Llama Economics

So I made a trip to lamafest this weekend. (Yes, lamafest is the correct grammar; llama is a type within the lama genus. And since the festival also included alpacas, it is properly called lamafest.)

I had a good time getting to hang out with the lama farmers and just hearing them talk about their craft. It's a bit stunning, though, to walk around at all the custom craft items which usually cost $30-50, although some larger pieces of art cost much, much more.

Some factoids:

• You can purchase your own pregnant alpaca for $20,000-25,000.
• Shearing a lama (yearly) yields around 10lbs of wool.
  
• Lama have 1 baby, or "cria", per year.
  
• For alpaca, Internet suggests fleece yields $20-40/lb, or $160/lb for yarn

I'm still trying to figure out if it's profitable to get into the lama business. It's a bit troubling to me that the primary value of alpaca is currently breeding them since there is a short supply of them. That is, selling alpaca doesn't seem like a stable business model since unlike, say, food, there's not a need for an on-going supply of alpaca. It also seems very expensive to get into: One needs shelter, land, transport, vaccinations, veterinary visits, time at the shows, etc., etc.

On the plus side, one can get a lama pet for a couple hundred bucks, which seems like a very attractive option for a furry self-propelled lawn-mower. They also don't smell, generate fertilizer, make wool, and hum. I suppose that's not bad for a pet.

There are also miniature lama, I discovered -- I suppose for small lawns and indoor pets.