Seminar and Workshop Schedule

Seminar and Workshop Programme

The Futurity group are proud to be able to present this excellent collection of eminent practitioners in their specialist fields. There is something here for everyone to enjoy and learn.

To encourage all to benefit from this programme a single low price ticket will cover all the presentations on both days. A small supplementary charge will be made for the two workshops.

All seminars and workshops will be conducted within Hall 2 on the main floor, allowing easy access for those who might be also involved elsewhere.

Caring for the Newborn Cria

Claire Whitehead (UK) BVM&S MS MRCVS Diplomate ACVIM

Claire Whitehead is no stranger to the British alpaca owner and brings many years of specialist camelid veterinary experience from both the USA and the UK. She currently runs the Farm Animal Hospital at the Royal Veterinary College where she has established a camelid medicine and reproduction referral service. This seminar discusses what to expect in a normal newborn cria, what isn’t normal and how to recognise any problems. Strategies to prevent problems from occurring in the neonatal period will also be presented, as well as what can be done to treat any problems that may develop despite your best endeavours.

Alpaca Assessment and Selection

Nick Harrington-Smith (UK), Senior BAS Judge
Seminar and Workshop

Form (conformation) and Function—A brief introduction to what makes a sound alpaca, and how conformation affects “fitness for purpose”. If you are unsure of why and which conformational aspects are important this is an ideal opportunity to better understand the issues.

Fleece—An insight into fleece characteristics, why they are important, and how to identify and use them for breeding and show selection, including hands on practical sessions with an opportunity to see and feel elite fleeces close up. This will be your chance to see the potential that is within alpaca fibre both on and off the alpaca.

Taking Better Photographs

A practical seminar by Doug Hermann (USA), Photography by Herrmann

You will learn how to capture the best alpaca pictures and adjust them for your website and marketing. Doug is a master at this difficult task, regularly being contracted as the official photographer for the best and largest alpaca shows in the USA. He also teaches at local colleges and presents seminars. You will learn the special tricks he uses to ensure the alpaca stands properly and how best to frame and adjust your camera and post production editing to ensure professional looking pictures grace your website and marketing products.

Loom Controlled Weaving

Illustrated lecture, demonstration and taster workshop by Louise Cottey (UK), Lecturer

If you are interested in adding value to your alpaca fibre, inspiration and technique can come no better than attending this lecture and workshop. Lousie, who has over 12 years of professional experience, finds weaving endlessly fascinating, with just the simplest of interactions between warp and weft providing beautiful results. Her work tends to play with the texture of fabric often combining different fibres or weave structures to give a visual and tactile result.

In the seminar you will learn more about the weaving process and how to get the most from your yarn. I will discuss the properties of woven fabric and weaving yarn with plenty of fabric and yarn to handle.

In the following workshop you will get hands-on experience of this traditional and absorbing craft. Begin to unravel the mysteries of weaving by learning about selvedges, fells and sheds! There will be the opportunity to weave two different structures while exploring texture and colour and getting to grips with the loom. This workshop is suitable for complete novices and for those with some experience of weaving. It will give a ‘taste’ of the craft and point you in the right direction to find out more.

Places for this workshop will be limited.

Caring for the Pregnant Alpaca

Claire Whitehead (UK) BVM&S MS MRCVS Diplomate ACVIM

Claire Whitehead is no stranger to the British alpaca owner and brings many years of specialist camelid veterinary experience from both the USA and the UK. She currently runs the Farm Animal Hospital at the Royal Veterinary College where she has established a camelid medicine and reproduction referral service. Every alpaca breeder wants to see happy and healthy crias born in the spring. This will not happen however if the pregnant females are not monitored appropriately during pregnancy. This seminar discusses what can be done to ensure that your females have the best chance of producing those offspring after a problem-free pregnancy, and also presents some problems that may occur during pregnancy such as uterine torsion.

Hand Spinning Alpaca Fibre

Jean Field (UK), Craft Competition Judge

Have you ever wanted to have a go at hand spinning your alpaca fleece or do you want to improve your technique. Jean is the ideal person to help you out and lead you to perfection. She has many years of hand spinning experience, a leading light in her Spinners and Weavers Guild, and we have seen her handiwork at first hand, taking first prize for hand spinning at the 2009 Futurity competition.

Bring your own spinning wheel and fibre, either huacaya or suri. This can be as raw fleece, washed or unwashed. We can card it at the workshop if required. Or if you prefer, bring your own batts or rovings for immediate spinning. Worsted and woollen techniques will be demonstrated together with various long and short draw methods of spinning. Spinning wheel maintenance will also be covered.

Alpaca Stomach Worms

Dr Gerald Coles (UK) MA, PhD and ScD from Cambridge

Dr Coles’ main research interest is the control of parasites with special reference to anthelmintic resistance. He is the author or co-author of more than 280 scientific publications.

Control of worms is particularly difficult in alpacas as they have not been naturally selected for the development of immunity to worms because they evolved on high dry mountainous areas. In their lack of selection for immunity to worms they are rather like goats which are browsers, not grazers. This means more treatments will be required and more treatments results in a greater risk for the development of anthelmintic resistance. Three biological actions can help reduce the challenge with worms: lowering stocking density, alternate grazing with cattle or preferably horses and moving to clean pasture. However, dosing and moving to clean pasture will encourage the development of anthelmintic resistance. So control will be based on treating as required determined by faecal egg counts, using more than one type of anthelmintic and preventing the introduction of resistant worms through quarantine treatments. Deciding when to treat has been greatly improved by the availability of the FECAPK faecal egg counting system.

Faecal Egg Counting—A Practical Workshop

Eurion Thomas (UK) BSc from Innovis Ltd

The importance of faecal egg counting in controlling worm burdens whilst avoiding anthelmintic resistance cannot be over estimated. In this workshop Eurion will take participants through the whole process from the preparation of faecal samples, through to the counting of parasite eggs found in alpaca faeces. All equipment will be provided as part of FECPACK kits which will also be available for purchase.

Places for this workshop will be limited to 16 attendees.