AlpacaStreet >

Alpaca Breeders Conference Spawns Marketing Support Group

“This is great stuff, but I think I might need to be propped up for a while!”

State of Texas Alpaca Ranchers sponsored an all day seminar to learn marketing, taught by Ellie Winslow of “Beyond the Sidewalk Consulting & Books”. On January 21st they met at the Brazos County Convention Center and learned marketing, from goal-setting to copywriting and from psychology of persuasion to how to counter objections. Those in attendance learned, practiced and internalized nearly a year’s worth of marketing education in a very intense but fun eight hour day.

The request for further support from Ellie Winslow and from each other spawned a new yahoo group titled marketingsupportforfarmers_n_crafters.

Even though the group began as a way to help firm up marketing principles from Ellie’s books and seminars, they have opened it to general membership. Anyone who is interested in better marketing for their rural business is welcome to join. Questions are fielded by any and all and sometimes Ellie, too.

“Of course it makes perfect sense,” said Ellie. “I’m just appalled that I didn’t think of it myself a long time ago! Now instead of forgetting and allowing the marketing information to get stale, those in the trenches are putting marketing to work in the real world with lots of variety in the examples!”

Anyone who has a rural business and is interested in better marketing is invited to send a blank email to marketingsupportforfarmers_n_crafters-subscribe@yahoogroups.com to sign up.

For more information, Ellie can be reached at winslowellie@yahoo.com and her website is http://beyondthesidewalk.com

Advice Against Line Breeding

D. Andrew Merriwether, Ph.D

Personally, I think it is too risky. You will hear many people who say they did it and had no problems. To me this is like putting one bullet in your revolver and spinning it and putting it to the cria's head. Most of the time it will be fine, but sometimes you end up with a dead cria. The more distantly related the two animals are, the more chambers in your revolver, the less chance of getting the bullet on any one try, but still more chance then if you never load the gun by not breeding relatives in the first place.

It has nothing to do with alpacas and everything to do with the basic rules of genetics. Using people as an example, since we can all relate, every human on earth has an average of six rare lethal recessive mutations. Luckily, except for relatives, most humans each have a different set of six lethal mutations. Since they are recessive, it takes both parents passing it on for the lethal trait to be expressed. Since it is rare, the only others carrying exactly the same trait are blood relatives who share the relative in common where the mutation first happened. Particular mutations typically only happen once ever, so for most mutations, if two individuals share it, they share it because they both got it from a common relative in the past. Alpacas are no different from people in this respect.

That was just listing rare traits. There are many common recessive undesirable traits as well which are more likely to be made homozygous (two copies of the same trait) if relatives breed. So while it is true that you may also make two copies of some good or great rare recessive traits, you are making two copies randomly of traits throughout the whole genome. This is invariably a bad thing. It is why all wild species have mechanisms to avoid inbreeding. Even humans have this. Every human culture has incest taboos to prevent inbreeding. Even the most "primitive" cultures have quickly realized that terrible defects often come from relatives breeding. These "recognition" systems are subtle and very costly for the body to produce. Evidence of millennia of selection favoring outbreeding. This is true for almost every species on the planet.

Linebreeding was designed to be used on large herds (typically hundreds or thousands of animals), taking a small number of herdsires across the whole herd each year. The goal is to homogenize the herd on a similar set of genetic features. It requires VERY diligent culling to remove defects. There are only small number of large farms in the US that really could do linebreeding, and even they would have to be willing to take the losses. Breeding two animals together from your herd that are related is not really linebreeding, it is just inbreeding.

So can you do it?

Sure.

Is there a risk of increased loss?

Absolutely.

Does the risk decrease with the numbers of generations back an ancestor is shared?

Yes.

Just realize over time there will be more loss in making a linebred herd than if you outbreed. There will be more defective cria born, there will be more lost pregnancies. Linebred animals (of all species) on average live less long, have less offspring over their lifetime, and have weaker immune systems than outbred animals. This is an overall effect if you compared very similar animals outbred vs linebred over a long period of time. It is called Inbreeding Depression. So there is a cost that goes along with benefits of making desireable rare traits homozygous (the prime reason for linebreeding).

