In our first year of breeding Suri alpaca we had several cria to wean and used a method that we had recommended to us as being the normal procedure for weaning alpaca. 

In a nutshell - Remove the cria to be weaned from the herd and place it in an adjacent paddock. This resulted in the expected stress on both mother and cria but we all survived the ordeal.  (I’m a big softie but I made it through). 

This year I decided to try something different. 

Instead of removing the cria from the herd and putting them into a herd of weaned animals in full view of mum, I took the mother out of the main herd of nursing mothers and cria and left the cria in the herd with all her friends and ‘aunties’. 

For the cria being weaned the only change that happened was that mum was now gone but she had the comfort of the familiar surroundings and company to help her through the potentially stressful time of weaning.  

I tried to make sure that at least two mums and cria were weaned at the same time so that no mum was introduced to the pregnant mum herd on her own.  I also made sure that the weaned mums and cria could not see each other for at least a couple of weeks after weaning. 

When a pregnant mum becomes due to ‘unpack’ she then becomes a member of the nursing mums and cria herd again and so the cycle goes on.  When a weaned female is mature enough to be mated and becomes pregnant she is moved to the pregnant mums herd.

Boys are left in the nursing mums and cria herd until approx 9mths of age or until they start to become a real ‘nuisance’.

By doing all of this I have noticed a considerable reduction in the stress levels of both the mum and the cria.  I have not had cria moping around for days on end, pacing up and down the fence, crying for mum and not eating.  I have not had mum doing the same on her side of the fence pining for her cria and potentially putting the next cria that was already developing inside her at risk. 

I believe that being in the presence of other adult alpaca after the cria has been weaned has a good social influence on them. 

I will definitely be trying this style of weaning again for future breeding seasons.

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