PennyLane Alpacas is owned and managed by Bob and Meri Beitz. 

PennyLane Alpacas started as a small group of 3 alpacas in Yatala in October 2007. By November 2008 it was time to start looking for larger acreage as we had grown in numbers to 9 but more importantly, we had outgrown our backyard. By December 2008 we had bought 11½ acres in Nanango, 3 hours drive northwest from Brisbane. Mid January 2009 saw us move 9 alpacas and 2 cats, 2 almost teenagers and ourselves into a small home 10 km out of town. We have since grown to 25 alpacas, 2 cats, 2 dogs and 1 horse.. With plenty of room to move outdoors, I set about designing the layout of the paddocks and with a bit of outside help, fencing was put in, trenches were dug and pipe laid from the dam to pump water to each paddock. Not a bad effort for a couple of city-kids taking a country tree-change.

Our growth in numbers came a little quicker than I had originally planned. Starting with 1 certified male, not quite of age, saw us getting impatient with not having cria. Christmas 2007 we purchased a black pregnant girl, in readiness for when Peppa ‘came of age’. April 2008 we purchased another 2 pregnant girls—we can’t have just one cria was my cry, it will need friends! So on 1¼ acres we became 9 animals. 2009 saw the purchase of 2 more females—one pregnant with a male at foot, one empty for Peppa who was now ‘of age’. Included in this package was a stud male, the handsome Gunnamatta Jean Claude, sire of the male cria at foot. With all my girls now empty it was mating time. And so it happens PennyLane will increase by 8 in 2010. October 2009 saw me purchase—and rescue—a lone alpaca, named Malcolm. With no history for him available from his previous owners, I now have the task of finding out about this gorgeous friendly entire male. November came and I knew I needed to purchase another female. She’s a local girl and ready for the first round of 2010 matings. And then, before we all knew where 2009 had gone, I happened upon the regretful sale of the gorgeous Blackgate Lodge Wellinton Boots. A very welcome Christmas present! So with all my beautiful alpacas, with all their beautiful colours, I have no need to be colour specific.

I have available for matings the proven Gunnamatta Jean Claude, a very desirable light fawn, the proven Blackgate Lodge Wellinton Boots, regal and gorgeous in his coat of rose grey, and the up-and-coming, with a little bit of attitude thrown in, Stanmore Park Black Peppa, stunning in his coat of solid black.

JANUARY 2012 -

YAY! another female, and what a surprise she is, and so hard to find a suitable name for. "She" is to be registered as Harli-Quin, paddock name of Quin. She is out of Stanmore Park Black Peppa and a solid white female.  Yep, she's an appaloosa. See pic on News Page.

One more girl due at the end of January and that will see us out of Cria Watch until May 2012.

Little bit of useless information - the last 2 girls, Lilly and Quin, we both the result of matings on a rising moon. Trivia yeah, but it worked! All boys born during 2011 were from matings after the full moon. And, as mother nature knows best, PennyLane Alpacas is running 50/50 on male/female cria.

UPDATE:  DECEMBER 2011 -

2011 is almost over, a good year cria-wise for PennyLane Alpacas.  The expected solid black male cria arrived, followed by my first Rose Grey cria. A mating that has since been repeated. Cowboy is a male progeny of Blackgate Lodge Wellinton Boots.  A solid black girl was a lovely welcome, particularly since her mum spat for the previous 12 months to produce nothing -Jeli is  the only girl for 2011 to date. Another Rose Grey male arrived just before shearing. Tali is a half brother to Cowboy and so different in his colouring. Fleeces of both boys are promising in their low micron and softness.  A couple more girls due between now and New Year. Tori finally delivered a Rose Grey female, Nutmeg (Posh),  in December and our last cria for 2011 arrived around 5.30pm 30th December. A female, Callisto (Lilly)), dark grey and white with blue eyes.

 

UPDATE: 4th  FEBRUARY 2011 -

What a colour surprise this guy little is. PennyLane Biscuit arrived just before lunchtime, white with a medium brown splodge on his back, and splodges on his face. I have repeated this mating just to see what the lucky dip brings.

UPDATE: DECEMBER 2010 -

With Christmas almost upon us, the sudden arrival of PENNYLANE CAPRI was a welcome distraction. A blue-eyed white male, but that's ok because his half sister Prada is a blue-eyed white. After a few days of extra care, the focus became Christmas again. 3 days before Christmas Prada presented us with a blue-eyed white female, at 304 days gestation. Skip Christmas, we got a premmie to attend to. Little Willow bought us joy and showed us all how delicate life can be. With an alpaca, when something goes wrong, its downhill fast. We said goodbye to Willow, our Angel in Disguise, just after Christmas.

UPDATE: 30 JUNE 2010 - WHY DO THINGS GO WRONG?

Well, 2010 started out so well, all the girls were pregnant and spitting off. Early March saw me screaming in the paddock early one Sunday morning. One girl, 7 months pregnant, had delivered a stillborn female. After tears and tantrums I got over it :)  Mid March saw me screaming with tears and tantrums again. A maiden, 2 weeks before her due date, delivers a female, membrane intact, and I wasn't there to help. I had been watching this girl daily for the last couple of weeks, but this day I had to go to Brisbane. I left home at 1.30pm after watching her for most of the morning, her cria was found 4 hours later. Oh those tears and tantrums!! Well, I reasoned, I still have 2 more girls due before winter sets in. Well, those due dates came and went, those girls kept getting bigger and bigger and continued to spit at the boys. And then, one morning I was running late and didnt get out to the paddock for coffee with the girls until 9 am. And there she was...........PennyLane Calypso, just standing and still a little bit wet and 373 days gestation. Oh good, she's stong and healthy. Now just one more girl to go. And here I sit at the end of June and She has just had a mating! Why can they spit off at the boys for 12 months and then turn around and say 'hay ok, I'm ready now for a mating'? hmmmmmmmmm ........fascinating creatures! Just as well i love em all.