Camelid Community 2011 Report

Moving Forward Together

 

July 29-31, 2011

The Clarion, Kansas City, MO

By Sheila Fugina and Barb Baker

 

Background

 

Because it is the only national forum that offers the opportunity for dialog among representatives of national, regional and local camelid organizations, as well as interested individuals and owners, Camelid Community provides a unique occasion to assess the state of our camelid world. Camelid Community does not have a board of directors, officers or great funds at its disposal. The gathering brings together concerned llama and alpaca enthusiasts to discuss issues, suggest solutions and work toward common goals that are critical to the existence of our industry. The overall focus has been to concentrate on areas where the llama and alpaca communities can cooperate and collaborate. Participants attend because they care about their animals and about the future of our industry. Unlike most conferences, Camelid Community’s agenda is set by participants. It is a “move forward and get things accomplished” group and not simply a weekend gathering to wring hands and rehash old problems.

 

Building on Previous Years

 

Last year’s Camelid Community produced The Basics of Alpaca & Llama Fiber brochure, which provides tips on harvesting, utilizing and selling our camelid fleeces. Other Camelid Community gatherings have produced The Basics of Alpaca & Llama Care brochure; Customize to Maximize, a packet of ideas for having a successful llama or alpaca business; a press packet that includes a llama and alpaca fact sheet, poster, sample press release and tips on how to use the various publicity pieces; a standards of care document for animal control and a piece on raising camelids. Camelid Community 2010 participants felt the need for a brochure to encourage youth involvement with camelids, so the 2011 gathering created Alpacas, Llamas & YOUth by the end of the weekend. Like the brochures on care and fiber, the youth brochure is a simple, easy to reproduce piece that allows organizations and individual farms or businesses to add their contact information before distribution. Like previous materials, it will be sent to llama and alpaca organizations and newsletters. All publications and reports presented at or created by Camelid Community are available free for downloading at www.icinfo.org, the web site for the International Camelid Institute. 

 

Additional Discussion

 

Marketing both animals and their fiber was discussed at Camelid Community 2011, and it was felt that the one upside to a soft economy is that more people can afford to buy llamas and alpacas as the prices decrease. The downside is that it has increased the need for rescue and re-homing. National attention to camelid rescue and increased involvement by national and regional groups in planning for unwanted animals was a major concern. A group will be working on ways to help make that happen. The importance of keeping camelid research a funding priority—at whatever level an individual or association can manage—also was stressed.   

 

Looking Ahead

 

Because the brochures have been popular and are being widely used, both in print form and on organization websites, Camelid Community 2011 participants decided to continue to produce more in the basic brochure series and plan to focus on therapy, packing and rescue/re-homing at Camelid Community 2012. For information on how you or your organization can be involved in Camelid Community, contact Barb Baker (bebaker@earthlink.net)

or Sheila Fugina (bsfugina@pressenter.com). Input and participation is welcomed from all quarters of the alpaca and llama communities in the U.S. and beyond.