Finest fleece

Ted Pickering with Pippa. All are welcome to Chetwyn Farms this weekend to visit the animals and experience the highly prized fleece alpacas like Pippa produce.

Livestock farming without the moral dilemma

The essential tension in livestock farming is that one day it becomes necessary to kill the animals you’ve cared for, fed and protected for months, perhaps years. Most farmers don’t actually do the killing anymore—but there is no escaping the fate of your animals once the door closes on the truck.

Ted Pickering and Shauna Seabrook were both keenly interested in animals and in keeping their century-old farm—a farm. But neither were interested in presiding over the arbitrary and untimely termination of their animals’ lives.

Instead, their farm on Closson Road, is populated with cats, a dog, a couple of horses and nine alpacas. The alpacas are the only expected source of farm income. The long, fine and highly-prized fibre is used garments where traditional wool may be deemed to heavy or prickly. Like all farming, the hard work and investment is done upfront, the reward is uncertain and perhaps years down the road.

Alpaca fibre is less dense than sheep’s wool. It has a hollow core that gives it equivalent dimension to sheep’s wool, but with much less mass, making it lighter and softer.

So prized in fact that an alpaca scarf may easily fetch $300 or more. Alpaca fibre is spun and knitted into sweaters, socks, hats and mittens. Products that may be easily packaged and shipped around the world.

“Cherished for centuries by royalty and discerning consumers, alpaca fleece is softer than cotton, warmer than goose down, finer than cashmere, stronger than mohair, hypoallergenic, does not pill or ball, more breathable than thermal knits, lighter warmer and stronger than wool,” says Ted.

He has spent his career advising large consumer goods marketers how best to package their retail presence in more appealing and successful ways. Shauna leads fundraising efforts for the McEwen Regenerative Medicine Centre at Toronto Western Hospital.

On Closson Road they are keen to maintain the farm designation, but limited in acreage and by disinclination for the harder edges of raising livestock. Alpacas presented the opportunity to yield a distinctive, high-value product without impacting the beast’s life expectancy.

There are other advantages, Ted has learned. They are very easy to care for. The alpaca graze most of the day in the paddock during the spring, summer and fall. In the winter, a few flakes of hay will make them happy all day. There are other chores from time to time—but mostly the animals enjoy their own company, and graze contentedly in the paddock.

Alpacas are friendly, welcoming and curious animals— eager to greet a new visitor to the paddock. They are also hygienically conscientious animals, collectively pooing in one spot—away from where they graze and sleep.

Predators are a threat. Double fencing lineseach paddock—extending below ground—to dis-courage coyotes that roam the territory.

Most evenings, Ted and Shauna can hear coyotes howl and cry in the near distance. But they haven’t lost an animal. The horses help to keep the predators at a wary distance.

Ted, like other breeders, is focused on improving the genetics of the herd—he’s seeking a better fibre—longer, silkier and softer. He is also turning his attention to marketing and retailing his fibre. It is available at Rosehaven in Picton and in pop-up locations such as the Wellington Market on Saturday mornings.

He would like to open doors on his small modern shop called the SHED, reclaimed from a former chicken coop on his farm, but current regulations discourage it.

So instead, this weekend Ted and Shauna are hosting an open house on their farm, welcoming everyone to spend some time with the animals, experience the farm and the fine fleece produced here, and feel the softness of garments fashioned from Alpaca fibre in the SHED.

“Additionally, we will have available hand-knit fashion creations from artisans from fair-trade alpaca farms in Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia,” says Ted. “Exclusive to SHED is a range of alpaca fashions and home accessories by New York designer Alicia Adams, who, along with her husband, have a 200-head alpaca farm in upstate New York. SHED is happy to be partnering with all artisans in developing the alpaca market in Prince Edward County.”

Come and spend some time with nine sociable alpacas this weekend from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Chetwyn Farm, at 500 Closson Road, between Chase and Belleville Road. Experience a gentler form of farming.