.png)
Alpaca Breeding & Birthing Course
Bringing new life into the world can be an incredibly exciting and rewarding endeavour, but it can also feel a little daunting. This course combines essential theory with hands-on practical learning to give you real-life experience needed for successful alpaca breeding & birthing.
Led by experienced alpaca breeders and working sheep farmers, this course is designed to give you a solid understanding of the key principles of alpaca breeding, prenatal care throughout gestation, what to expect during birthing, and the essential husbandry needed to keep both dam and cria healthy and thriving.
Who is this course for?
This course is designed for anyone new to or thinking about breeding alpacas.
If you are looking for general alpaca husbandry, check out our Alpaca Husbandry Course here.
Real Life Experience
This course gives you real-life experience with birthing animals*, using lambing time to provide hands-on observation and practical learning. While the experience is often incredibly rewarding and enjoyable, it can occasionally involve challenging or emotional moments. For this reason, the course may not be suitable for those who are squeamish or sensitive to the realities of working closely with animals on a farm.
Why Choose Fostings Alpacas?
A Lifetime of Experience
Alice is trained in Animal Management and has over 17 years experience in the animal care industry, while Kevin has a lifetime's experience in agriculture. Together, we offer realistic, practical, and helpful guidance to help ensure your alpaca breeding and birthing season goes as smoothly as possible.
Real Farmers, Real Births*, Real Learning
Most birthing courses focus solely on classroom-based, theoretical learning. While that’s a valuable foundation, nothing compares to gaining real, hands-on experience, especially before you face your first birthing situation on your own. At Fostings Farm, our flock of 140 ewes produce around 230 lambs each March, giving you exclusive access to the lambing shed to learn skills that are cross-applicable to alpacas and cria. This unique opportunity allows you to observe real-time, real-life births* and build confidence through practical experience.
Small Groups & Personal Attention
Many courses run large groups where people don’t get hands-on time. Each course date is limited to 4 persons, which naturally allows for personalised training, space to ask questions without feeling silly and time to practice, not just observe.
Comprehensive E-Guide Included
You’ll receive access to an extensive E-Guide packed with clear explanations, practical notes, and real-life photo examples that you can refer back to whenever you need. And you’re never on your own - ongoing support is always available at the end of a WhatsApp, email or phone call, so you can can step into the world of alpaca breeding and birthing with confidence and reassurance.
Course Itinerary
This is a one day course running from 8am - 2pm
Introduction
Meet your tutors, Alice & Kevin, and begin with a quick Health & Safety briefing in the lambing shed, where most of the day's learning will take place.
Why in the lambing shed?
In the UK, alpaca herds are typically much smaller than sheep flocks, and births are spread out over several months, with each female producing just one cria. By contrast, our 140 ewes all lamb within just four weeks, usually producing twins, which means the lambing shed offers a far greater likelihood of witnessing a live birth (hopefully multiple!). This provides invaluable real-time learning, with many of the techniques and knowledge being cross-applicable to alpaca birthing.
Selecting Your Alpacas
Before you begin breeding, it is essential to carefully select the alpacas that will make up your breeding herd. In this chapter, we will look at the key considerations involved in choosing suitable animals.
Mating
The mating process in alpacas is a lot more complex than other animals, so to avoid stress and heartbreak for both you and your alpacas, it is important to be accustomed to their ways before diving straight in.
Pregnancy
Once conception occurs, the 11.5 month journey to a hopefully healthy cria begins. In this section, we’ll explore how to confirm pregnancy, how to care for the dam throughout gestation and what best prenatal practices look like to help ensure a smooth, healthy pregnancy.
Birthing
Learn how to prepare for birthing, recognise the signs and stages of labour, and understand when intervention may be needed. We’ll also cover how to determine whether you can assist yourself or when it’s time to call the vet, along with how to support the birthing process effectively from start to finish.
Early Cria Care
Learn what’s normal (and what isn’t!) for a newborn cria, how to identify signs of prematurity, and what essential steps to take immediately after birth. We’ll cover how to check that the cria has successfully suckled (and what to do if it hasn’t) as well as the care needed throughout the first few days, the following weeks, and the months leading up to weaning.
Beyond the First Week
As the cria progresses beyond its first week of life and continues to grow, attentive monitoring remains essential to support healthy development through to weaning. During this period, several key husbandry tasks must also be carried out.
Q&A Over Lunch
To wrap up the course, we’ll stop for lunch, giving you the perfect opportunity to ask any lingering questions and clarify anything from the day’s learning.
E-Guide
You will also receive the The Alpaca Breeding & Birthing E-Guide in downloadable PDF format, which includes comprehensive notes of the entire course material for you to refer back to anytime!
Book below
👇
Course Info
What is the cost?
The course costs £95.00 pp (incl. VAT)
What's included?
Includes the day's training, lunch and refreshments, as well as a copy of the Alpaca Breeding & Birthing E-Guide which includes lifetime updates. Plus, if you purchase alpacas from us within the same year, the Course fee will be deducted from your invoice!
