls here or we'll transport the macho to her.  We even offer to transport your female if she is properly insured.

• Financing -  Double "A" Ranch, LLC will custom tailor finance packages on an individual basis.  Talk to us, we're flexible and fair.

• Free agistment -(boarding) at Double "A" Ranch for up to 6 months with the purchase of any Double "A" Alpaca or brokered ARI registered breed stock animals transported to our ranch.  Owners are responsible for veterinary bills and alpaca livestock insurance.  No additional charge for regular "herd health" maintenance such as nail trimming, or "doctoring" done on premises by us. 

• Fertilizer - Alpaca beans are very low odor (practically none!) moderate nitrogen and high in other nutrients that make it a fantastic fertilizer.  No mixing or processing needed we use it "raw" on our garden and have seen the results first hand.  Ask us about Double "A" Paca Poo, prices vary depending on delivery.  Come pick up a sample pack!

• Education - We think this subject is so important that we start our service list  (Investigation) and end our service list (Education) with this item. We will  help you locate alpaca associations, seminars, universities, (known for their camelid expertise), aid in research of other reputable broker/breeders, recommend books, periodicals and generally share our growing body of  knowledge.  If  we don't know the answer to any question, we will never "fake it" we'll find out together.  There is no business, hobby, or venture that doesn't allow for growth of knowledge, exchange of ideas or change of opinions as time and experience moves forward.

We'll be glad to show you how simple and fun it is to get started today. Our focus now is to help those interested in owning "our kind" of alpacas locate and purchase them  with confidence,  and transport and tend them with care.

Q: Why Invest in Alpacas?

A: Security, Stability, Profitability, as well as the 'Cuddle Factor".

Security: 

Insure your investment.  Unlike the stock market when you invest in alpacas and tragedy strikes you are covered.  We all know what happens to your investment in the NYSE or NASDAQ if the stock you've purchased goes down or even crashes.  There  is nothing that can prepare you for the heartbreak when accident or disease claims the life of a treasured member of your herd and at that moment there is no amount of money you wouldn't give to have them back. Even when grieving practical matters are a fact of life.  Mortality and theft insurance for alpacas offer security for your financial investment  (we recommend Wilkins Livestock Insurers).  If this stock goes down at least you'll get paid.

Stability:

In a nutshell, there are 160,000 registered alpacas in North America (AOBA 2012 survey) and of those, 74,000 are males. All the breeders in North America combined are able to supply only 14% of the demand in the fashion industry for this luxurious fiber. Alpacas reproduce slowly (i.e. only one offspring per year) and many males are often gelded or sold as non-breeding pets to ensure up-breeding (breeding only to the very best males to consistently increase the quality of the next generation).

Careful, and selective up-breeding to the right bloodlines with superior phenotypes will assure the increase in value of your herd. All future offspring will increase in value. Values are expected to continue to rise until such time as demand for fiber, and the available supply, equate.

In the meantime, each female alpaca produces only one cria per year.  Demand is high while supply due to the long gestation period and single offspring is still very low.  Now you may never own, buy or sell alpacas in these astronomical price ranges but it's nice to know somebody does.  Like horses, and pure bred dogs before them there are alpacas of quality and price range for everybody.

Only a few short years ago, the highest price paid for an alpaca was $80,000. In September 2005 an animal sold for $600,000 and his brother sold for $400,000.  By 2007 1/2 share in Legacy sold for $750,000.  While individual prices have come down considerably after the financial corrections of 2008 the growth of our industry overall remains solid.  In these uncertain times more and more city dwellers desire a more self-sufficient rural lifestyle.

 

Profitability:

Compound Breeding - Maximize your return on investment. For the sake of example: starting with only seven females and two males in your first year, producing one offspring per female per year; and assuming that 80% of pregnancies lead to active, healthy births, and that all births are fifty-per-cent female, fifty-per-cent male; then, at the end of five years you should have thirty six alpacas. After ten years, that number becomes one hundred and twenty six alpacas. If they are worth an average of $10,000 each, the total value of your herd will be almost a  million dollars!

