Saturday, February 14, 2009

First Ranch Visit At New Place

We are gearing up for our first Ranch visit at the new ranch. We have some great people from Germany staying at the hotel and they will be visiting tomorrow. It has taken a while to get into the swing of things, but here we go.

Friday, February 6, 2009

website in construction

Ok-
Final one for the night....
We are building a website, so check out windyridgeranchalpacas.farming.officelive.com

Life update-

Here is a quick life update on us all-

Lonnie is still managing at the Office Depot. He would much rather be golfing in AZ and working outside all day, but he is hanging in there.

Lorna is the stay at home paca mom. She does a very good job at keeping them fed, safe, and healthy.

Jamie and Erik still live in Billings. Jamie is managing at the Super 8, and Erik is turning big wrenches for I-State Truck center.

Jessica and Derek are living in Montevideo MN. Jessica finished CNA courses and now works for a nursing home there. Derek is still working as a part time sheriff and a full time city cop.

Justine has a boyfriend is now living with him in Laramie WY. She is working at a Honda call center and also trying to get on at the Hilton Garden Inn. Her boyfriend Tyler is working at Little Ceasers, and also as a truss builder.

The pacas are doing good, and our long awaited cria from Maddi is showing lots of movement. We should have a little one on the ground in little over a month. Then another in April with the rest to arrive in June.
Lorna and Jamie will be traveling to Denver CO for the GWAS alpaca show in May.

Hope everyone reading this post is doing will in the new year.
Jamie

Dedication to September Morn!!

September Morn died on January 19, 2009. She fought a long hard battle, but in the end she just couldn't beat the infection that had traveled to her inner ear and then to her brain. It has been a little different not having her in the barn. The alpacas took about a week to adjust to the loss of a herd mate.

She will always be remembered for all of the corky things she did. She was a spoiled girl who loved her apples, and before the ear infections she would stand on her back feet for her treats. Just like a dog does to beg.

We still get teary eyed every once in a while when we think of her adorable face, but are comforted knowing she won't suffer any more.

She was loved by many, and is now grazing on the green pastures of heaven:)

Friday, January 9, 2009

Made it through the deep freeze, and now working on Sept. Morn

We made it through the deep freeze of December, but now the new issue at hand is Sept. Morn. We woke up New Year's Day to find her with severe facial paralysis on her left side. After conferring with several vets the consensus is that she has a severe inner ear infection and the out come doesn't look promising. Although, she is still eating, and up and about. She is starting to get a little weak, and loosing some coordination. We are praying and hoping for the best and can only take it one day at a time.

As for the humans, we all made it through Christmas. It was quiet and very nice to be with family, but missed having Erik and my siblings around.

Hope this all finds you doing well in 2009...
Jamie

Friday, December 12, 2008

Getting ready for the big freeze!!!

Today is 12/12/08 and we are gearing up for the Arctic blast starting tomorrow, and it is sticking around until the end of the week. We have one female with an ear infection, she has lost a weight and we are worried about the cold taxing her system. We will be coating her and couple others and crossing our fingers. Next few days are supposed to be from -8 to 0 and then nothing above 20 through Friday. At night that means -14+. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

Tomorrow is a birthday party for a good friends little girl Julie. We are going rollerskating (well some will, not me). Then off to work all weekend.

Take care and have a good day.

Thursday, December 11, 2008

About our Pacas

Welcome to Windy Ridge Ranch Alpacas, The Tharps, and Egelands;

We have 29 alpacas, 1 llama, and a great pyr guard dog on 20 acres. We are trying to adjust to the climate here, and the seasons. We came from Laramie, Wy and sat a little over 7200 feet, and now we are sitting at 3500 feet. The alpacas had to adjust to 100+ degree days through the summer (Laramie highs were around 85). This weekend will feel more like Wy with the highs of -6 degrees for 2-3 days. Yuck.

We were graced by 4 cria (baby alpacas) this summer, even better 3 were girls and 1 boy. We had some very great friends baby watch at their place for us while we moved. We wouldn't have been able to make all of our trips if it wasn't for Jim and Gail from Beartooth Alpacas of Roberts, MT. We look forward to 6 cria in 2009.

What brought us to MT? Well, Jamie fell for one of our ranch workers (Erik) in the spring/summer of 2007. Windy Perkins, our boss was selling out, and we had no plans where we were going. We took over the business name from Windy as we were well known by Windy Ridge Ranch Alpacas in the industry, and wanted to continue on without having to make that change. Erik was attending Wyo Tech in Laramie and graduated as a diesel tech, moved back to Billings, MT, and went to work for I-State Truck center. Again he was a big part of the move and continues to help out at the ranch. Jamie decided to move, and we found a place that would work for the animals. So here we are.

Lonnie is a store manager for Office Depot. He misses being able to work outside everyday, but seems to be adjusting well. He does what he can to help and is really good at giving the meds that Jamie can't make it out to the ranch to give.

Lorna has learned how to do a lot on her own. She is the stay at home alpaca mom. Justine was at home for a while, but moved back to Laramie, Wy. So now Lorna is all on her own. She finds lots of ways to fill the day and more. She has done lots of projects on her own and has surprised us all. We are really proud of here.

Jamie lives in the city of Billings with Erik. She is Managing at the local Super 8, and loving it. She misses the alpacas everyday, but still tries to make it out as much as she can.

This is a little update for Windy Ridge Ranch, Jamie, Erik, Lorna, Lonnie, and the herd.

Thanks for visiting :)