HISTORY 27

April 16, 2006

Sorry it's been so long since I posted here. I don't even have any excuse, except perhaps my disappointment over not being an alpaca farmer anymore. It turns out that Rick's decision to give it all up was the best decision, because it seems that when the truck ran over me, I broke a disk in my spine!

When the physical therapy didn't help my pain or my back after three months, the doctor sent me to a "pain management" specialist, who gave me morphine sulfate for the pain and sent me to a surgeon. The surgeon ordered another MRI of my back and hips, and found that one of the disks in my lower back had been broken and was protruding into the area reserved for the spinal cord. This caused a rather serious pinched nerve, which affects both of my hips. The radiologist told me that I wouldn't be able to tell that the problem came from my back instead of from my hips, and I sure can't! <grin>

I wore a "jowett" brace for several months - a torture device designed to keep me from bending my spine. But when it was all over, the bone healed nicely. It still protrudes toward the spinal cord, and the nerve is still severely pinched, but the bone has healed. While they could do surgery to remove the protruding edge, both the doctor and I think that might be a bit too risky. So I'll just take Alleve or something for the pain in my hips, and I'll be okay.

Oh - the insurance company did send me a nice settlement to keep me from suing Rick. We used the money to pay off the bills we had incurred while getting started in the alpaca business, and it's a great feeling to have them all paid!

So now all that's left is selling Camella and First Lady. They're being agisted with Ernie Kellogg at Double 'O' Good in Virginia, and either have been bred to their Black Cloud (Camella) or soon will be (First Lady). I hope we sell them soon - check our sales page if you're interested in buying a couple of true-black females with nice heritage!

This has been a wonderful experience for us, and I'm glad we did it. Alpacas are wonderful little critters, and I heartily recommend that you get acquainted with a few of them, even if you decide not to get into the alpaca business.

Remember, not everyone has the difficulties we've had - in fact, most folks don't. But be sure to start with sufficient capital and more than two alpacas! It's hard to build the herd at the rate of one cria a year, and there will always be unexpected events that may set you back a bit. Learn all you can before you invest. Go to seminars and conventions; get to know the people as well as the animals; be sure you have a veterinarian nearby who, even if s/he doesn't know anything about alpacas now, is willing to learn. You may even have to give your vet the alpaca medical books, or pay for all or part of his visits to the medical seminars held by Dr. David Anderson. It will be worth it, believe me!

  

  Previous