On this day, February 27th, an undisclosed number of years ago, my father was born. It seems only fitting that we use our daily post today to honor him, since he was the driving force behind us becoming alpaca ranchers. As it says in our “About” page, Dad once drove by a field full of funny looking animals standing on little hills, and said “We need to have those.” And now we do, and they’ve brought us closer together than ever.

You know how every pet seems to have a special affinity with one family member? Bobbin (the beagle) is my bro’s dog, and Olive (the poodle) is Dad’s, and Heidi and Boogie answer first to Mom. Well, Dad is the unofficial alpaca herd leader. If something is not to their liking, he is the one they all look at.

Dad dries off Marseille as Mikayla looks on. I bet he's saying "Yes Mikayla, you made a pretty baby"

Maybe it’s because he’s also quiet and calm, but they definitely have an affinity for him. Even the standoff-ish alpacas like Tuscany trust Dad. And Dad is Merlin’s clear favorite (and I’m sure it has nothing to do with being hand fed his crumbles).

What is this thing on your head?

The affection obviously goes both ways. So happy birthday, Dad! I’m sure we all looked at you like you were nuts when you came up with this whole alpaca thing, but it has been more fun than a barrel of laughing monkeys.

Maybe for his birthday, I should have gotten him a new hat, eh? Blech. 🙂