Many breeds were created by linebreeding, and the entire breed descends from a single animal, the first animal to have the mutation that defines the breed’s main attributes. Newfoundland dogs are an example of this. Many breeds of horses and cattle trace back to a single male. For most species that are linebred, they can have many offspring per year, so losing 1/4 or 1/8 or 1/16th of the offspring is no great loss. Alpacas reproduce VERY slowly, one offspring max per year (the average production is far less than that, 0.8 offspring per year) and alpacas have a very long generation time (3 years typically), so linebreeding will be VERY slow and you need to start with a lot of animals, otherwise you will cull your whole herd in the first five years, or cull so many you won't have a viable program. If you don't cull, then you are making bad genes homozygyous, meaning these animals will ALWAYS pass on bad traits. In otherwords, you linebreed on all 20,000 genes in the alpaca genome, not just the fleece traits you are looking at. Many of those should not be homozygous.

Anyway, that is my take. You can certainly homogenize a herd on a few traits much better if you linebreed, but there will be a very real cost in lost cria and lost income from those cria. It makes no sense in the US market right now.

For linebreeding, the inbreeding coefficient (for animals more than one step apart in the pedigree) is 0.5 to the n-1 power, where n is the number of steps tracing through the pedigree to connect the two related animals to each other. If they share multiple relatives, you add the separate coefficients together. This tells you what percentage of your genome will be made homozygous (beyond what is already homozygous). Father and daughter share 50% of their genes and DNA sequence, on top of what they already share by chance. Breeding them together will make (on average) 50% of the cria's genome be homozygous more than it would have been if the parents were unrelated. It is random which of the 10-20,000 genes or 3 billion bases are rendered homozygous. So you are linebreeding the ENTIRE genome at the level of the inbreeding coefficient. The more distant the relatives, the lower the coefficient, the less homozygosity (for good or bad traits).

Because you are also linebreeding on bad traits, you will make more problems. If you don't start with enough animals, you will not realistically be able to achieve many goals line breeding. You have to cull, and you have to have enough offspring to be able to cull. This means either a species that has lots of offspring per year and short generation times, or lots of animals to start with. In my opinion, any other strategy is just inbreeding and is unlikely to be very successful unless you are trying to create a new breed based on a novel phenotype (like Newfoundlands or a number of horse breeds).

That is my take on it. How much loss are you willing to tolerate, and for what specific gain? You need a VERY specific breeding plan in my opinion to line-breed successfully. it is far more than just breeding relatives of a certain animal or animals together.

I can tell you that a fair number of animals in my disease database are the result of breeding relatives. Nothing statistically significant, but given how few people line breed in the US, it is intriguing that I keep getting tissue samples from dead cria of related parents. Most of my samples from unrelated parents, don't get me wrong, but an unusual number share a relative in common. I think a good number were unintentional.

So if you want to do it, the risk decreases with the number of steps needed to connect the two animals in the pedigree, with the risk dropping by a factor of 2 to 4 fold with each generation back. Just remember, 20,000 genes, so even a risk of 1:20,000 means one random gene is made homozygous, a risk of 1:100 means 200 additional genes are made homozygous.

Similarly, the odds of getting two copies of the trait you want to make homozygous go down with each additional step in the pedigree by the same factor of 2 to 4 fold with each generation needed to connect the parents. A Catch-22. The closer the relatives the greater the odds of making the gene you want homozygous, but also the greater the chance of making deleterious genes homozygous. The farther away, the safer, but with a much reduced chance of achieving the goal of the linebreeding.

I make these points because people are giving what I consider terrible advice to new breeders about line-breeding. If you have a small number of animals, it is likely you are counting on income from the cria they will make, and it is unlikely most people would want to have increased numbers of deaths, abortions, and defective cria. So I think in today’s market, where female cria sell for a lot of money, why risk losing offspring when you can greatly reduce loss by outbreeding. Try and learn the inheritance patterns of the traits you wish to breed for, and choose your breedings based upon observed phenotypes and inferred genotypes. You can greatly increase the odds of getting what you want out of your breeding program.