Limited Exposure Program - Recover your investment quickly and control the growth of your herd. Regardless of the size of your initial herd, retain only one female cria each year (selling the rest) until your investment has been recovered in full. Then you are quickly working on money that has been generated from your business.  Fast Recapture of Investment Program - Sell all cria, male and female, until you have recovered all of the capital invested in the business, or have repaid any loan taken out. This will ensure that you are debt free and working on income generated from the business at all times. If shortage of space or limited facilities are a problem, you may wish to continue this program or a variation of it.

There are many ways to manage your alpaca business. How YOU do it depends on your goals and expectations and your willingness to commit time and money to the project.

We can help you if you are undecided. Let our research and experience work for you. Let us help you prepare your business plan with five-year and ten-year income/expenditure projections, design and plan your working farm, or advise on nutrition and supplements specially designed to increase quality and density of fiber.

 

Fiber is what it is all about.

The aim is to start with a heavy fleece of dense fiber with good coverage and improve it with each successive breeding. Hence the term ‘up-breeding’. Luster, or sheen, adds a dimension, as does Lock (its cleanliness and appearance). Crimp, or waviness, indicates greater length. Handle (how it feels) and Strength (its general health) also play an important part. Color is less important and micron counts are important to some, but not all, fiber buyers.

note the luster	abundance of crimp

Natural fibers are a renewable resource!  Use your purchase dollars to support natural, renewable fibers that are not made from synthetic materials or petroleum products.   Natural fibers are warmer, breathe better, are naturally fire retardant, require less chemicals for production which means less chemicals in our water sources and they are naturally biodegradable.    Thank you for supporting American made alpaca products, people and services!

We considered the alpaca industry carefully before deciding to get involved. Too many people's hard earned savings had gone down the drain with 'flash-in-the-pan' fads. Emus, ostriches, oil drilling, Enron, dot.com stocks, and the Nasdaq index; had all seemed great investments - until circumstances suddenly and drastically changed.  It appears the shakier real estate and  stock markets get the more attractive  a stable tangible investment like raising alpacas become.

We consulted with alpaca experts and camelid specialists all over the country. Over the course of several months we visited farms and  contacted universities.  There were breeders' associations, and veterinarians to sound out,   seminars and conferences to attend, and naturally endless research on the Internet. Numerous university studies are available online, many are available as free downloads in .pdf format . We learned about the pitfalls, caveats, and areas of concern. There is risk. After all it is a business. That risk isn't so much whether the alpaca business "works" it's whether or not you do.

We know from experience that "the harder you work the luckier you get".  As a passive investment alpacas have incredible tax advantages and create compound tax deferred income. For the active alpaca rancher, the breeders in it for the business, alpacas are a true labor of love.

Of course, we will never know it all, and we continue to learn daily from the absolute best resource there is... our alpacas.  If you get up and enjoy what you do everyday then everyday is like a vacation. 

Why not call us today and see if you agree?

Remember, a brokered animal is simply an alpaca or group of alpacas that we find for you to purchase that belongs to another ranch or farm. As the buyer this costs you nothing extra.  Let that sink in...This costs you nothing extra! The selling farm pays all commissions!  We do the leg work; negotiating, and research at no cost to our clients.  Allowing us to broker your procurement whether it is a single alpaca or a substantial group offers another advantage.  As our reputation grows the many farms and ranches wishing to sell their animals are now vying for our attention and the opportunity that represents for a potential sale. Not just "your sale" the future sales that dealing with a broker represents. Put simply, we boost your purchasing power.  As they compete with each other for the prospect of our business we are often offered additional incentives; unpublished deep discounts off their selling price, special financing terms, free transportation, etc...

