Paws For This Week’s Animal Facts: 13 Things To Know About Alpacas

What do you get when you take a longnecked, big-eyed, four-legged creature and combine it with a fuzzy, loving golden doodle? An alpaca! Native to the Andes Mountains of South America, and regarded as the cutest of the "Camelidae" family (which also includes llamas, guanacos, vicuñas, and camels), alpacas have definitely made a name for themselves. Literally! Alpaca is a pretty cool name. So, this week, we're learning about them!

When thinking of alpacas, I bet the first thing that comes to mind are the bold vibrant colors of which their fibers are dyed by native peoples. And while YES, that is a large portion of their contributions to this world, but they also have quite the personality. From smiling, to silly faces, to literally spitting at things, alpacas know how to express themselves. So sit back, relax, and get ready for your newest animal obsession.

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At first, they were farmed mostly in the Puna region of the Peruvian Andes (up on the mountain) and they were later brought to lower elevations. Imagine herding a bunch of soft fluffy alpacas down an ancient mount. How did they do it? Ancient Incas were literally geniuses.
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Also, alpaca fur is so nonflammable that it meets the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's rigid testing specifications as a Class 1 fiber. I'm not exactly sure what that means, but I think this fabric is the best of the best in terms of natural fibers. Can I order 5 blankets?
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