06/18/2026
A certain high-profile "animal rights" organization has lashed out against shearing of in a disgustingly exaggerated and inaccurate piece of propaganda. They have enlisted celebrities and brow-beaten clothing manufacturers to stop using alpaca fleece, which is one of the most sustainable and animal-friendly/environmentally friendly fibers.
I asked the head of this organization what she thought we should do, given that alpacas are domesticated animals who do not shed naturally. Ingrid's only answer was that humans should never have domesticated any animals and that I, a friend up until that time, knew how she felt about domesticated animals: i.e., that they should not exist. Think about it: no more cats, dogs, rabbits, cows, horses, chickens, goats, sheep, hamsters, pigs, donkeys and many more.
Dogs were domesticated 15,000 years ago.
Cats 9,000 years.
Alpacas 6,000 years.
Whatever previous humans should or should not have done with the wild animals around them (and keep in mind that wild animals today are being hunted to extinction!), they are here with us and many of us do not want to give them up.
Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to take care of them. That includes shearing and other husbandry.
Here is a video of an alpaca that luckily found his way to a rescue after years of neglect. And, by the way, notice that it's not just the pounds and pounds of matted fleece that cause health issues; it's the untrimmed toenails.
Now you see why I fight this organization -- and my former friend. I have written to manufacturers and retailers, to publications that reprinted this group's absurd lies and distortions. And I educate everyone I come in contact with. It is not cruel to shear alpacas. It is cruel NOT to shear alpacas. And I will always fight for the animals.
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