For the love of alpacas

The JennCria Ranch houses several alpaca — a relative of the llama.

JennCria Ranch all started with an "I love alpacas" commercial. And by the time you're done with the tour of the grounds, chances are, if you don't love alpacas too, you'll at least like them quite a bit — and like their fiber products.
Established in 2008 just a few miles north of Versailles, JennCria Ranch is the cria of California native Jennifer Rushing. In alpaca terms, "cria" is the word for a baby.

Actually the start of JennCria Ranch started long before Rushing saw the commercial in 2005. She has been an animal lover for as long as she can remember and always wanted to ranch.
"But in California, there's no land. Well, there is, but you can't buy it without being a millionaire," Rushing says. "It just wasn't feasible to start a ranch there. And I was tired of all the rushing around, the keeping up with the Jones, the clock watching. I wanted a slower, more down-to-earth lifestyle."
Starting an alpaca ranch, however, was no whim for Rushing who says she researched the idea for four months before deciding that this was what she wanted to do.

About the alpacas Related to the perhaps more well-known llama, alpacas are a member of the Camelid family native to the Andes Mountains in South America. Raised for their hair, alpacas are sheared once a year similar to sheep. Their "winter" coat is then process to eventually be spun into yarn. The JennCria herd is now up to 25 and includes Huacayas and Suris, including a rare All Grey Suri. Many of the alpacas at JennCria are a cross of these two types, which are known for different fiber characteristics. Suris are more rare in the United States. With long and ropey locks, its fleece usually has a softer feel, according to Rushing, while Huacayas' are more crimped and dense. The focus of JennCria's breeding program is impeccable lineage, fineness and density of fiber, Rushing says. Many of her alpacas are also Accoyo — known for their dense fiber — these animals' pedigree trace back to the Peruvian of the same name. In the first fiber show JennCria entered, two of its adult males, known as herdsires, took home ribbons.

Seeking a diversified genetic set in her alpacas in order to offer a good choice in the animals and their fiber, she bought alpacas from ranches in California, Oregon, Washington, North Carolina and Ohio and boarded them at those ranches while she looked for the location.
Rushing came to consider the Versailles area through the Lake of the Ozarks after her brother first vacationed then bought a home here. She almost gave up on the lake area after looking for some time.
But the place she calls home now was the last place Rushing says she had determined that she was going to check out before giving up.
"As soon as we saw it, we knew. When Evva (Cason - the realtor) wasn't looking we were slapping each other — going, 'This is it. This is it,'" Rushing recalls.