ABOUT US

               


Salt River Alpacas is located in Paris, MO, and situated on beautiful Mark Twain Lake.  The farm is located two hours from St. Louis, one hour from Columbia, and three hours from Kansas City.  We focus on raising Suri alpacas and have only a select group for sale at any one time.  We are a customer focused farm and work diligently with new farms to set up their operation, ensure that they start out with quality Suris, and provide information as it becomes available!

Salt River Alpacas takes a highly quantitative approach to breeding in order to ensure the highest probability of improving the next generation of Suris.  Our herd is periodically evaluated/classed by a third party for conformational adjustments that need to be made, and we utilize skin biopsy testing and histogram information to improve each generation of fleece.   We do show in both halter and fleece classes as an additional source of feedback, and we intend to use EPDs when they become available to our industry. 

We do not base our breeding decisions on geographical ancestry, but rather, on the quantitative and qualitative information in front of us - we don't want to miss an exceptional animal because their sire or dam came from "the other side of the mountains"!!  And last, but definitely not least, we look for, and strive to produce, Suris that are able to hold their Micron Fiber Diameter below 26 microns well into adulthood. 

We believe strongly that the long-term future of this industry will depend on a robust market for Suri fiber.  As such, our whole philosophy and approach to this industry would not be complete without significant involvement in the development of that  market.  Early in our "alpaca career", Liz developed a line of Suri yarns for the needlepoint industry which is sold into retail stores around the country.  From this experience, Liz took on the position of Chairperson for the Suri Network Product Development Committee (SNPDC), and with the help of her committee members, implemented a number of initiatives to develop a full market for U.S. Suri fiber.  These initiatives and the results they are achieving can be found at www.surinetwork.org.  Recently, Liz stepped down from that committee in order to start a cash cooperative for the Suri community.  That project is quickly taking off, and we hope to be up and running in 2011.  On the following pages, we also tell you what we are doing with the fiber that comes off each animal!  This gives you a practical application to these beautiful animals as well.

We believe in being upfront with all of our customers about the quality of the animals for sale, and what can be expected from the offspring of each animal.  Not every animal will produce show winning offspring.  Some will take a couple of generations to get to that level, and they are priced accordingly.  If you are just starting out and can wait for those blue ribon winners, you can buy into this industry at a very reasonable level.  If you are someone that wants to start off at the top, we've got excellent seedstock to get you going!  On the following sales pages, you will find our animals grouped in alpha categories with explanations of what each group represents.

So, please check out the rest of our site, feel free to give us a call with questions, and by all means, feel free to stop by and see our beautiful Suris!