Female Alpacas are usually sold when pregnant. When you purchase a bred female, you are buying the mother and the baby she is carrying.

Female Alpacas are pregnant for most of their lives. The gestation period for an Alpaca is approximately 11 months. It is usual for Alpacas to be re-bred about 2 weeks after delivery. One of the signs of a pregnant female is that she 'spits off' the male. The females are checked at intervals after breeding to make sure that they are in fact pregnant. Pregnancy is usually confirmed by an ultrasound. Once the female is bred she shows no further interest in the males. The female will usually nurse her cria (baby) until about 6 months of age. Many females will self wean their cria, but others will allow the cria to continue nursing. It is advisable to remove (wean) the cria at about 6 months to ensure that the developing fetus gets the correct amount of nourishment that it needs.

Maidens

Maidens are young females that have not been bred. They are usually under 100lbs body weight and less than one year old. If a maiden reaches maturity at a time of year when it is not advisable to breed her, she is held open until it is considered advantageous to breed her. Alpacas are usually bred to ensure that the cria hits the ground in the spring or summer. In our Canadian climate, crias born in the warmer months appear to be heavier at birth and grow and develop more quickly than those born outside in the winter months.