What do alpacas eat?
Alpacas are ruminants which means that they chew there cud like a cow .They survive very well on lower protein feed with hay or pasture grass, providing that they have a balanced mineral diet.There are a number of commercial alpaca mixes on the market these are mainly used for providing the essential vitamin and mineral content required rather than a bulk feed which is obtained through grazing .In general they are good grazers and are not fussy eaters .Getting a hold of commercial mixes is not difficult.
A. Alpacas are ruminants, meaning they chew cud like a cow or deer. They survive well on different kinds of low protein hay or pasture grass, providing it has a balanced mineral content. Because alpacas evolved in harsh conditions, they digest their food more efficiently than other ruminants. The cost to feed an alpaca is very reasonable.
Primarily alpacas eat grass. Either by grazing in your pasture or by eating the hay you provide. When purchasing hay avoid timothy and alfalfa. These grasses don’t provide the right mix of nutrients for alpacas and the seed heads get stuck in their fleece. What is generally recommended is second cut orchid grass. This however may be a bit difficult to find. What you need to look for is hay that is leafy and has small diameter stems. I buy enough hay to feed 1 bale per week to each alpaca during the time when pasture is not available. In addition to hay or pasture, you will need to feed your alpacas some fortified grain. This is grain with additional vitamins and minerals added. Buy something that is specially designed for use with alpacas. We use the alpaca maintenance crumbles from Agway. This mixture was designed by Dr. Norman Evans and it has worked well for us. I am sure that other manufacturers have similar products. How much you feed depends on the weather and the breeding status
