Chuck and Dianne's Alpaca Farm I enjoy a challenge.  More than that, I enjoy discovering who a dog is apart from their up front behaviors and taking the time to earn their trust and love.  This trip gave me the opportunity to fulfill both needs.  The most important rule to keep in mind when venturing out on such a voyage, is to not have any preconceived notions or biases towards the dogs.  Live in the moment with the dogs. This is Einstein.  He was the first of Chuck and Dianne's dogs to accept us and want to be close by.  After that, the other two were more comfortable with our presence. Even though they were all trepidacious of each other at first, it was vital that they sleep as a pack - together in the same space, with Rick and I elevated on the bed.  The first couple of nights they slept as far apart as they could from each other, at opposite ends of the room.  But after a while they began to relax and lay in more comfortable arrangements. This was Kita's first reaction to these unfamiliar animals- hide behind Dad.  After becoming acclimated to them and retrieving her nerve, her natural drive came out.   Kita's Moment  Hoshi and Jackson surprised us by not being as fixated on the task as Kita.  They had their moments though.                                                  Team Work When Chuck and Dianne came back; they released the female alpacas to roam the hillside. Here's the whole group - Dusty, Einstein, TJ, Kita, Jackson, Hoshi, Rick and Chuck.  Everyone had a great time.  Rick got to try his hand at being an alpaca herder (he discovered why using extra long sticks is helpful), the dogs got to express their nature, Chuck had the opportunity to laugh at all of the antics (and to prove a point about his gentle alpacas) and I was able to look at the big picture and see natural instincts in everyone come out.  I was pretty impressed with a lot of what I saw.  I think that Chuck has a point, though, when he said that the alpacas only stayed in a group because they knew that the dogs would stop harassing them if they were together.  It was definitely fun for us, but I think that the alpacas enjoy it more when Kita is not on the watch.                                            The Whole Group (mostly)  This is a picture of Butch and Sundance as babies (cria).     Chuck and Dianne take them to fairs and events often.  This helps socialize them to human contact and exposes people to a species that is rare, intelligent and friendly. This is Butch and Sundance as of November.  I think they're still young enough to be considered cria.   Chuck can be reached at  chuck.homer@comcast.net  if you are interested in learning more about their lovely farm, Alpacas of New Mexico.  They specialize in raising friendly lovable alpacas.  I would say they have accomplished that goal. So by the end of our stay, all six dogs agreed to accept each other as pack mates.  Working with dogs can be all consuming.   For me, the goal, the path and the outcome is always well worth the effort.  Dogs are my teachers.  I only try to be a good student.  From top left: Einstein, Dusty, TJ, Kita, Jackson and Hoshi (all respecting a boundary around food). To read more about our experiences with house-sitting the Alpaca Farm, check out the Home Page. 505-604-6367 2003 Southern Blvd. SE #102-85, Rio Rancho, NM 87144 answers@afreshperspectivedogtraining.com