Are lunch & refreshments provided?
Yes, lunch & refreshments are included
Please let us know if you have any dietary requirements when booking
When can I do the course?
There's just two dates available:
Wednesday 11th March 2026
Monday 16th March 2026
How long is the course?
The courses runs for 6 hours (including refreshment break and lunch) from 8am - 2pm
Where does the course take place?
The course is held on site at Fostings Farm, Kinnerton, Presteigne, Powys, LD82PF
Get Google Maps directions here
What do I need to bring?
The course includes practical handling outside with sheep and alpacas, so please wear clean, sensible, closed-toe shoes and warm, waterproof clothing that you don't mind getting dirty or stained
Can I do the course if I am pregnant?
For the safety of both mother and baby, anyone who is pregnant, trying to conceive, or has a partner who is expecting should not take part in this birthing course. You can see more information on the NHS website here. Please do not book this course if there is any chance you or your partner may be pregnant.
Book below
👇
Directions
The course is held on site at Fostings Farm, Kinnerton, Presteigne, Powys, LD82PF
Google Maps will bring you directly to us or, if using Satnav, follow it until you see our blue signs
Terms & Conditions
Payment
The cost of this course is £95.00 per person. Non-refundable full payment is required to confirm your booking. These payments will be paid to Fostings Farm, trading as Fostings Alpacas and are subject to VAT (already included in the pricing).
Cancellation
Once a booking is made, any monies paid are non-refundable. There is no ‘cooling off’ period, so please ensure you are certain about your booking before confirming. All cancellation requests must be sent via email to alice@fostingsalpacas.co.uk. A cancellation is not confirmed until you receive a written response from us. Fostings Alpacas and Hush Hush Glamping reserves the right to cancel bookings at any time, with or without reason.
Pregnant Persons
For the safety of both mother and baby, anyone who is pregnant, trying to conceive, or has a partner who is expecting should not take part in this birthing course. Please do not book this course if there is any chance you or your partner may be pregnant, as any payments are non-refundable.
Real-life Experience
This course gives you real-life experience with birthing animals*, using lambing time to provide hands-on observation and practical learning. While the experience is often incredibly rewarding and enjoyable, it can occasionally involve challenging or emotional moments. For this reason, the course may not be suitable for those who are squeamish or sensitive to the realities of working closely with animals on a farm.
Allergies
Please be aware that allergens may be present during your visit. It’s your responsibility to be aware of any allergies within your group and plan appropriately. Possible allergens include (but are not limited to) dust, straw, hay, sheep, alpacas and cats.
Age Requirement
All persons staying and participating must be aged 16 years or older.
Dogs
Dogs are not permitted at the course and should not be left in your car, so please leave them at home with appropriate care in place.
Food & Drink
Food and drink is not allowed to be consumed in the lambing shed. Light refreshments and lunch will be provided in the classroom area.
Hand Washing
Toilet and hand-washing facilities are available on site. Please wash your hands regularly throughout the day, especially before and after using the toilet and before eating or drinking.
Zoonoses
Alpacas, sheep and other animals can carry Zoonotic diseases (diseases that can pass between animals and humans, such as ringworm), so participants accept that they touch the animals entirely at their own risk.
Fingernails
If the opportunity to assist a lamb presents itself and you’d like to get involved, please make sure your fingernails are short and neatly trimmed. We reserve the right to limit participation if necessary, to ensure the sheep’s welfare is always protected.
Jewellery
For your own safety and for the safety of the animals, jewellery is not permitted (this included rings, bracelets, watches, necklaces, earrings, facial piercings). We reserve the right to limit participation if necessary, to ensure the animal’s welfare is always protected.
*Witnessing a birth
We have scheduled the course dates and timings to give you the best chance of witnessing a birth, but this can’t be guaranteed - Mother Nature has her own schedule, and it all depends on how much time we spend in the shed and a touch of good timing.
Photos and videos
We may take photos and videos during your course. By booking, you’re giving your consent for this in advance. We’ll share any images with you as a keepsake of your time with us. If you’d prefer not to be photographed, just let us know.
Risks
Your course takes place on a working farm, where machinery may be in use. Please ensure that everyone in your party is aware of this and takes care to keep clear of machinery to avoid injury. For your safety, participants must follow the instructions of your course instructors (Alice & Kevin) and adhere to all farm rules at all times.
Insurance
We hold Public Liability Insurance but we request that you hold your own personal accident and cancellation insurance. We recommend that you take out personal insurance for the unlikely event that you break down, have traffic delays, suffer from illness or are prevented in any other way from attending your course.
Weather
Courses will go ahead regardless of the weather and will not be rescheduled. If snow is forecast, we can arrange to collect you from the village hall. We will not travel further out than Kinnerton Village Hall (LD82PE) to collect you. As above, we recommend that you take out personal insurance for the unlikely event that you are prevented in any way from attending your course.