For Richard Cruanas, there’s no better job than raising alpacas.
Cruanas operates La Finca Alpacas at 19201 NE Gabriel Road in Yacolt, a farm he has managed for 29 years. On Saturday, Sept. 28, he celebrated the 18th annual National Alpaca Days by welcoming visitors to meet the animals and learn about the benefits of alpaca farming. Since the event began, Cruanas has used the occasion to connect the community with his alpacas.
“It’s been a great moment for kids to come in [who’ve] never seen alpacas, much less touch one. So we’re introducing these alpacas to kids [so] they can start [to] get involved with animals rather than being on their laptop all day,” Cruanas said.
Cruanas began his alpaca journey in 1985 with only two. Today, La Finca Alpacas cares for more than 60 animals. Children who visited the farm on Saturday were especially excited to meet several baby alpacas, known as crias, many of which were only 3 weeks old. According to Cruanas, each alpaca has its own distinct personality, ranging from high maintenance to friendly.
“There’s a lot of work involved. But at night… once it starts cooling off and you see all those healthy babies running back and forth, that makes it all worthwhile,” he said.
Cruanas also addressed a common misconception about alpacas: that they frequently spit at people. In reality, alpacas rarely spit at humans and are generally calm, he explained.
“When I grain them and if they all want to eat at the same time, they’ll fight for it and that’s one way of letting the other ones know, ‘Hey, get out of my way. It’s my turn,’ ” he said. “Between them, they do [spit] once in a while, but it’s not as bad as people think, that they spit at us humans.”
Alpacas are prized for their fine wool, which is used to make high-quality products like socks, Cruanas said. La Finca Alpacas ships bundles of alpaca fiber to New York, as there are few mills in the U.S. equipped to process it. Cruanas noted that because alpacas are still relatively uncommon in the country, caring for them can present unique challenges.
“So we’re still learning about these guys. Some issues that they might have, even the veterinarians aren’t up to date on because they’re so new to this country. So that’s probably the biggest challenge — not knowing how to treat the animal for whatever they may have because we haven’t seen enough cases of it,” Cruanas said.
Cruanas breeds around 30 alpacas annually, keeping a steady inventory for local and national shows, auctions and sales. Their manure is also highly sought after as fertilizer, which the farm sells to local customers.
Looking ahead, Cruanas is eager to continue introducing more people to alpacas. La Finca Alpacas is open to visitors from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. For more information, email lafincaalpacas@msn.com.
