Still in the poo
August 3rd 2007 03:06
The books will tell you that alpacas poo in piles, and this is true, you'll have small oval piles of alpaca poo located in strategic spots around the paddocks. The boys are great housekeepers and keep the piles nice and neat. I guess this is so they don't have to travel too much to do their sniffing thing (see other poo post). The boys will walk into the pile and make their contribution right on top of what's already there.
The girls, however, tend not to be so fastidious and adopt the 'near enough is good enough' attitude. Subsequently, you'll find that the poo piles in paddocks habited by girl alpacas are not piles, so much as scatterings; a bit of poo here, another bit there and a tiny wee bit just over by the fence. Why this is, who knows (if you know, please enlighten us), maybe they prefer not to walk in it! In any case, what you end up with is a rather large area with poo over it.
Alpacas, both the girls and boys, have this endearing habit of establishing their poo piles in super convenient places (convenient for them that is). Places such as: in the shed, in gateways, in that lovely shaded spot under the tree you kindly fenced around just so they could enjoy sitting there in the summertime!
Alpaca poo piles are often visited en-mass, with many alpacas standing around, either adding to the pile or waiting their turn while giving moral support to the pooers.
Grass doesn't grow through a pile of alpaca poo, as the continuous application of poo and urine renders the spot pretty sour. The area around the pile however, becomes incredibly fertile, due to all the lovely nutrients coming from the pile and Voila! Up comes magnificent, lush green grass!
Wonderful, BUT... alpacas tend not to eat near their poo piles (who can blame them, really?), unless the pasture gets very low and they have no other choice. This is ok, though, as it helps reduce the incidence of parasites (worms), which can be bad news for alpacas, just like for other animals (and people too, come to think of it).
So all this means you'll need to manage the poo piles in your paddocks to ensure the continued health of your alpacas, especially if you are on a limited amount of land, or find yourself with too many alpacas.
I've tried various poo pile maintenance programs over the years, with various levels of success, but I think that's enough poo to digest for now, so I'll leave that for another day.
The girls, however, tend not to be so fastidious and adopt the 'near enough is good enough' attitude. Subsequently, you'll find that the poo piles in paddocks habited by girl alpacas are not piles, so much as scatterings; a bit of poo here, another bit there and a tiny wee bit just over by the fence. Why this is, who knows (if you know, please enlighten us), maybe they prefer not to walk in it! In any case, what you end up with is a rather large area with poo over it.
Young alpaca dumping a load
Alpacas, both the girls and boys, have this endearing habit of establishing their poo piles in super convenient places (convenient for them that is). Places such as: in the shed, in gateways, in that lovely shaded spot under the tree you kindly fenced around just so they could enjoy sitting there in the summertime!
Alpaca poo piles are often visited en-mass, with many alpacas standing around, either adding to the pile or waiting their turn while giving moral support to the pooers.
Grass doesn't grow through a pile of alpaca poo, as the continuous application of poo and urine renders the spot pretty sour. The area around the pile however, becomes incredibly fertile, due to all the lovely nutrients coming from the pile and Voila! Up comes magnificent, lush green grass!
Wonderful, BUT... alpacas tend not to eat near their poo piles (who can blame them, really?), unless the pasture gets very low and they have no other choice. This is ok, though, as it helps reduce the incidence of parasites (worms), which can be bad news for alpacas, just like for other animals (and people too, come to think of it).
So all this means you'll need to manage the poo piles in your paddocks to ensure the continued health of your alpacas, especially if you are on a limited amount of land, or find yourself with too many alpacas.
I've tried various poo pile maintenance programs over the years, with various levels of success, but I think that's enough poo to digest for now, so I'll leave that for another day.
There was an alpaca called Giles
Who liked to establish poo piles
He'd eat up a treat and then drop a big heap
to attract all the blowflies for miles
Who liked to establish poo piles
He'd eat up a treat and then drop a big heap
to attract all the blowflies for miles
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Comment by Marti
Christian Revolution
There is an alpaca farm down the hill from me. I always thought that the poo piles were patches of dirt. WOW! Guess you learn something everyday huh?
Comment by Rosemary
Alpaca Notes - Tasmania
It's funny that they have bathrooms, just like us. When they start a pile in the shed, I wonder if its because they like some privacy like us too