Current interest: Alpacas


This is a relatively new breed of animals that belong to the same family as the more well-known Llama ( the animal in Emperor's new groove ;P ) only that alpacas are about twice as small as llamas and oh they are so cute :)

Why I find these animals fascinating:

• they spit! at people, and among themselves i presume. I do know that the females spit at the males when they are pregnant and do not want to mate anymore. What admirable character and role models for the women of today! though I'm not very sure if human males will be turned off by unladylike spit with high projectile motions...
• they protect sheep! apparently these animals, other than farmed for their fleece, are also bought to be put among sheep to minimise fox attacks on lambs which can occur quite frequently. What wonderful protectors of the weak.
• they get along well with other animals! as previously mentioned, they get along well with sheep, obviously, and also do well with cattle. I have seen how an alpaca nuzzle the sheep around it as it walks into the crowd majestically and bows its head down in communication.
• they have strong specific likes and dislikes that are not quite explainable! in lecture few days back we were told of this story where a group of students were in a pen with an alpaca for a long time, and in came another student who was immediatly spat upon and chased. Just as human beings are attracted to unsolved mysteries, I am very interested in finding out what accounts for an animal's individual preferences and behaviour.

In a nutshell, they are irresistible.

I'm not sure how long my obsession with this animal will persist ( I'm currently reading up the national alpaca review even though it's not required for exam.. sigh.. exams ), but I'll be going to an alpaca farm the week before I return to singapore for my farm attachment scheme. Apparently the owner of the alpaca farm is a vet himself, so I gather the experience can only be good, if not, better! Think I better stop, I think i'm beginning to sound a little nutty here.