The farms and ranches we chose to do business with are special.  They are very special indeed, most are moderate to small family farms.  We've found the larger more so called "professional" outfits' alpacas are not nearly as friendly or socialized as we prefer. For all of their polish in a large scale operation they don't seem to be able to deliver the goods on what we specialize in...  highly socialized, friendly alpacas.  Every breeder that we accept into our exclusive network we have developed a  level of trust  and a communication structure built  specifically to establish mutually beneficial long term relationships;  for us, for them, and for our clients who will become a part of that network themselves.

What is expected of you:

We will go the extra mile to see you achieve your alpaca dreams. But...

That is not to say as the client that you are without responsibility.  We will take the same care in ensuring that these marvelous alpacas will be going to proper loving quality homes where they will thrive in their new lives.  As we embark on this journey together whether it is your first or fiftieth alpaca purchase we will  get to know each other  well and hopefully develop the same kind of friendships we've come to expect and have developed with all of the "alpaca people" who've allowed us to become part of their networks in the past.

Financially you will be responsible for transportation costs, veterinary exams or any medical expenses necessary, and /or travel and mortality insurance not covered by the supplying breeder.   If you choose, your alpacas may reside and be cared for by us at the Double "A" Ranch for up to six months without charge if you'd like, if necessary, we will offer long term agistment (boarding) at very reasonable rates as well as shorter term.  Ask about available financing too.

We are not simply putting  a customer and supplier base together.  There are literally thousands of people with alpacas for sale and literally  thousands more wanting to buy alpacas. As we've said before we don't care to own a big operation of any kind or find ourselves once again in the stressed out high pressure pace that goes with that lifestyle.  Double "A" Ranch, LLC will intentionally focus on exclusively offering specialized service to likeminded individuals and organizations. Those  that are putting their animals care and happiness and business ethics first.   "Our kind" of people for "our kind" of alpacas.

What are "our kind" of alpacas?  Huacayas  are for us!  The cuteness and cuddle factor are off the charts.  But, here are a few more details as to what we've chosen to specialize in and what constitutes  "our kind".

Alpacas range in price.  This can be as low as free (deserted and abused alpacas in need of rescue) to $100-$500 for a pet quality animal to $1500 - $3000 for a gelded or non-breeding high quality fiber animal.  Quality breeding stock  can range from $2000- $1,500,000 (just a  few short years ago 1/2 share of Legacy a magnificent herdsire sold for $750,000) While, the stud value of an alpaca such as Legacy was said be over a million dollars per year and after all it is a business there is something else driving the price of alpacas.  Like AKC pure bred dogs or high brow show horses before them alpacas have an alluring intrinsic value to those who buy, breed and show these most charming of creatures.  Once you've gone past the looking and investigation stage and begin to learn, work,  and play with these animals it won't be long before you find out if "it" is in your blood or not.  The alpaca has such personality, each herd has a dynamic structure where individuality dictates the hierarchy.  The leader (your alpha 'paca), the prankster, the pleaser, the comedian, the aloof, and the shy they are all represented there.

Double "A" Ranch consciously made a decision to steer our business in a low key direction.  In this sluggish economy,  that is affecting every industry,  we feel quality breed stock valued in the mid- priced range of $2,000 - $25,000 is a safe start up investment. The upside of a sluggish economy is opportunity.  Many times multiples or small herd packages of quality breed stock can be found within those price ranges.

Even if we don't currently have what you are looking for, we know where to find prime, investment-grade stock and can help you evaluate and procure them. Depending upon what you are looking for and the purpose intended, we can find you a gorgeous alpaca cria from below $1,000, or a grand champion at $50,000 or above. We'll work hard to locate the proper animal that represents a great value for your money.  If you choose to allow us to broker your alpaca purchase  the seller pays our commission, it cost you nothing. We'll keep and care for your alpacas at  Double "A" Ranch  until you are comfortable tending them and your property is ready to bring them home. Again, the first six months are at no charge.