Cheers,

Andy

D. Andrew Merriwether, Ph.D. is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Biology
Binghamton University. He and his wife, Ann, own Nyala Farm Alpacas, 104 Rockwell Rd, Vestal, New York 13850 USA

See Andy and Ann's herd at www.alpacastreet.com/nyalafarm.asp

Member Comments

Thank you so much for all your creative ideas! I just love seeing what you come up with. Great advertising, great fun at great prices! You can't beat that with a stick! : ) YK NJ

I appreciate how customer focused you are. It's a pleasure working with you Dan. LP IL

Great! Thanks so much! You are great to work with! I really appreciate your quick responses. Take Care! KS PA

I want to let you know how much I have enjoyed the articles by Uncle Clarence. You have captured much of the style of the " Old Farmers Almanac" which I have been reading for many years. Keep up the good work, you have made learning about Alpacas fun. RL

It's always interesting to see what new and innovative
marketing concept you will come up with next - bravo! GH NH

I think you have the most progressive, pro-active alpaca site on the

web. I have <my farm listed on another> site, but am not overly impressed with their attempts to

stay current or pre-empt the market with ideas. You are doing this, Dan.

Thanks! Sue Evon (Sleeping Monk Alpacas NH)

I really do enjoy the articles on Alpaca Street and have learned lots of valuable information. SC MN

Thanks for all your hard work and dedication! Is your head swollen up yet? : ) I tell everyone how unique and innovative your marketing ideas are and how much I benefit from being on AS and I only tell people about alpacas and products that I truly believe in. : ) .....and I believe in you & AS. YK NJ

I thoroughly enjoyed our consultation today. You provided some valuable insight into marketing to buyer's needs and some brilliant techniques that I can easily adopt. Many, many thanks! Caroline Gregg Rocaro Alpacas

WOW Dan!!!

The response on our end has been huge! Every time you send out an email we receive another 15-20 new members! It has been wonderful! You are the best! It is clear that “our industry” the fiber industry is alive and well and we have the recipe for success! Thanks so much Dan!! You have no idea how happy you have made me! ...

To me, this is marketing brilliance! I am your fan Dan! Val Newell Cottage Industry Alpaca Breeders Association

Thank you so much -

I am very pleased with what you have offered - and the additional service, perks, and opportunities you have provided thru the year.

And yes you can quote me on that. ;^) LB CO

FYI - I am not renewing my <membership on anouther website> - I am keeping my limited budget with you though. The reasons for that are you give me a good value for what I get, you are creative and innovative, and are compassionate to others in hardship. PM VA

Your site is so fun and informative, and such a breeze to maintain. TJ PA

I am very impressed with Alpaca Street.com. The alpaca listings are easier to read than other sites, and the pictures are much clearer. I guess I'd better get some more professional pictures of my alpacas to do the site justice.....I anxiously await the results of my new visibility through this wonderful website. Thank you for all the work and effort you have put forth to assist fellow breeders succeed in this industry. CZ TN

I am very impressed with AlpacaStreet and the support you give to your customers. LR ME

We have been admiring AlpacaStreet for some time now and noting friends who have joined your site…..with rave reviews! SA GA

THANKS AGAIN SO MUCH MY HUSBAND AND I AGREE <Our New Breeder Program Site> SHOWS UP BETTER THAN THE OTHER SITE WE HAVE JM GA

I intended to drop you a line to say how much I appreciate your creativity. I didn't realize until, I received your response a few days ago, how many ideas you just throw out to the public to see if they'll fly. You're great for our industry (... as well as me personally). JP MI

Who needs the <publication> now that we have Alpaca Street. EB GA

Thanks so much for making us shine....We have sold 3 alpacas recently due to Alpaca Street. RR IL

Thanks for creating such a great site with so many wonderful tools for alpaca breeders. CS FL

Once again - you are working the program for us. I think it's great! I just don't see anyone else out there working as hard as you do for us!!! It's appreciated!! JR TN

PS. I've been telling people that you are the awesomest! TU VA

Dan, you need to know that your blast has exceeded my expectations JA NC

I just wanted you to know how much I love Alpacastreet! I have been a member of <another site> for 3 years now and have recently signed up for your Alpacastreet. I love the easy use of your site and the benefits you offer as a member. I am a firm believer in updating your personal website on a regular basis to keep things current. Your PACASYNC is AWESOME! I have only been a street member for @ month now, and I have been able to update my personal site numerous times and whenever I feel like it. Great Job and thank you for this added benefit. Also your support is incredible. When I had a problem (my fault not yours) you answered faster than I could send the message. Thanks again for a great value! TJ PA

Thank you for all your hard work, new ideas, and reasonable prices! HL MI

Easy to use and saves alot of time. I have it for my home page and use it daily. BA OH

P.S. it's so awesome to have your quick answers & support....LN MI.

