POMARIA, S.C. — On Saturday, a local Pomaria farm opened its doors for Alpaca Farm Day to educate others about the tall but friendly animals.
And while these animals are known for spitting and kicking, they do so much more.
"Don't be so rude," one woman said as an alpaca dug into her feed bag.
"Oh my God," one farm-goer said as the alpaca spat feed at her as she fed him.
Friendly but a little ill-mannered and often mistaken for llamas, alpacas are different, according to Alicia Holbrook, who owns Carolina Pride Pastures.
"They're not llamas; a lot of people go that's a cute llama, but I'm like, that's an alpaca," Holbrook said.
She's teaching people the differences with Alpaca Farm Day Weekend, which include traits such as size, type of fleece and their face. Alpaca farms nationwide participated in the event to educate people about the soft fleece-coated animals.
"It's the last full weekend in September, but all farms across the United States will open up their farms that have alpacas, and people come out and learn about the animals," she said.
While cute, fluffy, and sometimes abrasive, alpacas have much to offer beyond their companionship.
"Hats, gloves, scarves, sweaters, socks into those finished made products. You can have dryer balls - nesting balls for the birds," Holbrook said.
It all starts in clusters of fleece after shaving the alpacas. Then, Alicia sends it to a mill to be cleaned. It returns in big bags, and people like Tammy Kitchen spin it into something new.
"From start to finish, this will take me - this one took me about three or four hours," Kitchen said. "So, I'll card it and get it real fluffy so that it's easier to spin."
Yarn. Tammy's hand spins the fleece into spindles of yarn sold at Carolina Pride Pastures. Alicia said the yarn is used to make the scarves and hats.
The alpacas are also used for their byproduct as fertilizer, and some farms produce them for meat. But, aside from their professional use, they're warm and fuzzy.
If you want to get in on the alpaca fun, Carolina Pride Pastures is hosting another open day on Sunday, Sept. 24, starting at 10 a.m.