By Mike Safley
The Alpaca Registry that we know in 2004, which has tens of thousands of alpacas, thousands of owners, a corporate structure with a board of directors, newsletter, DNA testing and other high tech trappings was an impossible dream back in 1986. Today’s Registry was put together, by a hard working group of alpaca pioneers, one decision at a time. The path was not always clear, the early Alpaca Registry was an orphan of the International Lama Registry (ILR) and the alpaca community had to battle to maintain control of its database and the decisions affecting the registration of alpacas. The ability to control our own future, free of the ILR, that the Alpaca Registry Inc. (ARI) enjoys today, eighteen years later, came at a price, and this freedom should be held dear by every alpaca breeder.
Read the Entire Article