We have received our third sales lead on our alpacas from your web site...I still think you need to do a THE Alpaca Website That GET RESULTS!!! ad. KC TX

Dan,

As always - You Rock! PM MD

AS is becoming a website for breeders who are serious about moving their farms forward in this economic environment and for those who can think outside of the box. HK NC

Thanks for great service, and a fantastic site. It's awesome!! RR IL

Get out of my head! The trade opportunities you've added are FAB! I've been trying to trade lately and encouraging others I know to try it. I don\'t have $ to buy right now (like you mentioned) and want to put my herd/breeding in a better position (like you mentioned). You guys are in tune to what's going on and THANK YOU FOR THAT! JB MI

I love the new button for trade. That is a great idea! MH NY

My goodness, I signed up for the Breeders Program and the next morning my site was up and running. All my alpacas for sale were already loaded on the site. Quite impressive. Thanks, Dan, for being a marketer's marketer! CF UT

Great job with your marketing efforts and keeping the energy and positive attitude in our business JT IL

I LOVE the site!! Looks really nice! Great job! Looks very easy to navigate and change. Very glad I decided to join your site. SR NM

Thanks for all your help so far. Alpacastreet has really helped me this past year! DJ MI

I've been watching your site. Its great! As a matter of fact that is where I found the listing for the two girls I bought. BH IL

You are doing great things and all of us breeders do appreciate it. MM TN

YOU ARE THE BOMB!!!!!!!!! MB WA

Thanks so much. I really like your ad designs. RD WA

I just need to relay that I am proud to be a member listing on this site. JB MI

I just wanted to let you know that I spent at least 3 hours on my AS site last night updating and adding pictures and more text, and I'm not done yet. I feel the site is very user friendly, easy to navigate and I was actually enjoying using it (which I usually don't) I only stopped because it was way past my bed time. hahahah
Seriously, I have had more hits to my farm pages in one day than I had in a month on the other site. So I just wanted to say thank you. I don't know what took me so long. I like the articles and other information you put on the site as well.
Keep up the great work! JG PA

AlpacaStreet.com is definately the 'Apple' of alpaca websites!

Great job on this web site. I originally wanted to list my farm on <another site> but after seeing the great effort you put into this site I felt this would be the way to go! And I was right!. SH MA

Thanks for working to make AlpacaStreet an excellent resource! SB OH

- you are always amazing me with new features, personal service, attention to details. JR TN

....your website gets better and better each day. TJ IL

Dan, just a quick note to tell you what a great job I think you are doing with this program. I am not taking full advantage of all this site offers...yet, but plan to. Getting a little more organized right now. But, had to take a minute and tell you I am continually impressed with the site, your marketing/communication and the enhancements you are always making. Great job!!! JR TN SNIP

The sample contract sections is awesome! What a help! SH OH

I think you guys have done a fantastic job getting this new site set up for alpacas. This site is a great help to us "newbies" without a lot of money to pass around. DJ MI

Thanks SO MUCH for your help, Dan, GREAT site! The alpaca industry needs this. SO CA

I am always on the prowl for great advertising opportunities and you guys really deliver. Thanks so much for \"the street\".
You have been lightening fast to answer questions and I really appreciate what you do for the alpaca industry. LG Utah

I am excited for your success as I note that we get hits to our site from Alpaca Street. CG CT

Another great idea. The street is just what we needed in this industry. It is a great resource for everything!

THANK YOU! I like the finished product. It has been a pleasure and you are very prompt with your responses to my requests! I appreciate that very much!

You are a gem!!!

Thanks for going the extra mile for this!!

The profile looks great and we have had nothing but great service from you guys!

I will say that the hits on <my alpaca> have definitely skyrocketed since using your website. … I still am getting more hits and I thank you for all the help.

Thanks for setting all this up! This is really great!

Glad you were there for all of us Florida Breeders.

Did I mention you ROCK ?!

Thank you for delivering what you promised!! Boy--the farms that didn't sign up are gonna be so jealous!!! [-:

The hits on my website has doubled so far and I am very impressed with Alpaca Street and will be advertising with you a lot more... GV Florida

Dan--thanks!! It's great. You've made "as my momma says--"a silk purse out of a sows ear!"

