The British Alpaca Society

31/05/2026

Entries are open !! Don’t miss out on the first show of the year 🙂

31/05/2026

🦙 Want to improve your alpaca assessment skills?

The British Alpaca Society is planning a series of Alpaca Assessment Courses for 2026, starting with an online Introduction to Alpaca Assessment course this summer (subject to demand).

📅 Introductory Course (Zoom)• 4 x 2-hour evening sessions• Expected in June or July• £50 per person• Fleece samples posted to delegates

Topics include:✔️ Teeth and bite✔️ Stature and conformation✔️ Legs and gait✔️ Body condition scoring✔️ Genitalia assessment✔️ Understanding fleece traits and quality

Perfect for owners wanting to better understand their alpacas, make informed breeding decisions, and gain confidence assessing fleece and conformation.

📚 Looking ahead...

🦙 Intermediate Alpaca Assessment (October 2026 – subject to demand)A comprehensive 3-day practical course covering huacaya and suri alpacas. Ideal for those wanting to develop their assessment skills, improve breeding decisions, and gain experience handling and evaluating alpacas of varying quality and type.

🦙 Advanced Alpaca Assessment (November 2026 – subject to demand)A 2-day practical course building on Intermediate-level knowledge. Suitable for breeders wishing to further develop their skills and those considering a future judging pathway.

📧 Interested?Contact Duncan at [email protected] to register your interest. Places for future courses will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

AlpacaEducation AlpacaOwners AlpacaFleece AlpacaLife Alpac

24/05/2026

🌾 HAY or HAYLAGE? 🌾

Got spare grass? — now’s the time to make hay or haylage! ☀️🚜

Alpacas are pseudo-ruminants, specially designed to digest and extract nutrients from relatively poor-quality forage. Their largest stomach compartment, the C-1, acts as a fermentation vessel where microbes break down forage into usable nutrients.

🌱 A forage-based diet is the foundation of good alpaca nutrition.

Because UK grass growth is seasonal, preserved forage becomes essential at certain times of year — and the two main options are:

✅ HAY
✅ HAYLAGE

(And occasionally silage.)

But what’s the difference? 👇

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🌾 HAY = DRIED GRASS
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Hay is usually made in June or July from grass with seed heads just appearing.

In ideal conditions:
☀️ Grass is cut
🌬️ Turned and tedded (“fluffed up”)
⏳ Dried over 3–4 warm, sunny days before baling

✔️ Keys to good hay:
• Strong grass growth
• Several dry, breezy days
• Cutting not too close to the ground (leave around 5cm)
• Dry matter (DM) of approx. 85%

📦 Once dry enough, hay can store for years if kept dry.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
🌿 HAYLAGE = PARTIALLY DRIED & WRAPPED
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Haylage is baled earlier, at around 50–60% DM, then wrapped airtight so a partial fermentation preserves it.

Natural microbes ferment sugars in the grass and produce preserving acids (mainly lactic acid).

🌦️ Haylage usually needs:
• Good grass growth
• Just 2 dry days
• Airtight wrapping (minimum 6 layers)
• Careful handling to avoid punctures

📦 At 60% DM, bales stack well with minimal slumping.

Both can work well for alpacas when made and stored correctly

23/05/2026

Remember there are BAS resources and merchandise available for you to use if you are planning to attend shows or other public facing events through the summer with an opportunity to engage with the public.��There are:
* x 2 Gazebos
* Year Books
* Perspex display boxes
* Branded hats, pens, key rings
* Branded backdrop
* Branded Tablecloths
* BAS Stand
* Various pull-ups and banners
�Contact Duncan, using [email protected] or 07496 588781 if you want to use any or all of theses items.

10/05/2026

17/04/2026

✨ FIBRE ZONE RESULTS 2026 ✨

An incredible display of talent and craftsmanship — huge congratulations to all exhibitors for such outstanding work!

🏆 BEST IN SHOW
🐩 Poodle Army
👤 Adel Elwis – Green End Alpacas

🥈 RESERVE BEST IN SHOW
🧶 Hand Knitted Soft Green Cardigan
👤 Trish Tatchell

⸻

🎉 CLASS WINNERS 🎉

Class 1 – Exhibitors Challenge
🥇 Bob Crosbie – Bobcat Alpacas

Class 2 – Hat (Any Design)
🥇 Ailene Charlton – Aylswood

Class 3 – Patterned Headband
🥇 Gemma May-Brown – Stoke Grange

Class 4 – Hand Warmers
🥇 Adel Elwis – Green End

Class 5 – Item to Warm the Feet
🥇 Sarah Small – West Heath

Class 6 – Scarf/Cowl (under 30cm)
🥇 Gemma May-Brown – Stoke Grange

Class 7 – Wrap (over 30cm)
🥇 Alison Wiseman – Balnuith

Class 8 – Jewellery
🥇 Suzanne Smith – Simjest

Class 9 – Garment
🥇 Trish Tatchell

Class 10 – Accessory
🥇 Alison Wiseman – Balnuith

Class 11 – Toy
🥇 Hannah Shilleto – Ebor

Class 12 – Newborn Gift
🥇 Gemma May-Brown – Stoke Grange
🥇 Sarah Small – West Heath

Class 13 – New Home Gift
🥇 Lou Verrill – Lime Tree

Class 14 – Artwork
🥇 Alison Wiseman – Balnuith

Class 15 – Any Other Gift
🥇 Adel Elwis – Green End (6× 1st places for Poodle Army!)

⸻

🧵 MACHINE CLASSES
🥇 Emma Taylor – East Anglia
(Class 18 & 19)

👶 Class 20 – Junior Entry
🥇 Angela Mitchell – Hannahston

⸻

🧶 FIBRE CLASSES

Huacaya (Mill Spun)
🥇 Bob Crosbie – Bobcat

Huacaya (Hand Spun)
🥇 Bridget Tibbs – Cotswold

Suri (Mill Spun)
🥇 Emma Taylor – East Anglia

⸻

👏 Huge congratulations to all exhibitors — incredible creativity and craftsmanship across the board!

BAS