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Alpaca Mining Company
17 N. Willhoyt Lane
Yerington, NV 89447
Telephone:
775/463-2846
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Website:
www.alpacamine.com
Year Started:
1998
# American Employees:
2
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In 1985, I saw some television footage of the first alpacas imported to the U.S. I was so intrigued with the wonderful nature of these "cuddly" creatures and the financial rewards of breeding them, that I walked into the office of my then boss and said "let’s quit our jobs and raise alpacas." The reply was "so what’s an alpaca?" Over ten years later, my dream reached fruition.
In 1997, I traveled to the Gold Country of Northern California to participate in a local travel show. At the time my offices and home were in Orange County, California. When I returned from this short sales trip, seriously impressed by the country feeling in this area of California, I walked in the door and asked of my husband, Paul, "How would you like to move to Northern California." His reply was "How soon can we go and what will we do?" The dream began to take shape.
Typical of those attracted to alpaca ranching, we were looking for a change of lifestyle...a simpler way of life. We knew we would love to own a few acres, but what would we do if we moved somewhere with some acreage, other than raise some of our own vegetables and fruits? It was then that the perfect picture of a gorgeous, fuzzy animal returned to my head and the answer was..."we’ll raise alpacas!"
We decided on Grass Valley due to its proximity to major population areas, seasonal tourist population, and it offered the type of terrain we particularly value...rolling hills with oaks and pine along the ridgelines. We also began visiting as many alpacas ranches as possible. As most "wanabe alpaca owners" relate, we were very impressed with the professionalism, friendliness and underlying sense of financial adventure of the alpaca owners we contacted. Between ranch visits and property searching, our weekends were quite enlightening and exciting
We moved into our modest 2-bedroom, 2 bath home on a 5-acre parcel in late July, 1998. To our previous count of 3 dogs and 4 cats, we first purchased 2 llamas (guard and companion animals), and two pregnant alpacas. Since then, we have changed the makeup of our foundation herd to include a diversity in bloodlines and we now have over 25 alpacas of our own. We have expanded our operation to include agisting (boarding), brokering, and breeding alpacas. It was our hope to be able to live off the income from the alpacas in about 4 or 5 years, and I am pleased to say that I closed the door on my sales representation company on February 29, 2000 and Paul and I now work full time with the alpacas and it is our only income. We are extremely excited with our progress and have never regretted our decision to change our lifestyle and work focus.
Did I mention we choose " Alpaca Mining Company" as our breeder name? Others look for gold in the ground in this area and have for many, many years. We hope to start a new trend by "mining" for alpacas...hence, the "discovery" of our first "Nugget!" (The name for the first cria born at the ranch). Eureka! We truly believe we have discovered our golden future in this small piece of land and these wondrous animals. The Gold Rush Begins! And so it began....the story continues...in Yerington!
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Thoughts on America:
America as we once knew her, is in a process of decay, the Bill of Rights and Constitution all but demolished. Do we have hope? Of course, and we are working hard to develop the alpaca industry to bring fiber production and manufacturing back to our shores. The fiber of the country is strong and by that we need the human spirit of liberty. Buy American, take a share of the USA back into our own hands, promote local businesses, and let's take this country back! |
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