I did have more hits on my website because of your website referral.

Thanks for providing such a service and offering this medium both for education and advertising!

This is an excellent opportunity for farm members. I love what you are doing. Just checked out the <Farm and Ranch Locator>, it works very well! Great tool for our use!

the Farm locator is a great addition to your great site!!!

Got to be honest with you Dan -- when I first viewed your site, I thought it was another flash in the pan... But your site matured in lightening time. You have the gift of knowing the industry from the inside out, recognizing the needs, and filling them. If you don't have a background in Quality Management -- it would surprise me.

Keep up the great work! L.O. TN

Send us your comments, too!

10 Commandments for New Alpaca Breeders

The Clarence Chronicles

BOTTOM LINE:

There's no going back

There’s no going back.

Because of AlpacaStreet, I probably talk to as many or more breeders in the course of a year than anyone. This contact with breeders is one of the true benefits of my job. Who wouldn’t love to “talk alpaca” several times a day? Often I am asked, “When is the alpaca industry going to go back to the way it was?” My answer is, “There’s no going back.” The alpaca business is headed into a new future. This future is one that we can passively allow to unfold before us, or one that we can actively engage, and thereby help shape.

The New Reality

Like everyone else in the country, alpaca breeders have been on a wild ride for the past couple years. This economy has presented considerable challenges for which few breeders were prepared. It is imperative we see the situation around us the way it really is, and not the way we hope it will be. It is only with a clear vision that we will be able to shape the future of the alpaca industry.

The New Customer

There are three main reasons for the current stagnation within the alpaca industry.
1. Home equity loans, the vehicle that provided many the cash needed to enter the business, have all but vanished because the equity position of most homeowners has greatly diminished or disappeared all together.
2. Tax incentives that can be so attractive are a non-issue if people are not making income to write them off against.
3. Concern about the future may keep those otherwise willing to enter the alpaca business out of it. When people aren’t sure if they will have a job a year from now, they may see investing in the alpaca business as imprudent.

As you plan your 2012 sales efforts, you need to consider the above points in an effort to know and address the concerns facing your prospective clients.

The New Market

Eventually, the economy will get better. The housing industry will become strong again, and as it does, the alpaca industry will, too. However, not all boats will rise on the next tide. Barring an amazing and immediate rebound in the housing industry, the alpaca market will have a permanent low-end entry level. This entry level market will be supplied by breeders of lower quality alpacas as well as herd liquidations. The greater the supply of alpacas from these two sources, the lower the entry level will be. Dealing with this basic example of supply and demand is one of the main challenges facing this industry.

As the alpaca industry rebounds, there will even more importance placed on genetics, show records, and quantifiable quality characteristics. These will be the features that will separate the alpacas that appreciate in value from those that wont. I am not going to stand on a soap box extolling the virtues of any of these aspects for evaluating alpacas. I will only say that you must differentiate your alpaca from the rest. Just being an alpaca isn’t good enough.

The New Potential for Fiber

The silver lining that is coming out of the current down-turn is the focus on alpaca fiber as a revenue stream by a growing number of breeders. The time has come to make alpaca fiber a legitimate source of income. Groups like the Cottage Industry Alpaca Breeders Association and The North American Alpaca Fiber Produceers are enthusiastically pursuing the development of the American alpaca fiber market. Alpaca United is another group whose members are from all sectors of the alpaca industry who have joined in a collaborative effort to create and grow a market for American alpaca fiber. The success of these groups, and others like them, will make our lives as alpaca breeders easier by providing added revenue as well as the ability to show prospective clients the end products that make this truly a viable industry.

Never say “Never”

One thing we should learn from this current financial challenge, is to never say “never”. In the late 70’s, mortgage rates were flirting with 20%. We were told interest rates would never drop to the single digits again. They did. In the late 90’s, an exhubarent friend who just experienced a 5% increase in one month in his stock portfolio said his broker assured him there was no reason to believe the growth would end. It did. What goes up eventually comes down. And what goes down, can come back up. The key to bringing up the alpaca industry is for those in it for the long-term to engage its full potential.

And that’s the bottom line.

Dan Coulter

dan@alpacastreet.com

AlpacaStreet >

BOTTOM LINE:

Search Our Archives

Not a Member?

Alpaca Farm & Ranch Locator