Alpacas: Synthesis of a Miracle - Hardcover

Safley, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0970968701 ISBN 13: 9780970968708

Publisher: Northwest Alpacas, 2001

Synopsis

For thousands of years, the alpaca, a New World camel related to the vicuña, has grazed quietly in the high altitude of the Peruvian Andes. However, since Peru created the Council of National Camelids of South America (CONACS), and it became legal to export alpacas to other nations, the animals renowned for producing the "fiber grown closest to heaven," have begun grazing worldwide, in North America, Australia, Europe.

For many alpaca owners, breeding can be a hit or miss affair. Serious breeders have had to search out breeding information from texts written for sheep, cattle, or horse breeders. In Alpacas: Synthesis of a Miracle, Mike Safley has distilled 15 years of personal experience breeding alpacas, documented information gleaned from dozens of trips to Peru and conversations with Peruvian breeders and textile manufacturers, and gathered together for the first time all the information alpaca owners need to breed their animals for specific traits and to improve the quality of their animals.

In this comprehensive text, Safley covers the history of alpacas and the production of fiber from the time of their domestication by the Incas through the use of modern genetic theory by Peruvian, North American, and Australian breeders. He discusses the role the show ring plays in the selection of animals now, and how breeders can use genetics and selection to scientifically raise the quality of their herds. Past-president of the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association and the Alpaca Registry, Inc., Safley proposes breeding standards that will lead to an improvement in both suris and huacayas. He does not shy away from controversial subjects such as the crossbreeding of suris and huacayas, and the use of inbreeding to fix desirable characteristics and eliminate possible genetic defects.

Woven throughout the text is the human story of the alpaca in the biographies of Julio Barreda, one of the world's most highly regarded alpaca breeders, and Frank Webster Michell, innovative textile producer, both of whom contributed to the modern market for alpaca fiber. Safley traces Barreda's life from his introduction to alpacas at six yearsof age, through the years of governmental reform and bloody terrorism, to his determined and systematic improvement of his herd. Michell, an Englishman, came to Peru looking for chinchilla, and stayed to create a fully integrated alpaca textile producing industry that keeps the income from this lovely fiber in Peru. Drawn from days of personal interviews, family documents and old herd records, Safley's insight is of inestimable value to those interested in alpaca.

Alpacas: Synthesis of a Miracle is compelling reading for anyone who owns or breeds alpacas, or anyone merely interested in the history of these enchanting animals whose high-quality fiber was once worn only by the Sun Kings who ruled the Incas.

About this title

About the Author

Mike Safley was born and raised in Oregon. He attended the University of Oregon and served in the U.S. Navy Seabees during the Vietnam War. Prior to purchasing his first five alpacas with his father, Ken Safley, in 1984, Mike was a builder and real estate investor.

Mike was elected president of the fledgling Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association (AOBA) in 1990. While serving as president of AOBA, he conceived of and became the first editor for Alpacas magazine. He wrote for the magazine for almost ten years. He was chairman of the first AOBA alpaca show committee and on the first alpaca marketing committee.

As a member of the marketing committee, Mike wrote several brochures for the alpaca industry--"Alpaca Investment," "Fleece to Fashion," and "Color--all of which continue to be printed by AOBA today. Mike wrote and produced the first alpaca marketing video which was issued by AOBA; and established the first alpaca advertising co-op, pioneering the breeder's guide model that AOBA still uses. With his wife, Julie Safley, Mike wrote and produced the alpaca coloring book.

An accredited alpaca judge, Mike has judged alpaca shows in the United States, Peru, Australia, and Canada. As a member of AOBA's first show committee, he authored the first alpaca show rules used in the United States and Canada. He was the initial organizer of the All American Alpaca Futurity, which awarded the first championship ribbons to alpacas in the United States.

Mike was elected to the Alpaca Registry, Inc., (ARI) Board of Directors twice, the last time in 1995; he was elected president of the registry in 1997. As a member of the alpaca registry, he was the driving force behind the levy of screening fees for imported alpacas, which resulted in the collection of several million dollars in revenue. This was used by the alpaca industry for marketing and research. In 1998, he authored the amendment to the alpaca registry's policies and procedures which were voted on by the ARI members and resulted in the closure of the registry to the registration of offspring of unregistered parents.

Mike and Julie hosted the first Alpaca Fest International at their Northwest Alpacas Ranch in Hillsboro, Oregon. The format used at that time became the format adopted by alpaca festivals across the U.S. and Canada.

Beginning in 1992, Mike and Julie made over 25 trips to Peru, selecting alpacas, visiting alpaca producers and processors, establishing the Quechua Benefit with Dr. Mario Pedroza (providing dental assistance, school supplies, and clothing to the alpaca shepherds of Peru's high sierra), and researching this book. Mike and Julie continue to reside at Northwest Alpacas Ranch with their four children and 250 alpacas. You can reach Mike Safley at Northwest Alpacas, 11785 SW River Road, Hillsboro, Oregon, 97123.

Review

A comprehensive and entertaining book that discusses both alpaca breeding and the history of the alpaca industry in Peru. -- Kerry Anderson, A Star Alpacas, Fort Collins, Colorado

A factual, detailed, and emotional account of the interplay between the alpaca and the human element. -- John Howard, Thorn Apple Farm, Port Allegany, Pennsylvania

The tool needed by the North American Alpaca Industry to move forward into the next generation of profit from alpacas. -- Carol Thayer, Blonde Velvet & Me, Camas, Washington

Edition details

• Publisher: Northwest Alpacas
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0970968701
• ISBN 13: 9780970968708
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 381