July 5 — Meet the alpacas

Firwood Farm hosts Camelid Dynamics

Susan Schell / of the Herald

What happens when an animal lover dreams of being a livestock farmer? That is the dilemma Leanna Stidham faced when she retired and decided to start a farm of her own.

“I grew up on a farm,” Stidham said. “My dad’s a butcher. We always had cattle, horses, dogs, cats and chickens.”

Stidham explained that she always loved animals, but most farm animals were not considered pets.

“You didn’t want to give them a name,” she said. “I wanted to raise something that I didn’t have to kill to make a profit from.”

Stidham remembers visiting the llamas and alpacas at The Puyallup Fair.

Originally from South America, alpacas are fleece-bearing animals closely related to the llama.

“They always had intriguing faces. I thought they were so different and unique and it was an animal you could raise without it being at the animal’s expense.”

Stidham and her husband Greg own Firwood Farm Alpacas, named after its Puyallup valley neighborhood.

One of the benefits of working on a farm is plenty of exercise.

“With the feeding and cleaning you’re doing a lot more physical activity,” she said. “Exercise is a good stress reliever.”

Stidham worked in the finance department and as a training coordinator for the Puyallup Police Department for almost 14 years.

“I had worked at a desk job since I was in high school,” she said.

“The doctor would always say ‘You need more exercise’ and I’d say ‘When?’ Something in my life had to change and the only thing I could change was my job.”

When she quit work, Stidham was looking at the back of a magazine when she spied an ad for alpacas for sale.

“I started doing research and the more I found out the more I liked the idea,” she said.

“They’re small and they’re gentle. They’re about half the size of llamas. You can make enough money to pay for their feed for a year.”

Firwood Farm is involved in alpaca fleece, breeding and sales.

“You can sell the fleece on three or four different levels,” Stidham said. “You can sell the fleece itself or have it processed into roving, which is what spinners use. Or it can be processed into yarn and used to knit or crochet. You use the fleece to make an end product such as sweaters, hats, scarves, gloves and socks.

Firwood also hosts training classes which teach alpacas owners how to handle the shy animals. Stidham found out about the importance of classes through other alpaca owners when one of them suggested she take a Camelid Dynamics course. Alpacas are members of the camelid family, which includes camels. Camelid Dynamics, located in Bend, Ore., certifies instructors specifically to teach the classes.

“Alpacas are different,” Stidham said.

“They’re so soft and adorable, but if you want something huggable buy a dog, because they usually don’t like to be handled. The class emphasis is how to catch, halter and touch your animals in a controlled and respectful manner.

“You learn how camelids respond to fear and what you can do to make them feel safe and what factors to use to determine whether a halter fits safely. Their faces are shaped differently than horses and the wrong halter can constrict their breathing. There are about six different sizes. As they grow you want to make sure their halter is not too small.”

Aside from now hosting the classes with Camelid, Firwood rents out sires for breeding purposes.

“You can sell the males that are not herd-sire quality. Only about 5 percent of the best quality males can be used as herd sires,” Stidham said.

Firwood has nine alpacas, plus a baby “due any day in the next couple weeks,” a dozen chickens, two dogs, five cats, and a “guard llama” named Jethro.

“Male llamas go in with the alpacas and will guard them from dogs, coyotes, or anything that tries to get near the alpacas,” Stidham said.

“They will kill a dog if they come at the alpacas. It’s something in their instinct. Alpacas have much more docile personalities. When we first got Jethro, we brought him home and he would stand at the fence and put his ears up. He watches everything that goes on and keeps an eye on the neighbors.”

Firwood is a member of the Alpaca Owners and Breeder’s Association “AOBA” and the Cascade Alpaca Breeders, which meets once a month in Enumclaw. AOBA will sponsor National Alpaca Farm Day on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 29 and 30. Nationwide, all alpaca farms will be open to the public.

Reach reporter Susan Schell at 253-841-2481 ext. 315 or by e-mail at susan.schell@puyallupherald.com.