Natural Health - Natural Fiber!

I recently read an article on the reality of unnatural cotton. Since we as Alpaca owners are working toward fiber to fashion I wanted to see what it said. I was amazed to find that there are cotton growers who use synthetic fertilizers and pesticides many of which are so highly toxic that they not only destroy the environment, they injure or kill plants, animals, and people as well.

More than a third of a pound of synthetic fertilizers and farm chemicals are used just to grow one pound of cotton, enough for a single T-shirt. Multiply those chemicals by all the cotton clothes, for those of us who love cotton that we have in our closets, plus each household’s towels and sheets, and that adds up to an enormous amount of poisons that we are all contributing to the toxicity of this planet.

Because cotton accounts for about half the world’s textile sales, some 25 percent of the insecticides and more than 10 percent of the pesticides used in the world are used to grow cotton.

Yes, we do have organic cotton farmers. They depend on healthy, rich, living soil to produce strong plants resistant to pests and disease. They do not use synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, defoliants or GMO seeds. They use manure or natural phosphates as well as crop rotation with plants that naturally put nitrogen into the soil.

So, now what does this all have to do with Alpacas?

Our goal is to raise Alpacas for the fiber. Right! But in order to have healthy, luxurious, beautiful fiber we need to look at the health of the animal that will be producing it for us. I know that we usually discuss breeding practices about obtaining beautiful fiber but let’s look at their health to obtain beautiful fiber as well.

Using common sense we realize and many vets have told us the same thing, if we continue to over medicate our animals we will end up with a resistant strain of parasites which will cause the immune system of our animals to be over taxed. Taxed immune systems create all kinds of dis-ease (disharmony).

As a Natural Health Practitioner for over 30 years I have cared for people and animals.
So when my children decided to raise Alpacas I began to look at supplementing their diet with an herbal formula that would be a natural way to control parasites and build the immune system of the Alpaca. We have been more than pleased with how the formula is working.

So now that I have a healthy supplement for their overall health, my next goal is to see how we can have beautiful fiber. Imagine our own hair, some people are bald, some have thinning hair, and some have a beautiful full head of hair. Well we know genetics play a role in that so here is where our breeding practices come in. But more than that I have seen people change their rules as to how they eat, drink, live and take supplements that has changed their lives and their hair. Now, saying that, I haven’t seen a bald man grow a full head of hair but then again I haven’t seen a bald alpaca. But what I have seen is people and alpacas with very fine thin hair and fleece. Already we are seeing fleece grow back where our alpaca had lost some, just from the formula we are using.

Can you imagine for those of us out there who have the deep love and passion for our alpacas growing beautiful luxurious fleece that we have a textile company that does only alpaca fleece in the USA. WOW! So you say I am a big dreamer. Well if I don’t dream it – then who will?

I love my Alpacas!

Have questions feel free to email me! I would love to hear from you. I will answer as many questions as I can using our monthly natural health article.